U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from all members of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate as well as the House and Senate leadership and House and Senate committees.
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Sen. Portman, Bipartisan Group of Senators Urge President Biden to Keep Section 301 Tariffs in Place, Enforce Phase One Agreement With China
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release and letter on May 25, 2022:
U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) today led a bipartisan group of senators in sending a letter to President Biden urging him not to lift the Section 301 tariffs, which currently target China and their illegal and unfair trade practices. The Biden administration has publicly signaled a desire to lift the tariffs, a policy position long advocated for by the Chinese Communist Party. The Biden administration has also noted that China has failed to comply with provisions in the Phase One Agreement,
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release and letter on May 25, 2022:
U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) today led a bipartisan group of senators in sending a letter to President Biden urging him not to lift the Section 301 tariffs, which currently target China and their illegal and unfair trade practices. The Biden administration has publicly signaled a desire to lift the tariffs, a policy position long advocated for by the Chinese Communist Party. The Biden administration has also noted that China has failed to comply with provisions in the Phase One Agreement,which the Trump administration reached with China in January 2020. Despite China's non-compliance, the Biden administration has signaled a reluctance to utilize the Agreement's enforcement mechanism to hold China accountable.
"We write to express our continued support for the trade action taken against China pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. We share long-standing concerns about the ways in which China's acts, policies, and practices have discriminated against U.S. exports and contributed to the offshoring of U.S. jobs, manufacturing, and innovation, all of which has undermined the competitiveness of our country. As you consider the future of the Section 301 action, we urge you to substantially maintain the tariffs in their current form. Rolling back the tariffs on China would undermine the U.S. position in negotiations, expose many U.S. companies and workers to a sudden flood of imports, and signal to China that waiting out the United States is preferable to changing their non-market behavior or complying with the Phase One Agreement," said the senators.
They continued, "Rather than lifting the tariffs, the United States should use the enforcement tools guaranteed by that agreement to make clear that we are serious about rectifying its violations. We need to make clear to China that dialogue leads to commitments--and failure to adhere to these commitments are followed by robust enforcement. If we do not exercise the legal rights under the Phase One Agreement, it will only make it more difficult to make progress with China on the subsidies, state-owned enterprises, suppression of labor rights, and other unfair behaviors that are the core of the structural obstacles to a level playing field in bilateral trade."
Along with Portman, senators who signed onto the letter include Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Mike Braun (R-IN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Rick Scott (R-FL), Bob Casey (D-PA), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
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May 25, 2022
To: The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Biden:
We write to express our continued support for the trade action taken against China pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974. We share long-standing concerns about the ways in which China's acts, policies, and practices have discriminated against U.S. exports and contributed to the offshoring of U.S. jobs, manufacturing, and innovation, all of which has undermined the competitiveness of our country. As you consider the future of the Section 301 action, we urge you to substantially maintain the tariffs in their current form. Rolling back the tariffs on China would undermine the U.S. position in negotiations, expose many U.S. companies and workers to a sudden flood of imports, and signal to China that waiting out the United States is preferable to changing their non-market behavior or complying with the Phase One Agreement.
The United States imposed tariffs on $370 billion worth of goods from China in response to China's discriminatory economic practices. For example, China imposes joint venture requirements on U.S. firms seeking to do business in China, thereby placing a thumb on the scale in favor of offshoring and technology transfer. China also requires foreign companies to license technology to Chinese firms at terms unfairly beneficial to China, and orchestrates intrusion into U.S. computer networks and theft of commercial intellectual property. These tariffs helped the United States conclude the Phase One Agreement with China to set new limits on these unfair practices. And yet, China continues to engage in non-market conduct which tilts the playing field away from American firms and workers, and towards Beijing's Communist Party. The proliferation of industrial subsidies, reliance on State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), abuse of labor and human rights, and the expansion of Belt and Road Initiative all come to mind.
We also believe it would be naive to disregard recent actions taken by China that raise significant geopolitical concerns. China is committing genocide against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region and other parts of the country. China has effectively ended Hong Kong's separate political system and is forcing the people of Hong Kong to live under its dictatorial rules. And China has also emerged as Vladimir Putin's strongest ally, even as Russia continues to attack Ukraine. These facts raise grave concerns about the long-term future of U.S.-China relations.
