By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Eastern Kansas Congressman, Derek Schmidt, says legislation approved by Congress should help federal authorities crack down on child exploitation.
Schmidt co-sponsored the Protect Our Children Reauthorization Act, which provides more money for and gives more power to the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
“And it is a dedicated, specially trained group of professionals whose mission is to focus on the exploitation of children online, the use of the Internet to commit crimes against kids,” Schmidt tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post.
Schmidt, the former Kansas Attorney General, says the legislation updates the national strategy to prevent child exploitation online.
The Protect Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025 was one of three public safety measures co-sponsored by Schmidt and approved by Congress. All are expected to be signed into law by the president.
Another bill, Chief Herbert D. Proffitt Act of 2025, expands the federal public safety officers benefit program to include retired officers killed or disabled in targeted attacks.
Another public safety measure co-sponsored by Schmidt and approved by Congress would change the presumption of a firefighter or any public safety officer diagnosed with cancer.
Schmidt points out current law requires the firefighter to prove his cancer was caused by work-related exposure to toxins. Schmidt says that is unfair.
“How do you prove that the cancer was caused by your exposure over a period of time in many different instances to those sorts of chemicals?” Schmidt asks. “We flipped the presumption. The presumption is, if you’re a firefighter and you come down with certain types of cancer, it is presumed that the cause was your professional work unless the evidence shows otherwise.”
The change in Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act would allow public safety officers to more easily qualify for disability benefits or allow their family to benefit from survivor benefits.
