Congresswoman Kendra Horn is working across the aisle on a measure to bring more funding for behavioral health training within the law enforcement ranks. H.R. 2698 is the first bill Horn has introduced in Congress. She’s working with U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown and Congressman Anthony Gonzalez on what they are calling The Law Enforcement Training for Mental Health Crisis Response Act of 2019.
According to a study by the Treatment Advocacy Center, people with untreated mental illness are 16 times more likely to be killed during a police encounter than other civilians.
H.R. 2698 is meant to create a grant program for law enforcement agencies at the state, local, territorial and tribal levels. The grants would be used for behavioral health training programs.
“The training gap puts both the officers and those experiencing crisis in danger,” Horn said. “This commonsense, bipartisan legislation makes our communities safer, and it helps us protect our most vulnerable. We need to equip these peace officers. These grants will help.”
