Steven Holt: “H.R. 4404, which was introduced at the request of the administration, addresses the payment of medical expenses for the…”

“H.R. 4404, which was introduced at the request of the administration, addresses the payment of medical expenses for the United States Park Police and the indemnification needed for mutual law enforcement agreements. Evidently, there have been a number of instances where there have been problems with timely medical payments being made to the Park Police officers injured in the performance of their duties. This has resulted in a hardship to some officers, staff, and their families. Further, the lack of indemnification is a potential barrier to cooperative law enforcement agreements between the Park Police and other police agencies. Such indemnification is needed to hold the assisting agency harmless from claims by third parties dealing with property damage or personal injury. H.R. 4404 provides the U.S. Park Police with the authority to address these two issues. The Committee on Resources did amend the bill to reflect technical changes to the legislation requested by the National Park Service. We on the minority side support passage of the bill, as amended.”