Rutherford, Gottheimer Introduce Bipartisan Invest to Protect Act

Press Release

Today, Congressman John Rutherford (FL-04) and Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05) introduced the bipartisan Invest to Protect Act of 2022. The bill would make critical, targeted investments in local police departments and ensure that police officers in smaller communities across the country have the resources and training they need to keep themselves and their communities safe.

"Small police forces in rural areas often suffer from a lack of operational equipment and services," said Congressman John Rutherford. "That's why we introduced the Invest to Protect Act, which creates a grant program for departments with fewer than 200 officers to support critical resources like body cameras, training, retention, and mental health care. Thank you to my colleague, Rep. Gottheimer, for leading on this important legislation."

"Cutting to the bone only weakens any profession; it pushes good people out, it diminishes the overall quality, and fuels a race to the bottom. That's especially true in law enforcement. The only way to make a department better is to invest wisely, in training and tools, in recruiting and retaining the best talent, and ensuring they can be involved in the community. That's how you keep families safe. In short, when it comes to law enforcement, you need to invest to protect," said Congressman Josh Gottheimer. "This legislation sends an important message: we want our police officers to feel supported, especially when they are struggling with the realities of their profession. We want them to know that we have their backs and that they are appreciated for the job they do."

The Invest to Protect Act will create a grant program for police departments with fewer than 200 officers, including:

Investment in de-escalation and domestic violence response training, allowing officers to receive critical training that will make them more effective at their jobs. It also allows grants to be used to offset overtime pay so training does not put a strain on department budgets.
Investment in body worn cameras, while also providing much-needed resources and guidance for data storage and data security.
Investment in officer recruitment to help expand departments and bring in new officers. This grant can also be used by departments to provide retention bonuses to help keep their existing officers and provide educational benefits for officers pursuing graduate degrees in public health, social work, and mental health.
Investment in departments to provide mental health resources for their officers.
The full text of the bill can be found here.

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