By Ashlee Banks
Special to the AFRO
Police departments across the nation are struggling to fill law enforcement positions. Now, members of Congress have introduced the Recruit and Retain Act to address the police hiring crisis.
On May 14 both U.S. Reps. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas, and Glenn Ivey, D-Md., took to the House floor to introduce the measure. If enacted into law the bill would increase recruitment for qualified officers, provide departments across the nation with grants to reduce application-related fees such as background checks, psychological evaluations and testing and require the Department of Justice to create new guidelines for police agencies applying for Community Oriented Policing Services grants.
Hunt said in a statement obtained by the AFRO that “In recent years law enforcement agencies have found recruiting new officers to be a major challenge. The Recruit and Retain Act addresses this challenge and provides real support to help law enforcement.”
Ivey said in a statement “Recruiting and retaining highly trained law enforcement professionals is of the utmost importance. Our ability to attract and develop the best, brightest and most compassionate and dedicated men and women of differing backgrounds is vital to the health and well-being of our nation.”
This statute was introduced just days after Roger Fortson, a Black senior airman was shot and killed by a Florida deputy while in his apartment. Fortson’s name has been added to a long list of Black Americans who have died at the hands of police officers in recent years.
U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo. opposes the measure and said in a statement that “Michael Brown. George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Tamir Rice. Theirs and so many other precious lives have been lost or permanently altered due to our country’s failed approach to public safety.”
She added, “As a leader in the movement for community-led safety and as someone who has met with and responded directly to the needs of both community members and police chiefs across my district, I believe that public safety is a matter of public health.”
Ivey told the AFRO that this act aims to quell the issue of police brutality by requiring police officers to be properly vetted and have “diverse and culturally competent” backgrounds to better serve their communities.
The Maryland lawmaker stated that police brutality has been a hot button issue for nearly 15 years, “you started seeing the videotapes of the excessive force and people who are not African American finally realized that this is a real issue.”
He added “The question became how do we address it and one of those was training. But, the other one was maybe we need to pick better people for these positions to start with.”
Ivey strongly believes that if more departments recruit officers who are culturally sensitive then that could help with “better policing” and creating a stronger relationship between communities and law enforcement.
To date, the act has been endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, the National Association of Police Organizations, the National Sheriffs Association, Major County Sheriffs Association, Major Cities Sheriffs Association, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, and R Street.
If passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, the bill will need to pass in the U.S. Senate and be signed into law by President Joe Biden.
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