[StBernard] Landrieu, Cazayoux Honor Fallen Officers

Westley Annis Westley at da-parish.com
Wed May 14 21:10:50 EDT 2008


Landrieu, Cazayoux
Honor Fallen Officers
Announce legislation to extend benefits for officers and firefighters
injured or killed in the line of duty, as well as their families.



WASHINGTON - United States Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., and Representative
Don Cazayoux, D-La., today held a press conference to recognize the police
officers who lost their lives in the line of duty last year and are being
honored at this year's National Police Week. Ten Louisiana officers are
among the 358 law enforcement officers who will be recognized this year, and
whose names will be formally dedicated on the walls of the National Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C.

"National Police Week provides an opportunity for us to reflect on our law
enforcement officers' contributions to building safe and productive
communities in Louisiana and across the country," Sen. Landrieu said. "I
want to honor the families and colleagues of our fallen officers and thank
them for their unwavering service and dedication to keeping us safe."

"I am honored to stand with Louisiana's police officers who risk their own
lives every day to keep our families and communities safe," Rep. Cazayoux
said. "In the state legislature, I worked to increase death benefits for
fallen officers, and I will continue to make taking care of our first
responders a priority in Congress."

Sen. Landrieu and Rep. Cazayoux were joined by the colleagues and family of
the fallen Louisiana officers, representing each of the invited departments,
which includes: Alexandria Police Department, Bastrop Police Department,
Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office, Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, New
Orleans Police Department, Port Barre Police Department, St. Tammany Parish
Sheriff's Office and the Washington Parish Sheriff's Office.

Sen. Landrieu and Rep. Cazayoux also discussed legislation they are
authoring to broaden the benefits provided to police officers and
firefighters injured or killed in the line of duty, as well as their
families.

"The sacrifices of our heroic law enforcement officers remind us that it is
Congress' responsibility to ensure the federal government looks after our
disabled officers and firefighters, as well as the families of our fallen
and disabled first responders," Sen. Landrieu said. "They put themselves in
harm's way each day so that the rest of us may live safely and peacefully in
a free society. There is no group more deserving of our full support, and
the truth is, our federal government has not done enough to care for and
honor these officers, their families and their sacrifice."

"This past year has been an especially difficult one for Louisiana's police
officers, and I believe this legislation is vital to helping officers and
their families cope with the hardships they experience when an officer is
injured or killed in the line of duty," Rep. Cazayoux said. "The bill
Senator Landrieu and I will introduce will increase disability benefits to
ensure injured officers receive the medical care and counseling they need,
and allow the children of fallen officers to receive a quality college
education."

Expanding Disability Benefits

The Landrieu-Cazayoux First Responder's Support Act increases benefits to
disabled officers and firefighters and the families of those killed in the
line of duty. Under current law, the Department of Justice's Public Safety
Officer's Benefits Program provides disability benefits for public safety
officers who have been permanently and totally disabled by a catastrophic
injury sustained in the line of duty. In order to be eligible for the
benefit, the injury must permanently prevent the officer from performing any
gainful work. The program provides a one-time payment of $303,064 to these
disabled officers adjusted for inflation annually, as well as to spouses and
children of deceased public safety officers.

The bill increases the one-time payment to $350,000 and creates a
proportionately lower level of disability benefits for public safety
officers that have sustained a serious injury but are still able to perform
some type of work. For example, if an individual is 70 percent disabled, the
individual would be entitled to roughly $245,000.

Broadening Educational Benefits

The legislation also increases the lifetime educational benefit allowed
under the Public Safety Officers' Educational Assistance (PSOEA) Program.
Under the current law, this program helps the spouses or children of
disabled or deceased first responders with tuition and fees, room and board,
books, supplies and other education-related costs. As of October 1, 2007,
the maximum award for a full-time student is $881 per month. An individual
can only take advantage of the benefit for a lifetime maximum of 45 months,
totaling $39,645.

The legislation increases the benefit to $1500 per month, totaling $67,500,
and would adjust it for inflation on a yearly basis. This roughly reflects
the average price of attending college in the United States. The legislation
also permits educational benefits for children from previous marriages.

Expanding Counseling/Mental Health Services

The legislation creates an office within the Department of Justice to
distribute grants to local organizations that provide free or reduced cost
mental health services and counseling to family members of fallen officers
and firefighters, or seriously injured first responders who are struggling
to recover. The office will serve as a clearinghouse for state and local
first responders and their families so they can find such services for free
or at discounted rates.

Supplementing Continuing Care

The bill creates a refundable tax credit for injured first responders and
their caregivers to use for nursing, health care and home health services
that state or local workers' compensation, insurance or any other type of
health care benefit fail to cover. Injured first responders or their
familial caregivers (a spouse, a child or a parent) could take up to a
$7,500 tax credit.

A high-resolution photograph from the press conference is available at
http://landrieu.senate.gov/policeweek/MLLMayo.jpg
<http://landrieu-press.enews.senate.gov/mail/util.cfm?mailaction=clickthru&g
piv=1999898962.1099.5&gen=1&mailing_linkid=1016> .

CAPTION: New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Warren J. Riley, U.S.
Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., and other Louisiana first responders listen
as St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Deputy Mary Mayo describes the challenges
faced by law enforcement officers injured in the line of duty. [U.S. Senate
Photographer]

Additional photographs are available by request. Please call Marni Goldberg
at 202-224-1949 to request photographs featuring officers from a particular
department.





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