Judiciary Committee Advances Representative Angie Craig's Bipartisan Legislation to Support Law Enforcement
Statement
This week, the House Judiciary Committee advanced the Public Safety Officer Support Act with overwhelming bipartisan support -- legislation that U.S. Representative Angie Craig helped introduce after hearing the story of South St. Paul police officer Cory Slifko earlier this year. Craig's legislation would allow officers to access disability benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health challenges that arise as a result of their service in the line of duty. It would also expand the Public Safety Officers' Benefit (PSOB) program to ensure that families of officers who lost their lives to trauma-linked suicide can apply for the death benefits that they deserve.
This issue became a priority for Representative Craig after talking with and hearing the story of Katie Slifko, who was deemed ineligible for survivor benefits after the death of her husband Cory, who served for nearly 20 years on the South St. Paul Police force. Craig has also worked with a bipartisan group of state legislators including Senator Zach Duckworth, Senator Karla Bigham and Representative Kelly Moller to prioritize passage of similar legislation in Minnesota. Just last week, Craig hosted a roundtable at the State Capitol with local law enforcement, Ms. Slifko, state lawmakers and mental health professionals to discuss ongoing efforts to expand the PSOB program.
Currently, the PSOB program only provides disability relief to families of officers who died or who have been permanently disabled as a result of a physical injury -- completely excluding any support for mental health challenges or families who have lost their loved ones to suicide.
"It's completely unacceptable that our valued law enforcement officers aren't able to access disability benefits when their mental health prevents them from continuing to serve in the line of duty," said Representative Angie Craig. "It's long past time we took action to address this issue and support those who put their lives on the line for our communities. I'm proud to see this crucial bill advancing in Congress and urge leadership to prioritize its full passage as soon as possible."
Source