Measure Would Broaden Law Officer Coverage

Legislation (HR-1002) introduced in the House by Reps. Bob Filner, D-Calif., and John McHugh, R-N.Y., once again seeks to expand to Bureau of Customs and Border Protection inspectors and IRS revenue agents the special retirement provisions applying to federal law enforcement officers. The bill has been proposed for many years on grounds that those employees perform many of the same types of functions—and face the same types of risks—as employees who are covered by those special provisions, which allow for earlier retirement and provide an enhanced benefit, although at the cost of higher employee contributions.