Register by May 1, 2025 to join NAPO's Annual Lobby Day & Legislative Awards Luncheon May 14, 2025 on Capitol Hill. Before lobbying Capitol Hill, plan to attend NAPO’s Legislative Breakfast for an update on NAPO’s legislative priorities, results to date from the 119th Congress, and to receive handouts to use during your Hill visits. Register online or complete the registration form and email it to NAPO at aedmiston@napo.org or eloranger@napo.org by May 1. Those seeking assistance setting up Capitol Hill meetings should contact NAPO’s Director of Government Affairs Andy Edmiston no later than May 1 at aedmiston@napo.org or (703) 549-0775.

In a victory for NAPO, the House Judiciary Committee approved the LEOSA Reform Act (H.R. 2243) and the Improving Law Enforcement Safety and Wellness Through Data Act (H.R. 2240) on March 25, sending them to the full House for consideration. The LEOSA Reform Act would expand the areas where qualified current or retired officers are allowed to carry a firearm to include: a Gun Free School Zone; on state, local and private property otherwise open to the public; and in certain federal facilities, among other provisions. It would also reform qualifications standards. The Improving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to collect data on the actual and threatened use of force against officers. 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 the needs of officers.

NAPO Executive Director Bill Johnson and Governmental Affairs Director Andy Edmiston met with White House staff to discuss our priority issues, the 32nd Annual TOP COPS Awards ®, and how we can best support the Administration’s efforts on behalf of our nation’s law enforcement officers. We thanked the staff for the executive orders the President has signed impacting law enforcement, including the Executive Order on Restoring the Death Penalty and Protecting Public Safety, which directs the Attorney General to pursue Federal jurisdiction and the death penalty in cases involving the “murder of a law enforcement officer”. We emphasized that increasing protections for officers against violent assaults has long been a priority of ours. We highlighted the importance of: the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program to the families of law enforcement officers; ensuring officer rights are protected; providing resources and tools needed to aid law enforcement’s fight against fentanyl; and the importance of officers having access to confidential peer mentoring services.

NAPO again pledged its support for the Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act, reintroduced by Senator Ted Cruz, which will enable federal and local law enforcement officers to work together to protect communities and take crucial steps towards eliminating sanctuary jurisdictions. Sanctuary cities forbid their local law enforcement from fully cooperating with federal immigration officials, which has led to the release of violent criminals back into our communities. Several courts have ruled that local law enforcement officers may be sued for violating the Fourth Amendment if they comply with an immigration detainer, even if the detainer was lawfully issued and the detention would have been legal if carried out by DHS. This means dangerous criminals must be released. The Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act states that local law enforcement officers have legal authority to comply with immigration detainers. 

On March 25, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche sent a memo to the heads of DOJ components seeking feedback on the Department’s reorganization plan and reduction in force (RIF), pursuant to the President’s Executive Order 14210, entitled Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Workforce Optimization Initiative. The first proposal in the memo for feedback is “consolidating grantmaking functions”, of the Office of Justice Programs, the Office on Violence Against Women, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), the Office for Access to Justice, and the Office of Tribal Justice. Consolidating these five offices is concerning, particularly the possible loss of independence for the COPS office. While NAPO supports making the Department and its grantmaking authorities more streamlined and efficient, we fear if consolidation occurs, the COPS Office will lose a significant, dedicated resource. NAPO officials wrote a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi in response to the memo, advising her of our longstanding support for the program, its importance to law enforcement, and detailing concerns with it being possibly consolidated with the work of the other offices.  

NAPO, together with our national law enforcement coalition, continues to push our National Police Week agenda. We met with the staff of Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and House Law Enforcement Caucus Co-Chairs, Representatives John Rutherford (R-FL) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), to discuss the pro-law enforcement legislation we want to see moved during National Police Week 2025. NAPO focused on officer safety legislation by increasing penalties for the murder, attempted murder, or assault of federal, state, and local law enforcement officers, whether it be the Protect and Serve Act, the Back the Blue Act, the Justice for Fallen Law Enforcement Act, or the Thin Blue Line Act. We also prioritized the HELPER Act and the Invest to Protect Act, which along with The Protect and Serve Act, are all sponsored by Representatives Rutherford and Gottheimer. The HELPER Act creates a new first-time homebuyer loan program for qualified first responders through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) that aims to remove the down payment and monthly insurance premium requirements. The Invest to Protect Act creates a grant program specifically for small law enforcement agencies to help them hire, retain, and train officers and provide mental health and peer mentoring services for their officers.

Click here for the full April 4, 2025 Washington Report for more details.