Given these realities, we believe it counterproductive to lift or erode the Section 301 tariffs, especially in the hopes that China will somehow become more cooperative on other issues. At present, China remains wedded to a techno-nationalism at odds with American values--something hardly to be rewarded.
While an exclusion process is necessary in certain circumstances, such as when products cannot be currently sourced domestically, lifting, or even modifying, the tariffs from their current broad scope, would make it more difficult for the United States to exercise the leverage needed to address the acts, policies, and practices which necessitated the tariffs in the first place. Relatedly, it would signal to Beijing that, for all its rhetoric, the United States is not serious about addressing the inequities and imbalances in the bilateral relationship. In fact, Beijing has repeatedly asked for the tariffs to be removed--a sure sign that the Section 301 action is a significant concern for the Chinese Communist Party and its mercantilist economic approach. Removal of the tariffs would be a unilateral give-away to a regime looking to undermine U.S. competitiveness. Furthermore, it would reward China's non-compliance with provisions of the Phase One Agreement.
Rather than lifting the tariffs, the United States should use the enforcement tools guaranteed by that agreement to make clear that we are serious about rectifying its violations. We need to make clear to China that dialogue leads to commitments--and failure to adhere to these commitments are followed by robust enforcement. If we do not exercise the legal rights under the Phase One Agreement, it will only make it more difficult to make progress with China on the subsidies, state-owned enterprises, suppression of labor rights, and other unfair behaviors that are the core of the structural obstacles to a level playing field in bilateral trade.
In closing, we note that the tariffs are not a driver of today's inflation. Not only do the tariffs predate the current inflation by over three years, but Chinese imports make up only 2 percent of goods included in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and would not materially reduce inflation. Indeed, much of the inflation we are seeing relates to fuel and food--sectors that are unrelated to imports from China. To avoid the tremendous strategic cost of lifting the tariffs, we urge you to retain the tariffs on China in their current form, and exercise all the tools at your disposal to assert U.S. rights in the face of China's unfair economic practices.
Sen. Grassley, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Help 1st Responders Access Key Health Insurance Benefit in Retirement
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, issued the following news release:
Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), John Thune (R-S.D.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) have introduced legislation that seeks to make it easier for retired first responders to take advantage of a benefit designed to help them cover health expenses.
Under the current system, health insurance payments are required to go directly from the pension plan to the health insurer for first responders to obtain the existing tax benefit. Their new bipartisan proposal would improve and reform the Healthcare
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, issued the following news release:
Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), John Thune (R-S.D.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) have introduced legislation that seeks to make it easier for retired first responders to take advantage of a benefit designed to help them cover health expenses.
Under the current system, health insurance payments are required to go directly from the pension plan to the health insurer for first responders to obtain the existing tax benefit. Their new bipartisan proposal would improve and reform the HealthcareEnhancement for Local Public Safety (HELPS) Act by no longer requiring the payment to be made directly to the health insurer. Instead, distribution could be made directly to the retiree. Allowing payments to be made directly to the retiree will enable first responders to exclude from tax up to $3,000 of a retirement distribution if they use it to pay for health care premiums.
"First responders play a vital role in our communities, addressing a variety of high-stress emergency situations throughout their careers. All first responders ought to be able to take advantage of a tax benefit that is intended to help them access health coverage in retirement," Grassley said.
"Ohio firefighters and other first responders wear their bodies out protecting our families and communities, and they shouldn't have to worry about being penalized for withdrawing from retirement that they've earned," Brown said. "This is a simple solution that allows first responders to keep their own money and alleviate pressure on state and local governments."
"We owe a great debt of gratitude to our retired police officers, firefighters, and other first responders who dedicated their lives to protecting our communities and keeping our friends, families, and neighbors across South Dakota safe," said Thune. "Currently, it is extremely difficult for retired first responders to utilize an existing benefit that helps cover certain health care expenses, which is why I introduced this legislation that would ensure these retirees can make tax-free withdrawals from their pension and direct those amounts to qualifying insurance premiums."
