Fighting for First Responders

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Fighting for Tax Breaks for First Responders

Co-sponsored H.R. 943, the Volunteer Responder Incentive Protection Act

• To help recruit and retain volunteer emergency responders, several states have passed laws allowing towns to provide property tax rebates to residents who volunteer as emergency responders. However, the IRS has ruled that such incentives are considered income and therefore subject to federal taxation. This bill would change federal tax law to make it clear that these tax rebates cannot be taxed as income. Elements of this bill were included in the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act which became law in late 2007.
• The bill is supported by the International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Volunteer Fire Council and the Con-gressional Fire Services Institute.

Putting More Cops On Our Streets and Giving them the Tools they Need

Supporting the COPS (Community Oriented Police Services) Program

• Congressman Murphy voted for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provided an additional $1 billion for the COPS program.
• Since 1994, the COPS Office at the Department of Justice has awarded more than $72 million in grant funding to law enforcement agencies in the 8th District, and put more than 1,000 cops on streets across the 8th District.

Supporting the Byrne-JAG (Justice Assistance Grants) Programs

• Congressman Murphy voted for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provided an addi-tional $2 billion for the Byrne-JAG Program.
• This program allows state and local government to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime. The funding allows state and local law enforcement agencies to fund cold-case units, school violence programs, hate crime programs, crime victim and witness programs, the purchase of equipment and the training of law enforcement officers.

Ensuring that Our Firefighters Have the Resources They Need

Voted for Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program

• Congressman Murphy voted for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which provided an additional $210 million for the Assistance to Firefighters Grant program, enabling firehouse reconstruction and renovation.
• The Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program provides funding for local firefighters to obtain critically important equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources necessary to protect the public and emergency personnel.
• In 2007 alone, the program provided $432,000 to America Hose, Hook, and Ladder Company #2 in Bristol to purchase a new fire engine, nearly $41,000 to Warrington Community Ambulance Corps for personal protective equipment, and over $20,000 to Lower Southampton Fire Dept. #1 for personal protective equipment.

Voted for Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for the SAFER Grants Program

• The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Firefighters program provides much-needed funding for career and volunteer fire departments to hire new firefighters and recruit and retain volunteer firefighters.
• Congressman Murphy voted for a spending bill that provides $210 million for the SAFER program for 2009, a much needed increase over 2008 funding.
• In 2005, the Bristol Township Fire District received $400,000 through this program, which hired and trained four additional firefighters..

Fighting for the Best Technology and Equipment for First Responders

Fighting for Full Funding for RISS Program in Newtown

• The RISS program is a nationally implemented program comprised of six regional intelligence centers, one of which is located in Newtown, which provides information sharing, analytical support, training, equipment loans and other important resources to local law enforcement within their regions.
• RISS is particularly important in targeting gang, drug trafficking and possible terrorist activities that span several states or jurisdictions.
• Congressman Murphy pushed the Appropriations Committee to fully fund the Regional Information Sharing Systems (RISS) program.

Secured Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars for Bucks County Law Enforcement Organizations

• Congressman Murphy secured a $235,000 appropriation for law enforcement interoperability through the Bucks County Department of Corrections. The project will pay for wireless cards and antennae, laptop mounting equipment for police vehicles and wireless service contracts. This would enable uninterrupted communication between local law enforcement organizations across Bucks and throughout the five-county Philadelphia area.
• Congressman Murphy secured $400,000 for Bristol Township Police. The project involves the purchase and installation of an IVMS Server and 16 IP/Network Cameras with bulletproof housing and wireless Ethernet mesh network radio nodes. This system will enable the Bristol Township Police Department to provide a major portion of the officially recognized federal Weed & Seed Site in Bristol Township, Freedom Neighborhood One, with a video surveillance system that will expand the capacity of the Bristol Township Police Department to actively monitor and eliminate violence and drug trafficking in Bristol Township.
• Congressman Murphy secured $150,000 for Bensalem Township emergency management. This appropriation will be used to purchase a tailor-made computer software program that will enable Bensalem Township's emergency management organization to operate and respond more efficiently to critical situations. This program would be composed not only of GIS data, but also municipal data regarding information that is key to the operation of emergency services, public works, and the school district in order to provide the best possible safety-security response to the municipality. This program can be utilized or replicated by other municipalities, not just throughout Bucks County, but throughout the region and the country.
• Congressman Murphy secured $150,000 for Pennridge Police Department. The Pennridge Regional Police Department and the Pennridge Regional Police Commission are planning a much-needed regional police headquarters and a "public safety center," facilitating multidisciplinary training opportunities with fire and EMS personnel. This facility will include a training area and Emergency Operations Center. The funds will be used to obtain a new computer system for the police department, a security / surveillance system and an access control system for the building.

Cracking Down on Gangs

Secured Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars for Programs to Eliminate Gang Violence in Bucks County

• Secured $352,000 in federal funds for the Bucks County Security Threat Group and $100,000 for the Bristol Borough Gang Prevention Initiative. Both projects will empower local police forces to combat gang violence through enforcement, education and prevention of organized crime.

Fighting for Full Benefits for First Responders

Proud Co-Sponsor of H.R. 235, the Social Security Fairness Act

• Congressman Murphy believes that first responders who dedicated themselves to public service should not lose the retirement benefits that they or their spouses have earned throughout their careers.
• This bill would repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), two loopholes that often reduce Social Security benefits for first-responders and their families.

Proud Co-Sponsor of H.R 948, the Federal Firefighters Fairness Act

• This bill creates the presumption that federal firefighters who become disabled by heart disease, lung disease, certain cancers and other infectious diseases contracted the illness on the job. Federal firefighters are currently denied this right that a majority of municipal firefighters already enjoy.

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