Federal grants could support state police training and independent case reviews

The Attorney General may give a state a grant to carry out the training and independent prosecution provisions. A grant may support the state's required police training and independent handling of certain cases. The Attorney General decides whether to make a grant; the text does not guarantee one. Each grant lasts one fiscal year.

A state seeking a grant must require annual fair and impartial policing training for all its law enforcement officers and academy students. The requirements cover every state law enforcement officer and every person enrolled in a state law enforcement academy. Initial training must last at least eight hours, followed by at least four hours each year. It must cover bias, diversity, interactions involving mental illness or disabilities, crisis response, and de-escalation, and include scenarios and tests of proficiency. The state must certify that people completed the training, and its attorney general must verify that the training meets the requirements. A state must meet the training rules within 240 days after enactment. The Attorney General may allow 120 more days for a state making good faith efforts. A state that later falls out of compliance cannot receive a grant for the next fiscal year.

A state must have an independent prosecution law in effect to qualify for a grant for a fiscal year. This condition applies to a state's eligibility for a grant in a given fiscal year. The law must require independent handling of criminal cases in which an officer's use of deadly force while on duty results in death or injury. The text lists possible methods, including a review board, a state attorney general, a special prosecutor, an agreement with another law enforcement agency, or an independent prosecutor. The state law must be enacted and in effect on the last day of the prior fiscal year.