FAQs

The act of bravery must have occurred during the calendar year immediately preceding the submission deadline for that year's CBOB nominations. For example, for the submission deadline of February 15, 2024, the eligible acts of bravery must have taken place between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.

Each CBOB nomination submission period is tied to a specific calendar year. The opening date for nominations is on or around December 15 of each year. When December 15 occurs on a weekend, the opening date for nominations may occur one or two days earlier.

All nominations must be received no later than February 15, at 5 p.m. eastern time of the calendar year following the date on which the nominee performed the act of bravery.

No. Nominations cannot be submitted once that year’s nomination submission period has closed. In addition, incidents that occurred prior to the establishment of the CBOB program are not eligible for consideration.

All CBOB nominations must be submitted by, or at the direction or approval of, the head of the law enforcement agency employing the nominee(s). The agency head should also be listed under the Nominator Information section.

Yes, but a separate online nomination must be completed for each officer. In the case of groups of officers who are to be nominated for the same incident, the narrative summaries for each nomination should identify each officer within the group by name and agency and reflect the individual and collective actions of each nominee.

The law enforcement agency head for each nominated officer must approve the submission of the nomination(s). The narrative summaries should identify each officer in the group by name and agency. In addition, each nomination should indicate "Yes" under the group nomination section of the nomination form.

Regardless of service on a taskforce, the responsibility for approving and submitting nominations remains with the law enforcement agency that permanently employs the officer. The agency heading up the taskforce may choose to provide the nominating agency with a letter of support and/or other appropriate documents to be included with the nomination(s).

The incident summary should at a minimum identify each nominated officer by name, and should clearly reflect the individual and collective actions of the officer(s) being considered for this award. The incident summary can contain up to 7500 characters, and additional supporting material may be included with each nomination.

Yes, but a separate nomination must be submitted for each incident.

The online nomination indicates what information is required.

This section should include information on the head of the law enforcement agency that employs the nominee(s). If the nomination information reflects an agency official other than the agency head, documentation must be provided to confirm that the agency head approves each officer's nomination.

Yes, the Boards will accept posthumous nominations and may award a badge posthumously. Recommending officials should make clear that the nomination is for a posthumous award and indicate within the Summary of Act of Bravery field whether the officer's death occurred in connection with his or her act of bravery.

All non-federal law enforcement agencies, including county, city, municipal, or tribal law enforcement agencies, must apply under the State/Local category for the Congressional Badge of Bravery.

Questions concerning the nomination process should be directed to the Congressional Badge of Bravery Office at [email protected]. Once a final decision is made, the Congressional members and agency heads for the recipient officers will be notified. Follow-up contact may be initiated by the relevant Congressional office or the Congressional Badge of Bravery Office.