,i #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fedh ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,december #aj1 #bjbe ,mr4 ,thompson of ,mississippi 7for himself and ,mr4 ,garbarino7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,homeland ,security ,act of #bjjb to establish the ,law ,enforcement ,mental ,health and ,wellness ,program1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,,dhs ,suicide ,prevention and ,resiliency for ,law ,enforcement ,act4 #b4 ,,dhs ,suicide ,prevention and ,resiliency for ,law ,enforcement 7a7 ,in general ,the ,homeland ,security ,act of #bjjb is amended by inserting after section #gaj the following new section3 #gaj;,a4 ,suicide prevention and resiliency for law enforcement 7a7 ,department components defined ,in this section1 the term ,department components means the following3 7#a7 ,u4,s4 ,customs and ,border ,protection4 7#b7 ,u4,s4 ,immigration and ,customs ,enforcement4 7#c7 ,the ,office of the ,inspector ,general of the ,department of ,homeland ,security4 7#d7 ,the ,united ,states ,secret ,service4 7#e7 ,the ,transportation ,security ,administration4 7#f7 ,any other ,department component with law enforcement officers or agents4 7b7 ,law ,enforcement ,mental ,health and ,wellness ,program 7#a7 ,establishment 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall establish1 within the office overseen by the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department1 the ,law ,enforcement ,mental ,health and ,wellness ,program 7in this section referred to as the ,program7 to provide a comprehensive approach to address the mental health and wellness of ,department law enforcement officers and agents4 7,b7 ,administration ,the ,secretary1 working through the ,program1 shall carry out the following3 7i7 ,establish policies and standard operating procedures1 consistent with best evidence-based practices1 that detail the authority1 roles1 and responsibilities of the ,program4 7ii7 ,conduct data collection and research on mental health1 suicides1 and1 to the extent possible1 attempted suicides1 of ,department law enforcement officers and agents1 in accordance with section #eeb;a of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code 7commonly known as the ,privacy ,act of #aigd71 section #eja of the ,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #gia71 the ,department's directives and policies1 and section #b7;a7 of the ,law ,enforcement ,suicide ,data ,collection ,act 7,public ,law #aaf-adc74 7iii7 ,track current trends and leading practices from other governmental and nongovernmental organizations for law enforcement mental health and wellness4 7iv7 ,evaluate current mental health and resiliency programs within the ,department components4 7v7 ,promote education and training related to mental health1 resilience1 suicide prevention1 stigma1 and mental health resources to-- 7,i7 raise mental health awareness2 and 7,,ii7 support to supervisors1 clinicians1 care-givers1 peer support members1 chaplains1 and other individuals4 7vi7 ,establish a ,peer-to-,peer ,support ,program ,advisory ,council1 which shall-- 7,i7 include at least one licensed clinician and at least one official with requisite and relevant training and experience in peer support from each ,department component2 7,,ii7 evaluate ,department component peer support programs2 7,,iii7 identify and address any potential deficiencies1 limitations1 and gaps2 7,,iv7 provide for sharing of leading practices or best practices1 including internationally recognized peer support standards of care protocols2 7,v7 establish a peer support network that enables the sharing of trained peer support personnel1 chaplains1 and other peer-to-peer personnel across ,department components2 and 7,,vi7 sustain peer support programs through ongoing funding of annual and refresher training and resources for peer support programing in the workplace to-- 7aa7 ensure minimum standards for peer support services2 and 7bb7 provide appropriate care for peer support personnel across ,department components4 7vii7 ,assist ,department components in developing a program to provide suicide prevention and resiliency support and training for the following3 7,i7 ,families of ,department law enforcement officers and agents4 7,,ii7 ,surviving families of such officers and agents who have been lost to suicide4 7viii7 ,work with law enforcement mental health and wellness program officials of ,department components 7including peer support-trained personnel1 agency mental health professionals1 chaplains1 and1 for components with employees having an exclusive representative1 the exclusive representative with respect to such program7 to implement new policies1 procedures1 and programs that may be necessary based on findings from data collection1 research1 and evaluation efforts4 7ix7 ,conduct regular outreach and messaging1 across ,department components1 of available training opportunities and resources4 7,c7 ,confidentiality2 limitation 7i7 ,confidentiality ,activities described in subparagraph 7,c7 may not include the publication of any personally identifiable information4 7ii7 ,limitation ,personally identifiable information collected pursuant to subparagraph 7,c7 may not be maintained or used for any purpose other than implementation of this section1 unless otherwise permitted under applicable law4 ,any such personally identifiable information that is so collected1 maintained1 or used pursuant to this section is subject to applicable public nondisclosure requirements1 including sections #eeb and #eeb;a of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7,d7 ,personnel 7i7 ,management ,the ,workplace ,health and ,wellness ,coordinator of the ,department1 under the direction of the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department1 shall be responsible for the ongoing management of the ,program4 7ii7 ,minimum core personnel requirements ,subject to appropriations1 the ,secretary shall ensure the ,program is staffed with the number of employees the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department