The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bipartisan bill led by U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) that addresses nationwide law enforcement staffing shortages. The bill now heads to the president to be signed into law.
“I want to thank Nebraska’s law enforcement officers who helped design the legislation, as well as my colleagues for their overwhelming support,” Sen. Fischer said. “I look forward to seeing this bill signed into law.”
The House on May 14 voted 370-18 to pass the Recruit and Retain Act, S. 546, which the U.S. Senate approved in July 2023.
S. 546, which Sen. Fischer sponsored in February 2023 with lead original cosponsor U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), will improve the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grants by making them more responsive to onboarding costs and hiring challenges, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
“The law enforcement staffing crisis nationwide is not slowing down and continues to threaten public safety,” said Sen. Fischer. “My Recruit and Retain Act will reduce hiring costs and create local workforce pipelines to build a new generation of police.”
Specifically, S. 546 contains five key initiatives: Supporting Officer Onboarding; Reducing Administrative Burdens; Authorizing a New Pipeline Recruitment Program; Providing Better Grant Guidance for Understaffed Agencies; and Shining a Light on Recruitment and Retention Challenges, the summary says.
“I’m proud to lead this bipartisan bill to ensure that our police departments can hire qualified officers that reflect our communities,” said Sen. Coons. “I am grateful to my colleagues in the House for their support, and I look forward to President Biden signing this important bill into law.”
The measure received support from myriad entities, including the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, and the National Association of Police Organizations, among others.