Washington Watch: Legislative Update

For the Week of 12 March 2018

I. Legislative News and Activity

II. This Week in Congress

III. Update on Top Legislative Priorities

IV. FOP News and Press Release: Attorney General Sessions Announces Launch of New Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center

V. Support the National FOP PAC

VI. Follow the FOP on Twitter!

I. LEGISLATIVE NEWS AND ACTIVITY

National President Chuck Canterbury was in Washington, D.C. this week and, along with National Vice President Jay McDonald and Senior Advisor to the National President Jim Pasco, represented the FOP at the annual St. Patrick’s Day reception at the White House.

National President Canterbury and Senior Advisor Pasco also met with Thomas E. Brandon, Acting Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), to discuss firearms initiatives and how the ATF can assist our local law enforcement officers with combating gun crimes.

Senior Advisor Pasco:

  • Spoke with Danielle Cutrona, senior counsel to the U.S. Attorney General, regarding existing vacancies at key law enforcement agencies in the U.S. Department of Justice; and
  • Spoke with Steve H. Cook, Associate Deputy Attorney General, regarding sanctuary cities and the travels of the U.S. Attorney General for interaction with local law enforcement.

Legislative Liaison Michael Martin:

  • Met with staff in the office of Representative Garland H. Barr IV (R-KY) to discuss legislation dealing with the heroin/opioid epidemic;
  • Met with staff in the office of Rep Representative Cheryl L. Bustos (D-IL) to discuss legislation dealing with the heroin/opioid epidemic.

Senior Legislative Liaison Tim Richardson and Legislative Liaison Scott Marks spoke with staff in the office of Representative David F. Kustoff (R-TN) regarding H.R. 4768, The “National Strategy for Combating the Financing of Transnational Criminal Organizations Act,” as well as pending corporate transparency legislation.

Senior Legislative Liaison Richardson and Legislative Liaison Michael Martin:

  • Attended a monthly meeting with criminal justice stakeholders organizations;
  • Spoke with staff in the office of Senator John Cornyn III (R-TX) to discuss FOP priorities;
  • Met with Judiciary Committee staff in the office of Senator Charles E. Grassley , Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary (R-IA), to discuss FOP priorities.

II. THIS WEEK IN CONGRESS

Action in the House

The House considered and passed H.R. 4909, the “Student, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School Violence Act” or the “STOP School Violence Act,” on a 407-10 vote.  The FOP did not support this legislation, which would strip the Secure Our Schools grant program from its current home within the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and move it to the Office of Justice Programs (OJP).  The FOP strongly supports the Senate companion bill, S. 2495, which keeps the program in the COPS Office where it belongs.

Action in Senate Committees

The Committee on the Judiciary held an oversight hearing titled “See Something, Say Something: Oversight of the Parkland Shooting and Legislative Proposals to Improve School Safety.”

III. UPDATE ON TOP LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES

For the complete list of cosponsors for all of our top legislative priorities, or to find out if your Representative and Senators are cosponsors of specific bills, check out https://www.congress.gov/

A. Support H.R. 1205/S. 915, the “Social Security Fairness Act”

We have 176 cosponsors on H.R. 1205.One additional lawmaker has cosponsored S. 915, bringing the total to 22.

B. Support the H.R. 964/S. 424, the “Law Enforcement Officers’ Equity Act”

One additional lawmaker has cosponsored H.R. 964, bringing the total to 38.We have 6 cosponsors on S. 424.

C. Support H.R. 4846, the “Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act”

Six additional lawmakers have cosponsored H.R. 4846, bringing the total to 29.

IV. FOP News and Press Release: Attorney General Sessions Announces Launch of New Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center

Chuck Canterbury, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, applauded the announcement by U.S. Attorney General Jefferson B. Sessions III regarding the launch of the Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC) today.

The CRI-TAC brings together a coalition of our nation’s top public safety organizations under the leadership of the FOP and IACP to provide tailored technical assistance to policing agencies through a grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office).

“We’re proud to be part of the leadership team in this important effort to help and direct resources to the law enforcement agencies that need it,” Canterbury said.  “Our approach is very simple – ‘by the field, for the field.’”

Using this approach, the CRI-TAC supports State, local, tribal, and campus agencies through a host of methods, including training, peer-to-peer consultation, and strategic planning. These resources are designed to support agencies on a range of public safety, crime reduction, and community policing topics.

For the first time ever, the following law enforcement stakeholder organizations–and their over 420,000 members—are working together to create a center of resources and subject matter expertise explicitly focusing on the needs of policing agencies:

  • Fraternal Order of Police (FOP)
  • International Association of Chiefs of Police
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy Associates (FBINAA)
  • International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA)
  • International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training (IADLEST)
  • Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA)
  • National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives (NAWLEE)
  • National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE)
  • National Tactical Officers Association (NTOA)

“The FOP is excited to work alongside the IACP and our other organization partners to help our agencies in the field design customized approaches to the public safety challenges in their jurisdiction,” Canterbury said.

Law enforcement agencies interested in submitting a voluntary request to participate in the CRI-TAC should visit www.collaborativereform.org.

V. Support the National FOP PAC

It is crucial to our political agenda we keep our PAC competitive with other organizations.

If you want more information on the PAC or want to sign up for a $5.00 monthly recurring contribution, please email  or call (202)547-8189.

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