Police Creating Accountability by Making Effective Recording Available Act of 2025 or the Police CAMERA Act of 2025
This bill authorizes the Bureau of Justice Assistance within the Department of Justice to make grants for states, local governments, and Indian tribes to purchase or lease body-worn cameras for use by law enforcement officers and to implement body-worn camera programs.
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1188 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1188
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to
authorize a grant program to assist State and local law enforcement
agencies in purchasing body-worn cameras and securely storing and
maintaining recorded data for law enforcement officers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 11, 2025
Mr. Cohen introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to
authorize a grant program to assist State and local law enforcement
agencies in purchasing body-worn cameras and securely storing and
maintaining recorded data for law enforcement officers.
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 ``Police Creating Accountability by
Making Effective Recording Available Act of 2025'' or the ``Police
CAMERA Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT BODY-WORN CAMERAS.
Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968
(34 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``PART MM--MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT BODY-WORN CAMERAS
AND RECORDED DATA
``SEC. 3031. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.
``(a) In General.--The Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance
(in this section referred to as the `Director') may make grants to
States, units of local government, and Indian Tribes to purchase or
lease body-worn cameras for use by State, local, and Tribal law
enforcement officers (as defined in section 2503) and expenses related
to the implementation of a body-worn camera program in order to deter
excessive force, improve accountability and transparency of use of
force by law enforcement officers, assist in responding to complaints
against law enforcement officers, and improve evidence collection.
``(b) Duration of Grants.--
``(1) In general.--Grants awarded under this part shall be
2 years in duration.
``(2) Disbursement of grant amount.--In disbursing a grant
awarded to an entity under this section--
``(A) upon awarding the grant to the entity, the
Director shall disburse 50 percent of the total grant
amount to the entity; and
``(B) upon demonstration by the entity of
completion of the requirements in subsection (d)(1),
the Director shall disburse the remaining 50 percent of
the total grant amount to the entity.
``(c) Use of Funds.--Grants awarded under this section shall be--
``(1) distributed directly to the State, unit of local
government, or Indian Tribe; and
``(2) used for--
``(A) the purchase or lease of body-worn cameras
for law enforcement officers on patrol in the
jurisdiction of the grantee;
``(B) any costs relating to the implementation of a
body-worn camera program, including law enforcement
officer training or the storage, maintenance, or
security of recorded data collected under a body-worn
camera program; or
``(C) implementing policies or procedures to comply
with the requirements described in subsection (d).
``(d) Requirements.--
``(1) In general.--The Director shall award a grant under
this section to a State, unit of local government, or Indian
Tribe requesting the grant that commits to--
``(A) establishing policies and procedures in
accordance with the requirements described in paragraph
(2) before law enforcement officers use of body-worn
cameras;
``(B) adopting recorded data collection and
retention protocols as described in paragraph (3)
before law enforcement officers use of body-worn
cameras;
``(C) making the policies and protocols described
in subparagraphs (A) and (B) available to the public;
and
``(D) complying with the requirements for use of
recorded data under paragraph (5).
``(2) Required policies and procedures.--An entity
receiving a grant under this section shall--
``(A) develop with community input and publish for
public view policies and protocols for--
``(i) the safe and effective use of body-
worn cameras;
``(ii) the secure storage, handling, and
destruction of recorded data collected by body-
worn cameras;
``(iii) protecting the privacy rights of
any individual who may be recorded by a body-
worn camera;
``(iv) protecting the constitutional rights
of any individual on whom facial recognition
technology is used;
``(v) limitations on the use of body-worn
cameras in conjunction with facial recognition
technology for instances, including--
``(I) the use of facial recognition
technology only with judicial
authorization;
``(II) the use of facial
recognition technology only for
imminent threats or serious crimes; and
``(III) the use of facial
recognition technology with double
verification of identified faces;
``(vi) the release of any recorded data
collected by a body-worn camera in accordance
with the open records laws, if any, of the
State; and
``(vii) making recorded data available to
prosecutors, defense attorneys, and other
officers of the court in accordance with
paragraph (5); and
``(B) conduct periodic evaluations of the security
of the storage and handling of the body-worn camera
data.
``(3) Recorded data collection and retention protocol.--The
recorded data collection and retention protocol described in
this paragraph is a protocol that--
``(A) requires--
``(i) a law enforcement officer who is
wearing a body-mounted camera to provide an
explanation if an activity that is required to
be recorded by the body-mounted camera is not
recorded;
``(ii) a law enforcement officer who is
wearing a body-mounted camera to obtain consent
to be recorded from a crime victim or witness
before interviewing the victim or witness;
``(iii) the collection of recorded data
unrelated to a legitimate law enforcement
purpose be minimized to the greatest extent
practicable;
``(iv) the system used to store recorded
data collected by body-worn cameras shall log
all viewing, modification, or deletion of
stored recorded data and shall prevent, to the
greatest extent practicable, the unauthorized
access or disclosure of stored recorded data;
``(v) any law enforcement officer be
prohibited from accessing the stored data
without an authorized purpose; and
``(vi) the law enforcement agency to
collect and report statistical data on--
``(I) incidences of use of force,
disaggregated by race, ethnicity,
gender, and age of the victim;
``(II) the number of complaints
filed against law enforcement officers;
``(III) the disposition of
complaints filed against law
enforcement officers;
``(IV) the number of times camera
footage is used for evidence collection
in investigations of crimes; and
``(V) any other additional
statistical data that the Director
determines should be collected and
reported;
``(B) allows an individual to file a complaint with
a law enforcement agency relating to the improper use
of body-worn cameras; and
``(C) complies with any other requirements
established by the Director.
