Sponsors (4)
The bill directs multi-year federal funding and advisory oversight to expand anonymous screening, outreach, and referrals for corrections officers—improving detection and care—but introduces privacy risks, administrative burdens, funding-dependence, and allocation rigidities that could limit participation and sustainable, flexible local implementation.
Corrections officers (law-enforcement staff) will gain regular anonymous mental-health screening, outreach, and referral pathways so more officers with stress, PTSD, burnout, or severe mental illness are identified and can get care, which should improve officer wellbeing and workplace safety.
State and local governments and the Bureau of Prisons will receive dedicated federal grant funding and multi-year budget certainty ($50M–$70M FY2026–FY2030) to hire liaisons, outreach teams, and implement programs, reducing upfront local costs to start services.
An Advisory Board, technical assistance, and a multi-stakeholder working group will provide oversight, evidence-backed models, and shared best practices, increasing program quality and accountability in rollout and grant use.
Corrections officers may still avoid participation because of stigma, fear of career consequences, and privacy concerns (e.g., insufficient confidentiality for surveys/referrals), limiting program uptake and effectiveness.
Compliance, reporting, monitoring, and matching or administrative requirements tied to grants and Board oversight will create substantial administrative burdens for States, localities, and facilities, potentially diverting staff time away from service delivery.
Reliance on federal grants creates sustainability risk: if federal funding lapses or is reduced, local programs could be left without resources; increased federal spending (up to $70M in FY2030) also raises taxpayer cost or deficit concerns.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Authorizes federal grants and BOP programs to run anonymous mental-health screenings and outreach/referral teams for corrections officers, with multi-year funding.
Introduced March 24, 2025 by Mariannette Miller-Meeks · Last progress March 24, 2025
Creates a federal program to screen corrections officers for severe mental illness and connect officers who screen positive to local mental health services. The Attorney General must set up a grant program for States and local governments to run anonymous 5–10 question screenings, build outreach teams, and hire a mental health liaison; the Bureau of Prisons must run a comparable program for its officers. An advisory board will oversee grants, approve plans, and share best practices. The bill authorizes $50M–$70M per year for FY2026–FY2030 and sets how funds are allocated among BOP, States, and localities, plus funding for the advisory board.