SB 5060 — Creating a law enforcement hiring grant program.

S-0785.2S-0248.2 SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5060 State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session By Senate Law & Justice (originally sponsored by Senators Holy, Dhingra, Chapman, Christian, Cortes, Gildon, Krishnadasan, Liias, Orwall, Short, Slatter, Wagoner, and Wellman)Wellman READPrefiled FIRST12/16/24. TIME 01/24/25.

ANRead ACTfirst Relatingtime to01/13/25. increasing the number of law enforcement agency personnel;

Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

AN ACT Relating to the creation of a law enforcement hiring grant program;

addingand amaking newan sectionappropriation. to chapter 36.28A RCW;

making an appropriation;

and providing an expiration date.

(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the commission shall develop and implement a law enforcement hiring grant program for the purpose of providing direct support to local and tribal law enforcement agencies in hiring law enforcement officers,officers peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co-response to increase community policing and public safety.

(2) Grants provide up to 75 percent of the entry-level salaries and fringe benefits of full-time local or tribal law enforcement officers,officers peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co-response for a maximum of 36 months, with a minimum 25 percent local cash match requirement and a maximum state share of $125,000 per law enforcement officer position.

Any additional costs for salaries and benefits higher than entry level are the responsibility of the grant recipient p.agency.

1The SSBgrants 5060cannot agency.be used for any costs other than salaries and benefits.

These grants are intended for the purpose of increasing the number of filled local and tribal law enforcement officerp. positions, peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co- response in Washington state.

1 SB 5060 officer positions in Washington state.

InUnder order to qualify for a grant pursuant to this section athe lawcommission enforcementshall: agency must maintain:

(a) Written and published policies consistent with RCW 43.17.425, 10.93.160, and the office of the attorney general's keep Washington working act guidance, model policies, and training recommendations for state and local law enforcement agencies;

(b) Written and published policies and training on use of force approved by the criminal justice training commission;

(c) Written and published policies and practices related to laws addressing firearm relinquishment pursuant to court orders and domestic violence 911 response requirements;

(d) 80 percent officer compliance rate with the criminal justice training commission's 40-hour crisis intervention team training;

and (e) 100 percent officer compliance rate with trauma-informed training approved by the criminal justice training commission.

(4) The commission may provide an advance on grant funding to a law enforcement agency that does not qualify under subsection (3) of this section, but who otherwise meets the grant application criteria established by the commission, for the purposes of the agency coming into compliance with subsection (3) of this section.

(5) Under this section the commission shall:

and (e) Require reports from grant recipients that must include at least how the funding impacted retention rates and improved vacancy p.rates, and the estimated time the applying agency took from recruitment to hiring in the last closed fiscal year.

2(4) SSBEffective 5060July rates,31, 2025, and theannually estimatedthereafter timeon theJuly applying31st, agencythe tookcommission frommust recruitmentreport to hiringthe inappropriate thecommittees lastof closedthe fiscallegislature year.on:

(6) Effective July 31, 2026, and annually thereafter on July 31st, the commission must report to the appropriate committees of the legislature on:

A new section is added to chapter 36.28A RCW to read as follows:

(1) The Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs shall complete a report on law enforcement personnel employed as general authority Washington peace officers, as defined in RCW 10.93.020, over time for each local law enforcement agency in Washington state.

The report must include data points for each local law enforcement agency on July 1, 2020, July 1, 2021, July 1, 2022, July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, on the:

(a) Count of general authority Washington peace officer positions;

(b) Count of filled general authority Washington peace officer positions;

(c) Count of vacant general authority Washington peace officer positions;

and (d) Count of retirements of general authority Washington peace officer positions over the past 12 calendar months.

(2) Using data from subsection (1) of this section, the report must also include a table to show the above data and in turn the vacancy rates and turnover rates for each local law enforcement agency, as well as a compiled statewide view of vacancy and turnover p.

3 SSB 5060 rates for general authority Washington peace officer positions year over year.

(3) The report is due to the governor and fiscal committees of the legislature by January 1, 2026.

(4) This section expires July 1, 2026.

NEW SECTION.

Sec.

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42 SSBSB 5060