1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Helping Extend Responding Officers Expansive Support Act of 2018 or the HEROES Act of 2018 . 2. Collection of data on killed or disabled law enforcement officers Section 534(a) of title 28, United States Code, is amended— (1) in paragraph (3), by striking and at the end; (2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (5) operate a central clearinghouse for statistics on law enforcement officers under the Uniform Crime Reporting Program, including data on law enforcement officers who, while performing their duties, were— (A) feloniously killed; (B) accidentally killed; (C) feloniously assaulted; or (D) severely and permanently disabled. . 3. Public safety officers' benefits (a) Eligibility for educational assistance benefits Section 1216(a) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 34 U.S.C. 10306(a) ) is amended to read as follows: (a) Retroactive eligibility Subject to the other limitations of this subpart and notwithstanding any other provision of law, a spouse or child of a public safety officer who was killed or permanently and totally disabled in the line of duty before, on, or after January 1, 1978, shall be eligible for assistance under this subpart. . (b) Election of lump sum or annuity (1) In general Section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 34 U.S.C. 10281 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (o) (1) An individual entitled to receive a benefit under this subpart shall elect to receive the benefit as— (A) a lump sum; or (B) an annuity. (2) If an individual does not make a timely election under paragraph (1), as determined by the Bureau, the Bureau shall pay the benefit as a lump sum. . (2) Effective date The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall— (A) take effect on the date of enactment of this Act