H.R. 5885 — Introduced in House

I 118th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 5885 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 3, 2023Mr. Feenstra introduced the following bill October 25, 2023Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To establish a grant program to facilitate the veterinary care of former law enforcement canines, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Honoring Police Officer and K9 Service Act of 2023. 2. Grant program to facilitate veterinary care for former law enforcement canines (a) Establishment Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall establish a grant program to facilitate the care of former law enforcement canines (in this section referred to as the program). (b) Grant authority and eligible recipients In carrying out the program, the Attorney General may award a grant on a competitive basis to any entity that qualifies as a nonprofit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and that the Attorney General determines has— (1) a demonstrated history of successfully assisting the owners of former law enforcement canines with costs associated with veterinary care, medication and antibiotics, or other medical expenses for the canine; and (2) the capacity to record and provide a detailed accounting of the purposes for which grant amounts are expended. (c) Eligible projects A recipient of a grant under the program may only use grant funds to cover the costs associated with veterinary care, medication and antibiotics, or other medical expenses determined necessary by a veterinarian for the former law enforcement canine. (d) Applications To be eligible for a grant under the Program, an entity shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such form, and containing such information as the Attorney General determines appropriate. (e) Reports (1) Reports to Attorney General As a condition of receiving a grant under the program, a prospective recipient shall agree to submit to the Attorney General, on an annual basis for the duration of the project to be carried out using grant funds a report containing, with respect to the year covered by the report— (A) a detailed accounting of how grant funds were used; and (B) a proposal for how activities carried out under the project may be improved in the future. (2) Submission to Congress Upon receiving a report under paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall submit a copy of the report to Congress. (f) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2024. (g) Former law enforcement canine defined In this section, the term former law enforcement canine means a canine that has been used by a Federal, State, or local agency in the performance of law enforcement duties and that has been determined by such agency to be no longer needed for official purposes.