H.R. 7133 - PROTECT Act
STATUS
House of Representatives: Introduced on June 8, 2020 and referred to the House Judiciary Committee on the same day
Analysis
The Protect Act would encourage State and local demilitarization by incentivizing the return of purchases made through the LESO program, and for other purposes. It is effectively a ‘carrot’, whereas bills like S.Amdt.2522 are a ‘stick’.
In other words, the bill would incentivize state and local police departments to return military equipment which has become the subject of demilitarization efforts. It would do this through
requiring the Department of Justice to create a “Gear for Grants program”, a program which would apportion funds toward those state and local government who participate in an exchange program through which police departments would return military-grade weapons in exchange for de-escalation and anti-racist trainings,
stopping the transfer of small arms and ammunition, while limiting any transfer to only counter-terrorism initiatives
“After endless reports documenting excessive use of force, it is more important now than ever for Congress to step up to condemn racial profiling and police brutality and work to dismantle unjust systems that harm and kill Black people in this country. ”
CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT
House of Representatives
INTRODUCED BY:
Reps. Deb Haaland [D-NM-1], Hank Johnson [D-GA-4], and Ruben Gallego [D-AZ-7]
CO-SPONSORS:
Rep. Bass, Karen [D-CA-37], Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9], Rep. Dean, Madeleine [D-PA-4], Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5], Rep. Maloney, Carolyn B. [D-NY-12], Rep. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large], Rep. San Nicolas, Michael F. Q. [D-GU-At Large], Rep. Scanlon, Mary Gay [D-PA-5], Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12], Rep. Blumenauer, Earl [D-OR-3], Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9], Rep. Sewell, Terri A. [D-AL-7], Rep. Pingree, Chellie [D-ME-1]