"Virginia's first responders put themselves at risk every day to protect our communities - the least we can do is ensure that they are taken care of in retirement," said Warner. "I'm proud to introduce the bipartisan Police and Fire Health Care Protection Act of 2022, which will make it easier for tens of thousands of retired officers - like Mr. Wally Bunker, a stalwart advocate and retired police officer from Culpepper - to claim the benefits that they have earned."
In order to implement the direct payment requirement under current law, state and local retirement systems are now responsible for directly paying often numerous health and long-term care providers and keeping track of changes to premium amounts and payment deadlines for thousands and sometimes tens of thousands of retirees. This already challenging task is made even more difficult because providers will often communicate only with the retiree policyholder and not with the retirement system. Information does not flow seamlessly, and inadvertent errors are made. In addition, due to the complexity, some retirement systems have made the decision to not implement HELPS, thereby resulting in retired public safety officers covered by these pension plans being ineligible for the tax benefit.
Under the senators' bill, plans that are able to implement HELPS through the current direct payment method, possibly because they have only one or two providers to pay and a small number of retirees, may continue to do so. However, for the many retirement systems that are experiencing administrative problems with the current requirement or have refused to implement HELPS because of the burdens, the senators' legislation will allow them to make distributions to their retirees without rendering the retiree ineligible for the tax exclusion.
In cases where the distribution is made to the retiree, the legislation would require the retiree to include with their tax return an attestation that the amount sought to be excluded from the pension distribution does not exceed the amount paid by the employee for qualified health insurance premiums for the taxable year. The tax exclusion is capped under current law at $3,000 per year.
The bill has been endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, National Association of Police Organizations and the International Association of Fire Fighters.
Sen. Feinstein Speaks on Uvalde School Shooting With ATF Director Nominee
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today spoke at a Judiciary Committee hearing with President Biden's nominee to serve as ATF Director, Steven Dettelbach, regarding yesterday's tragic school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
"We know what protections work to stop these killings. For example, in the 10 years that the Assault Weapons Ban was in place, gun massacres dropped 37 percent. After the ban lapsed in 2004, gun massacres rose by 183 percent. There is simply no reason that average citizens
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today spoke at a Judiciary Committee hearing with President Biden's nominee to serve as ATF Director, Steven Dettelbach, regarding yesterday's tragic school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
"We know what protections work to stop these killings. For example, in the 10 years that the Assault Weapons Ban was in place, gun massacres dropped 37 percent. After the ban lapsed in 2004, gun massacres rose by 183 percent. There is simply no reason that average citizensneed weapons of war to go about their daily lives.
"This is especially true of teenagers. The shooters in both Texas and New York weren't old enough to buy a beer, but they were able to buy an assault weapon. That's why I recently introduced the Age 21 Act along with several of my colleagues. The bill would fix this disparity by limiting a teenager's ability to buy assault weapons."
Full transcript of their exchange is available below. Video is available here (https://app.box.com/s/7vuz40m35kuhqysnavryr6sidr41s5av).
Senator Dianne Feinstein:
"Just yesterday, the country watched as once again nearly 20 children were slaughtered in their classrooms in Texas. This was the 27th school shooting this year. And it comes just eight days after 10 people were slaughtered in Buffalo, New York, while shopping for groceries.
"In both cases the shooter was a teenager with an assault weapon.
"There have been more than 200 mass shootings this year, more than one per day. And this really breaks my heart, and it is simply unacceptable. We know what we need to do to stop this violence, but time and time again we have failed to do it.
"We know what protections work to stop these killings. For example, in the 10 years that the Assault Weapons Ban was in place, gun massacres dropped 37 percent. After the ban lapsed in 2004, gun massacres rose by 183 percent. There is simply no reason that average citizens need weapons of war to go about their daily lives.
"This is especially true of teenagers. The shooters in both Texas and New York weren't old enough to buy a beer, but they were able to buy an assault weapon. That's why I recently introduced the Age 21 Act along with several of my colleagues. The bill would fix this disparity by limiting a teenager's ability to buy assault weapons.