determines necessary to carry out the duties described in subparagraph 7,c71 including representatives from each ,department component and the ,office of the ,chief ,privacy ,officer4 7#b7 ,directive ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this section1 the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department shall carry out the following3 7,a7 ,issue a directive or policy that outlines the roles and responsibilities of the ,program4 7,b7 ,distribute such directive or policy among ,department components4 7c7 ,coordination ,the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department shall require the ,program to regularly coordinate with the ,department components by assigning at least one official from each such component to the ,program for the purpose of coordinating with field points of contact who are responsible for carrying out duties within ,department mental health and wellness programs4 7d7 ,department components ,the ,secretary shall require the head of each ,department component to prioritize and improve mental health and wellness programs that-- 7#a7 provide adequate resources for law enforcement mental health1 well-being1 resilience1 and suicide prevention programs and research2 7#b7 promote a culture that reduces the stigma of seeking mental health assistance through regular messaging1 training1 and raising mental health awareness2 7#c7 offer several avenues of seeking mental health or counseling assistance1 both within each such component and through private sources that provide for anonymity and include access to external mental health clinicians1 service animals1 and any other appropriate1 data-driven resources that improve mental health2 7#d7 review and revise relevant policies of ,department components that inadvertently deter ,department law enforcement officers and agents from seeking mental health or counseling assistance2 7#e7 ensure such programs include safeguards against adverse or disciplinary action1 including retaliation or automatic referrals for a fitness for duty examination1 by each such component with respect to any ,department law enforcement officer or agent solely because such officer or agent self-identifies a need for psychological health counseling or assistance or receives such counseling or assistance2 7#f7 implement policies that require in-person or live and interactive virtual suicide awareness and law enforcement resiliency trainings to be provided to ,department law enforcement officers and agents2 7#g7 make such trainings available-- 7,a7 upon the commencement of the employment of such ,department law enforcement officers and agents 7,b7 on an annual basis during such employment2 7,c7 during the transition into supervisory roles2 and 7,d7 if feasible1 shortly before termination of such employment if such officers and agents elect to participate in such trainings2 and 7#h7 include prevention and awareness training opportunities and support services for families of ,department law enforcement officers and agents1 as well as other ,department personnel4 7e7 ,data collection and evaluation 7#a7 ,assessment of effectiveness of law enforcement health and wellness programs ,the ,workplace ,health and ,wellness ,coordinator1 under the direction of the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department-- 7,a7 shall-- 7i7 develop criteria to assess the effectiveness of law enforcement health and wellness programs carried out by the ,department2 7ii7 conduct annual confidential surveys of ,department law enforcement officers and agents to assist in evaluating the effectiveness of such programs2 and 7iii7 ensure that the surveys conducted pursuant to clause 7ii7-- 7,i7 incorporate leading practices in questionnaire and survey design and development2 and 7,,ii7 establish a baseline and subsequently measure change over time2 and 7,b7 may utilize contractor support in carrying out the duties described in subparagraph 7,a74 7#b7 ,recommendations ,the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department shall provide recommendations to ,department components based on the assessment of law enforcement health and wellness programs carried out by the ,department and the results of the surveys conducted pursuant to paragraph 7#a74 7#c7 ,incident reports ,each ,department component shall report to the ,workplace ,health and ,wellness ,coordinator incidents of suicide involving ,department law enforcement officers and agents1 together with any data relating thereto consistent with data collected under section #b7;a7 of the ,law ,enforcement ,suicide ,data ,collection ,act 7,public ,law #aaf-adc74 ,the ,coordinator shall forward such information to the ,law ,enforcement ,officers ,suicide ,data ,collection ,program established pursuant to such section4 7#d7 ,confidentiality2 limitation 7,a7 ,confidentiality ,activities described in paragraph 7#a7 or reporting described under paragraph 7#c7 may not include the publication of any personally identifiable information4 7,b7 ,limitation ,personally identifiable information collected pursuant to paragraph 7#a7 may not be maintained or used for any purpose other than implementation of this section1 unless otherwise permitted under applicable law4 ,any such personally identifiable information that is so collected1 maintained1 or used pursuant to this section is subject to applicable public nondisclosure requirements1 including sections #eeb and #eeb;a of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7f7 ,briefing ,not later than #ahj days after the date of the enactment of this section and annually thereafter through fiscal year #bjbg1 the ,chief ,medical ,officer of the ,department shall provide to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs of the ,senate a briefing regarding the implementation of this section4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of contents in section #a7;b7 of the ,homeland ,security ,act of #bjjb is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #gaj the following new item3 ,sec4 #gaj;,a4 ,suicide prevention and resiliency for law enforcement4 4