The House passed the First Responder Network Authority Reauthorization Act (H.R. 7386) by voice vote on April 20, sending the bill to the Senate. FirstNet is a nationwide broadband network dedicated to emergency responders and the public safety community and will end in February 2027 if Congress does not reauthorize it. The Act would reauthorize FirstNet until Sept. 30, 2037, and allow the Authority to continue providing preemption services for public safety, which is a NAPO priority. However, NAPO is concerned because the bill increases NTIA’s authority over the FirstNet Board, which limits its independence and increases administrative burdens on FirstNet. We will continue to monitor the bill and work to ensure FirstNet maintains decision-making authority to protect and expand the public safety network.
NAPO participated in the Law Enforcement Partner Engagement Council (LEPEC) Meeting on April 23, convened by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and headed by FBI Director Kash Patel. This information sharing meeting between the FBI and state and local law enforcement included an update on the Administration’s Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF). NAPO is one of only two rank-and-file organizations participating in the Council. Other participants include chiefs, sheriffs, and administrators.
On April 22, the House Judiciary Committee approved the Monitor Accountability Act, H.R. 8365, which would set clear rules for federal district courts to follow when appointing monitors to oversee state or local government agencies. This includes term limits for monitors, capping monitor fees, and providing a pathway to reduce or end a monitorship. While NAPO supports the Act’s goals, we want it amended to recognize the local rank-and-file organization as a bona fide party to any consent decree. This would give them legal standing to raise concerns about a monitor’s actions, and enable them to petition the court, the DOJ, or other authority to change or terminate the monitorship after one or more of its goals are met.
NAPO filed an amicus, or friend-of-the-court, brief in Fitzmaurice v. City of Quincy asking the Massachusetts Supreme Court to protect the freedom of the City of Quincy, Massachusetts to honor its firefighters and police officers with statues of Florian and Michael the Archangel. The ACLU sued to stop the city from installing the statues on its new public safety headquarters, claiming the figures have religious significance to some and therefore could not be used to honor first responders under the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights. The lower courts agreed with the ACLU, so the City of Quincy has appealed its case to the state Supreme Court.
We are working to assuage any concerns Senate Judiciary Committee members may have with the Officer John Barnes and Chief Michael Ansbro Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) Program Expansion Act and the Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act, two of NAPO’s priority bills for Police Week. The PSOB Expansion Act would increase program transparency and accountability and ensure it honors and supports officers and their families. The Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act, which passed the House during Police Week 2025, would build on existing reporting requirements, improving our understanding of the circumstances precipitating and involved in ambush attacks against law enforcement. Another Police Week priority NAPO is working with the Committee to move is the Fighting Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Act. This Act would direct the Justice Department to develop treatment programs for police, fire, emergency medical and 911 personnel who suffer from PTSD or acute stress disorders. The bill has minimal costs and passed the Senate last Congress, so we do not expect any issues moving this bill through Committee.
The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation approved the NAPO-backed No Fentanyl on Social Media Act, S. 3618 April 14, sending it to the full Senate. This bill would direct the Federal Trade Commission to coordinate with the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services, to report to Congress about minors' being able to access fentanyl via social media. It also calls for recommendations to best address this growing threat.
Time is running out to register for NAPO's Annual Lobby Day & Legislative Luncheon on Capitol Hill on May 14th. Please register online by May 1, 2026 or complete the registration form below and submit it to NAPO at aedmiston@napo.org or eloranger@napo.org by May 1. For those seeking help setting up their Capitol Hill meetings, contact NAPO’s Director of Government Affairs Andy Edmiston at aedmiston@napo.org or (703) 549-0775 by May 1.
For complete details, click here for the April 24, 2026 Washington Report.