"We seem to lack the will even to keep weapons away from those who we know are dangerous. Laws allowing gun restrictions to be placed on individuals who pose an extreme risk to the safety of others - as determined by a judge analyzing the facts in each case - face substantial opposition. And our domestic violence laws are riddled with loopholes that make it all too simple for people we know to be violent to possess weapons.
"Yet rather than taking action, all we have done, time and time again, is to try to console the victims of these senseless tragedies and wait for the next inevitable attack.
"And we know that it will come. Just one year ago, this committee considered another nominee to serve as ATF Director. The morning of that nominee's hearing, a gunman in San Jose, California, opened fire on a mass transit facility and killed 10 people.
"And here we are again, considering another nominee to serve as ATF director, less than 24 hours after a mass shooting. Mr. Dettelbach, the role to which you have been nominated is an incredibly important one.
"Mr. Dettelbach, I understand you have firsthand experience working to protect and support the victims of gun violence and their families from your time as a federal prosecutor. How has this experience informed your career, and how will you work to consider the victims of gun violence and their families as you carry out the ATF's enforcement mission, if you are confirmed?"
Steven Dettelbach:
"Well senator, I think most prosecutors would answer this question in the same way, which is when you graduate law school, the law is in the books. When you become a prosecutor and you interact with victims and survivors who have experienced incredible loss, it becomes a part of you. And it never leaves you.
"I know this morning, I got a text from a woman who was a victim in an ATF case that our office did, it was a horrible arson actually, where eight children were killed. And those relationships and that experience never leaves you, and it will never leave me in trying to work with law enforcement to enforce the law and remove dangerous criminals from our community."
Senator Feinstein:
"Will you commit to this committee that you will be strong on this issue?"
Steven Dettelbach:
"Senator, I will commit to this committee that I will be a law enforcement enforcer who is very strong."
Sen. Cardin: Maryland Congressional Delegation Delivers More Than $198M in Federal Funding to Help Spur Economic Growth & Support Small Businesses Recovering From the Pandemic
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Maryland, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Anthony G. Brown, Jamie Raskin, and David Trone (all D-Md.) today delivered $198,404,958 to spur economic growth and support small businesses in Maryland through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Program. This Treasury Department program was reauthorized and expanded by the American Rescue Plan which the lawmakers fought to pass. The funds will be
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Maryland, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Anthony G. Brown, Jamie Raskin, and David Trone (all D-Md.) today delivered $198,404,958 to spur economic growth and support small businesses in Maryland through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Program. This Treasury Department program was reauthorized and expanded by the American Rescue Plan which the lawmakers fought to pass. The funds will betargeted to minority-owned, women-owned small businesses through the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), Maryland Department of Commerce, and Maryland Technology Economic Development Corporation to help rebuild and strengthen our small business economy in communities most impacted by the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities - driving our local economies and creating opportunities for all Marylanders," said the lawmakers. "But the disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have taken a heavy toll on our small business community, particularly in low-income, rural, and urban areas. Now, we must ensure those hit hardest have access to the capital they need to promote economic resiliency, generate growth and opportunity, and create new good-paying jobs for Marylanders. We were proud to fight for this funding and will continue to invest in our small business communities across the state."
"These critical investments through the American Rescue Plan will support entrepreneurs and promote small business growth in Maryland, including in underserved communities that face barriers to accessing the capital they need to turn their business ideas into reality," said Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo. "Treasury will continue working with Maryland to help make sure that this funding is having maximum impact across the state to promote economic growth."
Implementation of the SSBCI program will expand access to capital, promote American entrepreneurship, drive economic resiliency, create new jobs, and increase economic opportunity for all Marylanders. The program will expand the resources available to underserved communities lacking capital and build financing ecosystems that empower and support entrepreneurs and small businesses. Maryland anticipates that 70 percent of new loans in the SSBCI-funded program will be provided to minority-owned businesses and 40 percent to women-owned businesses.
