HR 1232 · 114th Congress 2015–2017, ended

Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act

Latest action · Aug 13, 2015 Referred to the Subcommittee on Readiness.

Progress

Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.

  1. IntroducedMar 4, 2015
  2. Passed HouseNot reached
  3. Passed SenateNot reached
  4. To the PresidentNot reached
  5. Became lawNot reached

Summary

Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act

Revises the Department of Defense's (DOD's) authority to transfer excess personal property to federal and state law enforcement agencies. Removes DOD's authority to transfer property for counter-drug activities.

Requires recipients of DOD property to certify that they: (1) have personnel, technical capacity, and training to operate the property; and (2) will return to DOD any property that is surplus to the recipient's needs. Requires recipients that are not federal agencies to certify that they have notified their local community of requests for DOD property with a notice on a publicly accessible Internet website and postings at prominent locations in the jurisdiction.

Requires DOD to submit annually to Congress a description of property to be transferred along with a certification that the transfers are not prohibited by law. Prohibits transfers of:

  • controlled (i.e., military grade) firearms, ammunition, grenades, and explosives;
  • controlled vehicles, certain trucks, and other highly mobile or mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles;
  • armored or weaponized drones;
  • controlled aircraft that are combat configured or combat coded, or that have no established commercial flight application;
  • silencers;
  • long range acoustic devices; and
  • items in the Federal Supply Class of banned items.

Prohibits transfers conditioned upon the agency demonstrating the use of any small arms or ammunitions.

Prohibits transfers of previously transferred DOD property from one federal or state agency to another such agency.

Allows DOD to waive transfer prohibitions for certain trucks and vehicles (other than mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles) if necessary for disasters, rescues, or other purposes where life and public safety are at risk. Requires notice of such a waiver to be provided to Congress and the public.

Permits DOD to exempt aircraft parts transferred for regular maintenance of aircraft in an existing fleet.

Prohibits obligations or expenditures of appropriations to carry out DOD's property transfer program unless specified conditions have been met, including requirements to verify: (1) that in-person inventories of transferred property have been conducted at each agency, and (2) that 100% of such property was accounted for during the inventories or that agencies unable to account for such property have been suspended from the program.

Prohibits federal or state agencies that receive controlled equipment from taking ownership of the property.

Requires the Defense Logistics Agency to maintain an Internet website to make available to the public: (1) information on each transfer, broken down by state, county, and recipient; (2) during the 30-day period preceding the date on which any property is transferred, information on the property to be transferred and the recipient; and (3) information on any use of controlled equipment by the transfer recipient.

Cosponsors 49

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 4, 2015 to Nov 2, 2015; 42 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

SeatCosponsorSigned on
D-FLAlan GraysonOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAAlan S. LowenthalOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-FLAlcee L. HastingsOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CABarbara LeeOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-TXBeto O'RourkeOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-ILBobby L. RushOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-NYCharles B. RangelOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MDChris Van HollenOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-ILDanny K. DavisOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-GADavid ScottOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CODiana DeGetteOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MDDonna F. EdwardsOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-OREarl BlumenauerOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-COEd PerlmutterOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-DCEleanor Holmes NortonOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MDElijah E. CummingsOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-NJFrank Pallone, Jr.OriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAJackie SpeierOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-NYJerrold NadlerOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-WAJim McDermottOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MIJohn Conyers, Jr.OriginalMar 4, 2015
D-GAJohn LewisOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-NYJose E. SerranoOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAJudy ChuOriginalMar 4, 2015
I-MIJustin AmashOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MAKatherine M. ClarkOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MNKeith EllisonOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-OHMarcy KapturOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-WIMark PocanOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAMaxine WatersOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAMichael M. HondaOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-NYPaul TonkoOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-AZRaúl M. GrijalvaOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-VARobert C. "Bobby" ScottOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CASam FarrOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-TXSheila Jackson LeeOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-TNSteve CohenOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-FLTheodore E. DeutchOriginalMar 4, 2015
R-CATom McClintockOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CATony CárdenasOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MOWm. Lacy ClayOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-CAZoe LofgrenOriginalMar 4, 2015
D-MAJames P. McGovernMar 16, 2015
D-ORPeter A. DeFazioMar 17, 2015
D-ILJanice D. SchakowskyApr 13, 2015
D-CTRosa L. DeLauroJul 7, 2015
D-CAMark DeSaulnierSep 17, 2015
D-CAKaren BassSep 30, 2015
D-NJBonnie Watson ColemanNov 2, 2015

Committees 1

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

ChamberCommitteeWhat it did
HouseArmed Services Committee
Referred Mar 4, 2015
Readiness Subcommittee
Referred Aug 13, 2015

Actions 3

Everything that happened, newest first.

  1. Aug 13, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on Readiness.
  2. Mar 4, 2015Introduced in House
  3. Mar 4, 2015Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

In the Congressional Record 7

Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.

WhereIn the RecordMembersDate
HouseDebate and remarks H8230Barbara Lee D-CANov 16, 2015
ExtensionsDebate and remarks E1077Barbara Lee D-CAJul 16, 2015
ExtensionsDebate and remarks E951Barbara Lee D-CAJun 23, 2015
HouseDebate and remarks H3501–H3504Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. D-GA, Sheila Jackson Lee D-TXMay 20, 2015
HouseDebate and remarks H2666Barbara Lee D-CAApr 30, 2015

Research

What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: This bill is enacted pursuant to the power granted to Congress under Article I, Section 8, Clause 14 of the United States Constitution and its subsequent amendments, and further clarified and interpreted by the Supreme Court of the United States.

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 161, no. 37, March 4, 2015, page H1614.

Titles 2

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced
To amend title 10, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Defense to make certain limitations on the transfer of personal property to Federal and State agencies, and for other purposes.
Short Titles as Introduced
Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

  1. Mar 4, 2015Introduced in House

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Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.