Promoting Public Safety and Supporting Law Enforcement Act of 2020
This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to withhold 5% of highway safety program and national priority safety program funding from states and local governments that defund or otherwise reduce funding for a law enforcement entity without a clear budgetary reason.
A state or local government may submit documentation or other evidence to DOT for review to determine if the defunding of, or other reduction in funding for, a law enforcement entity was carried out for a clear budgetary reason.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3960 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3960
To require the Secretary of Transportation to withhold certain amounts
from State and local governments that defund or otherwise reduce
funding for certain law enforcement entities without a clear budgetary
reason, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 15, 2020
Mrs. Loeffler introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Transportation to withhold certain amounts
from State and local governments that defund or otherwise reduce
funding for certain law enforcement entities without a clear budgetary
reason, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Promoting Public Safety and
Supporting Law Enforcement Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) law enforcement officers provide a necessary public
service by enforcing the rule of law, preventing crime and
civil disorder, protecting communities and property, and
ensuring the safety and health of the people of the United
States, including by ensuring--
(A) the safe operation of motor vehicles;
(B) the safe use of public routes of
transportation, such as highways and other roadways,
pedestrian walkways, and sidewalks; and
(C) that parks remain safe, open, civil, and
available for public enjoyment;
(2) police forces and other law enforcement entities
require full funding to ensure a sufficient presence of
officers to maintain the safe use of public roadways, highways,
walkways, sidewalks, and city blocks in every community across
the United States;
(3) absent a fully funded police force, people using
roadways, community parks, city sidewalks, or other public
areas may be placed at increased risk from--
(A) the unsafe operation of motor vehicles,
including by themselves or others; and
(B) other dangers to public safety;
(4) a fully funded police force is necessary to protect--
(A) the public safety of the general population of
a community; and
(B) law enforcement officers in the community, as
required by Executive Order 13774 (82 Fed. Reg. 10695;
relating to preventing violence against Federal, State,
Tribal, and local law enforcement officers);
(5) defunding or otherwise reducing funding for State or
local law enforcement entities will result in a reduction in,
or the elimination of, the presence of law enforcement officers
in communities, resulting in a State being noncompliant with
the safety requirements of certain Federal programs, including
the requirements of--
(A) the highway safety programs under section 402
of title 23, United States Code; and
(B) the national priority safety programs under
section 405 of title 23, United States Code; and
(6) it is necessary to ensure that State and local
governments do not defund or otherwise reduce funding for
police forces and other law enforcement entities absent a clear
budgetary need to do so.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide authority for
the Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General, to withhold
certain funds from State and local governments that unnecessarily put
the people subject to the jurisdiction of those governments at risk
from a lack of sufficient law enforcement resources, including the
presence of law enforcement officers, by defunding or otherwise
reducing funding for police forces or other law enforcement entities
absent a clear budgetary need to do so.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Clear budgetary need.--The term ``clear budgetary
need'', with respect to an action taken by a State or local
government to defund or otherwise reduce funding for a law
enforcement entity, means that the action was taken--
(A) in the course of a State or local government
annual budget process; and
(B) in consideration of the revenues and
expenditures of the State or local government.
(2) Law enforcement entity.--The term ``law enforcement
entity'' means a State or local agency that engages in or
supervises the prevention, detection, or investigation of
violations of laws, including criminal or traffic laws.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Transportation.
SEC. 4. WITHHOLDING OF CERTAIN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FUNDING
FROM STATE AND LOCAL JURISDICTIONS.
(a) In General.--Subject to subsections (c) and (d), the Secretary
shall withhold from a State described in subsection (b) 5 percent of--
(1) the amount required to be apportioned to the State
under section 402 of title 23, United States Code, on the first
day of each fiscal year after the fiscal year in which the
Secretary determines that the State is a State described in
subsection (b); and
(2) the amount made available to the State under section
405 of title 23, United States Code, for each fiscal year after
the fiscal year in which the Secretary determines that the
State is a State described in subsection (b).
