Political Quotes

“today I am reintroducing the Equity in Law Enforcement Act to extend Federal benefits to law enforcement officers who serve private institutions of higher education and rail carriers. This legislation would make these individuals eligible for the same benefits provided to public law enforcement officers, including line- of-duty death benefits under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program and bulletproof vest partnership grants through the Department of Justice. The Public Safety Officers Benefits, PSOB, Act of 1976 was enacted to aid in the recruitment and retention of law enforcement officers and firefighters by providing a one-time financial benefit to the eligible survivors of public safety officers whose deaths are the direct result of traumatic injury sustained in the line of duty. The same risks also apply to officers protecting our private universities and railways. However, the PSOB Act does not include these officers, even though they enforce the law. These brave individuals, who protect our college and university campuses and railways every day and receive similar training to their government counterparts, are thus excluded from receiving the line-of-duty federal death benefits available to law enforcement officers serving units of State and local governments. Over the last 50 years, 35 college or university law enforcement officers have lost their lives in the line of duty, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.…”