Sen. Brown Pushing for Senate Vote on Historic Legislation Expanding Benefits for Veterans Exposed to Toxic Burn Pits
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release:
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) hosted a news conference call to discuss the bipartisan deal reached by members of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee on a legislative package to deliver comprehensive relief to all generations of veterans who have suffered due to toxic exposure, for the first time in the nation's history. Brown is the longest-serving Ohioan on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, and is pushing for an immediate Senate vote on the bipartisan package, which includes provisions Brown has
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release:
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) hosted a news conference call to discuss the bipartisan deal reached by members of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee on a legislative package to deliver comprehensive relief to all generations of veterans who have suffered due to toxic exposure, for the first time in the nation's history. Brown is the longest-serving Ohioan on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, and is pushing for an immediate Senate vote on the bipartisan package, which includes provisions Brown haslong fought for.
The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022 is named in honor of Central Ohio veteran Heath Robinson, who deployed to Kosovo and Iraq with the Ohio National Guard, and passed away in 2020 from cancer as a result of toxic exposure during his military service.
"This bipartisan bill would guarantee that all veterans, of all generations, who suffer because of toxic exposure will get the VA benefits they earned, for the first time in our country's history," said Brown. "Providing health care and benefits for veterans who suffer from toxic exposure is a cost of going to war, and I'm committed to getting these veterans the care they need and benefits they deserve, after sacrificing so much for our country."
Brown was joined on the call by Andrea Neutzling, an Ohio U.S. Army veteran who developed a rare, incurable lung disease after exposure to burn pits while deployed for one year in Iraq in 2005.
"We were killed overseas, our bodies just don't know it yet," said Andrea Neutzling, of Meigs County. "The future generation is watching and seeing how Congress treats veterans, they need to do better for veterans, or the future generations grow up to decide that they do not want to join the military and we will no longer be an all volunteer force."
The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022 will:
* Expand VA health care eligibility to Post-9/11 combat veterans, which includes more than 3.5 million toxic-exposed veterans;
* Create a framework for the establishment of future presumptions of service connection related to toxic exposure;
* Add 23 burn pit and toxic exposure-related conditions to VA's list of service presumptions, including hypertension;
* Expand presumptions related to Agent Orange exposure;
- Includes Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Guam, American Samoa, and Johnston Atoll as locations for Agent Orange exposure;
* Strengthen federal research on toxic exposure;
* Improve VA's resources and training for toxic-exposed veterans; and
* Set VA and veterans up for success by investing in:
- VA claims processing;
- VA's workforce; and
- VA health care facilities.
Rep. McCollum Statement on the 2nd Anniversary of George Floyd's Death
WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minnesota, issued the following statement on May 25, 2022:
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Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) released the following statement on the second anniversary of George Floyd's murder at the hands of Minneapolis police on May 25, 2020.
"Two years after George Floyd was brutally murdered by a Minneapolis Police officer, we remember his life and we continue to mourn for the loved ones and the community he left behind. The anniversary of his death is a reminder that the systemic racism and unacceptable disparities that persist in our society must be
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WASHINGTON, May 26 -- Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minnesota, issued the following statement on May 25, 2022:
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Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) released the following statement on the second anniversary of George Floyd's murder at the hands of Minneapolis police on May 25, 2020.
"Two years after George Floyd was brutally murdered by a Minneapolis Police officer, we remember his life and we continue to mourn for the loved ones and the community he left behind. The anniversary of his death is a reminder that the systemic racism and unacceptable disparities that persist in our society must beconfronted in our criminal justice, education, economic, and health care systems, and everywhere.
"I applaud President Biden's executive order directing all federal agencies to revise their use-of-force policies and creating a national registry of officers fired for misconduct. In the U.S. House, we have twice passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to make reforms that would save lives. Yet, too little has changed because forces in this country are at work actively obstructing progress. It is frustrating and it is unacceptable. Those same forces inspired the January 6 insurrection; they inspire the online hate movement that plants the seeds of violence, white supremacy, and hate crimes like we witnessed in the Buffalo massacre. Republicans in Congress are obstructing at every turn. Republicans repeatedly oppose federal assistance to overcome racial disparities; to build back communities in need and invest in our children, families, and communities of color. They actively work to undermine voting rights and they have time and time again voted against legislation that would enact meaningful reforms and get assault weapons off our streets. It is clear Republicans not only refuse to fix what is broken, they are actively engaged in maintaining a system that enables discrimination, disparities, and at times, racist violence.