(b) States Described.--A State referred to in subsection (a) is a
State in which the State or a local government within that State
defunds or otherwise reduces funding for a law enforcement entity
absent a clear budgetary need for doing so.
(c) Effect of Withholding of Funds.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and
(3) and subsection (d), no amounts withheld from a State under
subsection (a) shall be apportioned or made available to that
State.
(2) Restricted use of funds.--In the case of a State that
the Secretary determines is a State described in subsection (b)
because a local government within that State has defunded or
otherwise reduced funding for a law enforcement entity as
described in that subsection, the Secretary may apportion or
make available to the State, as applicable, the amounts
described in subsection (a) if the State agrees--
(A) not to make those amounts available for use by
that local government; and
(B) to the maximum extent practicable, not to
expend those amounts in any community or location
subject to the jurisdiction of that local government.
(3) Restoration of law enforcement funding.--
(A) In general.--Any amounts withheld from a State
under subsection (a) or local government under
paragraph (2) during the fiscal year in which the
Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General,
makes a determination under subparagraph (B) that
funding has been restored to the applicable law
enforcement entity at the level described in that
subparagraph shall be apportioned or made available, as
applicable, to that State or local government.
(B) Determination of funding level.--Amounts may be
apportioned or made available to a State or local
government under subparagraph (A) for the fiscal year
described in that subparagraph if the Secretary, in
consultation with the Attorney General, determines that
funding has been restored to the applicable law
enforcement agency at the lesser of--
(i) the level at which the law enforcement
entity was funded prior to the defunding or
reduction in funding that caused the Secretary
to determine that the State is a State
described in subsection (b); and
(ii) the level at which the Secretary, in
consultation with the Attorney General,
determines is minimally necessary to ensure the
public safety.
(C) Limitation.--The Secretary may not apportion or
make available under this paragraph any amounts
withheld from a State or local government during any
fiscal year preceding the fiscal year in which the
Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General,
makes the determination described in subparagraph (B).
(D) Effect of determination on future funding.--
Beginning on the date on which the Secretary, in
consultation with the Attorney General, makes the
determination described in subparagraph (B), the
applicable State or local government shall not be
subject to the withholding described in subsection (a)
or paragraph (2), as applicable, with respect to the
defunding of, or reduction in funding for, a law
enforcement entity that caused the Secretary to
determine that the State was a State described in
subsection (b).
(d) Request for Review.--
(1) In general.--On the request of a State from which
amounts have been or will be withheld under subsection (a) or a
local government from which amounts have been or will be
withheld under subsection (c)(2), the Secretary, in
consultation with the Attorney General--
(A) shall review any documentation or other
evidence submitted by the State or local government;
and
(B) based on that review, may determine that the
defunding of, or other reduction in funding for, a law
enforcement entity that caused the Secretary to
determine that the State is a State described in
subsection (b) was carried out for a clear budgetary
need.
(2) Considerations.--In determining whether the applicable
defunding of, or reduction in funding for, a law enforcement
entity was carried out for a clear budgetary need under
paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary, in consultation with Attorney
General, may consider--
(A) any actual or anticipated reduction in State or
local government revenue;
(B) any determination by the State or local
government that a general reduction in spending is
required across all budget categories;
(C) in the case of a State or local government with
multiple law enforcement entities of overlapping
jurisdiction, whether a determination was made to
consolidate those entities into a single entity; and
(D) any other evidence presented by the State or
local government supporting an assertion that the
applicable defunding of, or reduction in funding for, a
law enforcement entity was carried out for a clear
budgetary need.
(3) Effect of determination.--If the Secretary, in
consultation with the Attorney General, determines under
paragraph (1)(B) that the applicable defunding of, or reduction
in funding for, a law enforcement entity was carried out for a
clear budgetary need--
(A) the applicable State or local government shall
not be subject to the applicable withholding described
in subsection (a) or subsection (c)(2) beginning on the
date on which that determination is made; and
(B) any amounts withheld from the State or local
government under subsection (a) or subsection (c)(2),
as applicable, during the fiscal year in which that
determination is made shall be apportioned or made
available, as applicable, to that State or local
government.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
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