On April 28, President Trump signed an Executive Order, Strengthening and Unleashing America’s Law Enforcement to Pursue Criminals and Protect Innocent Civilians, which makes official almost all the top policy priorities NAPO has been asking the Administration for. This includes: protecting officers’ legal rights; supporting improved training and increased officer benefits; stronger penalties for people who commit violence against officers; going after misguided prosecutors and officials who refuse to enforce the law; and reevaluating many consent decrees that are thwarting agencies nationwide. NAPO applauds the President for continuing to have the backs of the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to serve and protect our communities.
On May 2, President Trump’s Executive Order, Further Amendment to Duties Addressing the Synthetic Opioid Supply Chain in the People’s Republic of China as Applied to Low-Value Imports took effect, eliminating duty-free de minimis treatment for low-value imports from China. We thank the President for taking this significant step in countering the illicit flow of fentanyl and synthetic opioids into our country from China through international mail. NAPO stands with President Trump and his Administration in the fight against the scourge of fentanyl in our communities and strongly support his executive action to eliminate de minimis treatment for China.
NAPO President Mick McHale discussed law enforcement priorities and challenges facing our officers ahead of National Police Week as a guest speaker at the House Bipartisan Working Group (BPWG) meeting on May 6th.
McHale talked about law enforcement recruitment and retention issues; rising violent assaults on officers; and the need for increased federal support for officers’ mental health and wellness services. He highlighted NAPO priority legislation including: the Protect and Serve Act, the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, the Invest to Protect Act, and the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, and called on lawmakers at the meeting to move these important bills through the House.
The House passed the NAPO-backed TAKE IT DOWN Act (S. 146), sponsored by Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), by a vote of 409 – 2 on April 28, sending it to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The Senate passed the bill by voice vote Feb. 13, which would establish federal liability for individuals who generate and distribute deepfake intimate and explicit images, giving law enforcement the tools to bring justice to these crime victims.
The House and the Senate Judiciary Committee announced pro-law enforcement legislation that will be considered during National Police Week 2025 to honor the law enforcement profession. Next week, the House will be voting on two NAPO-backed bills: the LEOSA Reform Act (H.R. 2243) and the Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act (H.R. 2240), which passed the House by a bipartisan vote last Congress. The LEOSA Reform Act would expand areas qualified current or retired officers are allowed to carry a firearm, including Gun Free School Zones; state, local and private property otherwise open to the public; and in certain federal facilities, among other provisions. The Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act requires the Department of Justice to collect data on actual and threatened use of force against officers, and not only incidents involving firearms. It requires a report on the stresses and mental health toll violent assaults have on officers and the extent to which mental health and wellness programs are meeting officers’ needs.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to hold a National Police Week markup on May 15th of 8 bills: the Improving Police Critical Aid for Responding to Emergencies (CARE) Act (S. 1595), Retired Law Enforcement Officers Continuing Service Act (S. 1563), Strong Communities Act (S. 1316), Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure Act (S. 180), the Reauthorizing STOIC Act (S. 419), Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act (S. 237), Chief Herbert D. Proffitt Act (S. 911), and PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act (S. 539).
NAPO pledged its support for the Law Enforcement Solidarity Act (H.R. 3081), that makes certain federal funds conditional on whether a state and locality allow local law enforcement to cooperate with federal law enforcement, including the Department of Homeland Security.
On April 29, the Senate passed the Prison Safety Enhancement Act (S. 307) by unanimous consent. This bill would address the increasingly pervasive issues of sexual harassment and sexual assault of federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) staff by federal inmates. It would require the BOP to fully implement the recommendations of the 2023 Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the Department of Justice report titled, Evaluation of the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ Efforts to Address Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Committed by Inmates Toward Staff. The Report includes several recommendations for BOP to mitigate inmate-on-staff sexual harassment and assault and to fully ascertain the scope of the problem.
Click here for more details on these and other legislative issues in the May 9, 2025 Washington Report.
