Preventing the Misuse of Tear Gas Act

The Preventing the Misuse of Tear Gas Act (S. 1579) establishes national standards for when and how law enforcement officers can use riot control agents, such as tear gas. Under this bill, federal agencies would be required to limit the use of these agents strictly to stopping violent activities while taking specific steps to minimize the impact on bystanders or peaceful demonstrators. To ensure these standards are met at the local level, state and municipal police departments would be required to adopt similar restrictive policies as a condition for receiving certain federal public safety grants.