"Democrats are united - not in lip service, but in making concrete investments that are focused on healing and creating opportunity for BIPOC communities in Minnesota and across the United States. That includes investing to end disparities in health and education, creating economic opportunities, and delivering safe and affordable housing. We are investing in our children and our future.
"Too little has changed in our laws and policies to reflect Minnesotans' demand for justice. This fact must not deter us, but rather motivate us to keep up the fight for racial justice wherever we are - in Congress, in our communities, in our schools, and in our daily lives. The fight for justice, just like the fight for democracy, is not over with one criminal conviction, or the passage of one bill, or with one election cycle. It requires a lasting, sustained effort. As a Member of Congress and a member of my Minnesota community, I am committed to continuing this fight with all of you. Two years on, George Floyd's memory is alive today, and his memory needs to mobilize action for change in our community and in communities across America."
Rep. Demings on New Police Announcement
ORLANDO, Florida, May 26 -- Rep. Val Demings, D-Florida, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
Rep. Val Demings (FL-10) commented on a new federal police initiative that would provide additional funding to police departments to implement programs supported by police and communities which would help keep officers and communities safe. Rep. Demings was the first female Chief of Police of Orlando, Florida.
Said Rep. Demings, "Today's announcement will have three clear effects: more resources for law enforcement, greater coordinated response to quality-of-life issues, and commitment
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ORLANDO, Florida, May 26 -- Rep. Val Demings, D-Florida, issued the following news release on May 25, 2022:
Rep. Val Demings (FL-10) commented on a new federal police initiative that would provide additional funding to police departments to implement programs supported by police and communities which would help keep officers and communities safe. Rep. Demings was the first female Chief of Police of Orlando, Florida.
Said Rep. Demings, "Today's announcement will have three clear effects: more resources for law enforcement, greater coordinated response to quality-of-life issues, and commitmentand accountability for all. As a 27-year law enforcement officer, these are steps in the right direction.
"Today's effort takes good ideas from legislation I've led in Congress, including officer mental health support, increased grant funding, and community and officer accountability. These measures are common sense, which is why both law enforcement organizations and victims' families stood in support.
"The overwhelming majority of men and women in law enforcement are good, decent people who work every day to keep us safe. Today's initiatives will increase transparency and accountability and refocus America's police on their core mission: to fight crime and protect our communities from those who work to do us harm."
Background
Rep. Demings has led on police issues in Congress, rejecting "defunding the police" and leading legislation to fund departments, reduce violent crime, and implement common-sense reforms to increase transparency, accountability, and justice.
Rep. Demings is leading the Violent Incident Clearance and Technological Investigative Methods (VICTIM) Act, legislation to establish a Department of Justice grant program to hire, train, and retain detectives and victim services personnel to investigate shootings and support victims. That legislation is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, National Police Foundation, National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Major Cities Chiefs Association, National Association of Police Organizations, and Council on Criminal Justice.
Rep. Demings cosponsored the George Floyd Justice in Police Act. Following Mr. Floyd's death Rep. Demings wrote in the Washington Post calling for law enforcement departments to implement reforms, writing, "we cannot only be reactive. We must be proactive. We must work with law enforcement agencies to identify problems before they happen."
Rep. Demings cosponsored the Invest to Protect Act of 2022, which would establish new federal grants to local police departments with fewer than 200 officers.
Rep. Demings co-led the bipartisan Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act, which was passed into law and is now supporting an active officer mental health program.
Rep. Demings led on The Law Enforcement Protection Act to protect law enforcement officers from concealable armor-piercing weapons, and the Protecting Our Communities Act, to protect law enforcement officers and the public from high-powered, rapid-firing and untraceable weapons.
