Confidentiality Opportunities for Peer Support Counseling Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1502, the COPS Counseling Act of 2021.

With recent attacks on law enforcement agencies from the left, including calls to defund the police, officers around the country have suffered from persistent and increasing physical and mental stress.

Police departments are experiencing dropping retention rates and officers are left with fewer colleagues to support them while also facing more crime. As a result the need for new and better performing peer support groups with State and local law enforcement agencies has risen.

This bill would help alleviate some of that strain from dealing with the ever-increasing amount of violent crime over the last year by supporting and encouraging the use of peer support groups. Some people feel like there is a stigma related to addressing mental health needs, making mental wellness difficult to address.

Peer support programs can help address this challenge in the law enforcement community. Officers who are in need of help may be most comfortable reaching out to their fellow officers especially if their confidentiality is protected. This bill requires the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services, to develop a report of best practices for peer support programs. These best practices required under the COPS Counseling Act will help State and local law enforcement agencies establish new peer counseling programs and enhance existing ones.

Ms. JACKSON LEE.

I want to again emphasize the massive number of law enforcement officers across the Nation. There are, first of all, 18,000 police departments of varying levels, meaning that we think of police, constables, or sheriffs, all of them law enforcement officers. And every day, as we speak, they are out on the front lines and, again, seeing enormous tragedy.

I really want to emphasize what it means to come upon a scene dealing with an injury to a child. Gun violence, car crashes, fires, police go to those scenes as well. For too long, we have not stopped for a moment to provide these resources and to provide these services.

I hope that, as we pass this legislation, this will be the catalyst for local entities to build on their mental health relief and that they will also focus on peer-directed mental health relief.

We can imagine, in the course of all the scenes that we have seen in this body, on this floor, in this year, starting with January 6, where police officers were involved, that there is no doubt that this legislation is crucial. But it works across the Nation, and it should be a tool for ensuring the strength and the stability of our officers who are out there, men and women, family members, every single day.

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Mr. BENTZ. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. JACKSON LEE.

As I indicated in my discussions, I think the idea of the COPS Counseling Act is a profound statement that we see the whole person in law enforcement. We don't just see the person's uniform externally, but we see the whole person.

The reading of the words of Deputy Atkins' mother was to indicate we see the family members, the children; we see the neighbors; we see the communities. In order to do that, we must then have a holistic approach to the service of these officers.

I can't help but think about officers coming upon an injury to a child in whatever form it is, and I have heard them speak of it. It is the worst investigation case to have. It is the worst scene that they have ever seen because it is a child.

The COPS Counseling Act will help our law enforcement officers and also the communities they serve. We can and must do both. When officers are in need of counseling, we should remove barriers and disincentives that are standing in the way.

Therefore, I ask my colleagues to see the whole person as they serve the community and the Nation, and join me in supporting this legislation so that the President can sign it into law.

Mr. Speaker, the COPS Counseling Act will help our law enforcement officers and also the communities they serve.

We can and must do both.

When officers are in need of counseling, we should remove barriers and disincentives standing in the way.

Therefore, I ask that my colleagues join me in supporting this legislation so that the President can sign it into law.

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