``(4) Reporting.--Statistical data required to be collected
under paragraph (3)(A)(vi) shall be reported to the Director,
who shall--
``(A) establish a standardized reporting system for
statistical data collected under this program; and
``(B) establish a national database of statistical
data recorded under this program.
``(5) Use or transfer of recorded data.--
``(A) In general.--Recorded data collected by an
entity receiving a grant under this section from a
body-mounted camera shall be used only in internal and
external investigations of misconduct by a law
enforcement agency or officer, if there is reasonable
suspicion that a recording contains evidence of a
crime, or for limited training purposes. The Director
shall establish rules to ensure that the recorded data
is used only for the purposes described in this
subparagraph.
``(B) Prohibition on transfer.--Except as provided
in subparagraph (C), an entity receiving a grant under
this section may not transfer any recorded data
collected by the entity from a body-mounted camera to
another law enforcement or intelligence agency.
``(C) Exceptions.--
``(i) Criminal investigation.--An entity
receiving a grant under this section may
transfer recorded data collected by the entity
from a body-mounted camera to another law
enforcement agency or intelligence agency for
use in a criminal investigation if the
requesting law enforcement or intelligence
agency has reasonable suspicion that the
requested data contains evidence relating to
the crime being investigated.
``(ii) Civil rights claims.--An entity
receiving a grant under this section may
transfer recorded data collected by the law
enforcement agency from a body-mounted camera
to another law enforcement agency for use in an
investigation of any right, privilege, or
immunity secured or protected by the
Constitution or laws of the United States.
``(e) Matching Funds.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), the
Federal share of the cost of a program carried out using a
grant under this part may not exceed 75 percent of the total
cost of the program.
``(2) Indian assistance.--Any funds appropriated by
Congress for the activities of any agency of an Indian Tribal
government or the Bureau of Indian Affairs performing law
enforcement functions on any Indian lands may be used to
provide the non-Federal share of the matching requirement
described in paragraph (1).
``(3) Waiver.--The Director may waive, in whole or in part,
the matching requirement described in paragraph (1) in the case
of fiscal hardship, as determined by the Director.
``(f) Allocation of Funds.--For fiscal years 2026 through 2028, of
the amounts appropriated to the Bureau of Justice Assistance,
$30,000,000 shall be used to carry out this part.
``(g) Audit and Assessment.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this part, the Director of the Office of Audit,
Assessment, and Management shall perform an assessment of the
grant program and the policies and protocols of the grantees.
``(2) Reports.--Not later than September 1 of each year,
beginning 2 years after the date of enactment of this part,
each recipient of a grant under this part shall submit to the
Director of the Office of Audit, Assessment, and Management a
report that--
``(A) describes the progress of the body-worn
camera program; and
``(B) contains recommendations on ways in which the
Federal Government, States, and units of local
government can further support the implementation of
the program.
``(3) Review.--The Director of the Office of Audit,
Assessment, and Management shall evaluate the policies and
protocols of the grantees and take such steps as the Director
of the Office of Audit, Assessment, and Management determines
necessary to ensure compliance with the program.
``SEC. 3032. BODY-WORN CAMERA TRAINING TOOLKIT.
``(a) In General.--The Director shall establish and maintain a
toolkit for law enforcement agencies, academia, and other relevant
entities to provide training and technical assistance, including best
practices for implementation, model policies and procedures, and
research materials.
``(b) Mechanism.--In establishing the toolkit required to under
subsection (a), the Director may consolidate research, practices,
templates, and tools that been developed by expert and law enforcement
agencies across the country.
``SEC. 3033. APPLICATIONS.
``(a) In General.--To request a grant under this part, the chief
executive of a State, unit of local government, or Indian Tribe shall
submit an application to the Director in a form and containing
information as the Director may reasonably require.
``(b) Regulations.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this part, the Director shall promulgate regulations to
implement this part, including the information that shall be included
and the requirements that the States, units of local government, and
Indian Tribes must meet in submitting the applications required under
this section.
``SEC. 3034. STUDY.
``(a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date on which
all grants are awarded under this part, the Director shall conduct a
study on--
``(1) the efficacy of body-worn cameras in deterring
excessive force by law enforcement officers;
``(2) the impact of body-worn cameras on the accountability
and transparency of the use of force by law enforcement
officers;
``(3) the impact of body-worn cameras on responses to and
adjudications of complaints of excessive force;
``(4) the effect of the use of body-worn cameras on the
safety of law enforcement officers on patrol;
``(5) the effect of the use of body-worn cameras on public
safety;
``(6) the impact of body-worn cameras on evidence
collection for criminal investigations;
``(7) issues relating to the secure storage and handling of
recorded data from the body-worn cameras;
``(8) issues relating to the privacy of citizens and
officers recorded on body-worn cameras;
``(9) issues relating to the constitutional rights of
individuals on whom facial recognition technology is used;
``(10) issues relating to limitations on the use of facial
recognition technology;
``(11) issues relating to the public's access to body-worn
camera footage;
``(12) the need for proper training of law enforcement
officers that use body-worn cameras;
``(13) best practices in the development of protocols for
the safe and effective use of body-worn cameras;
``(14) a review of law enforcement agencies that found
body-worn cameras to be unhelpful in the operations of the
agencies; and
``(15) any other factors that the Director determines are
relevant in evaluating the efficacy of body-worn cameras.
``(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which the
study required under subsection (a) is completed, the Director shall
submit to Congress a report on the study, which shall include any
policy recommendations that the Director considers appropriate.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
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