Bill > S3083

Introduced Session

This bill establishes minimum age and educational requirements for new applicants to be law enforcement officers in county police departments and municipal law enforcement departments and permits the adoption of additional education requirements. This bill would require applicants to the county and municipal police departments to be at least 21 years of age. Under the bill, county and municipal police officers would be required to have an associate degree. The degree is to be earned from an institution of higher education which is licensed to award academic degrees by the New Jersey Commission of Higher Education, or a similar entity in another jurisdiction. The bill provides exceptions to this requirement if the person has honorably served in the armed services of the United States or has relevant employment experience. The bill specifies that the military service must have been completed within three years prior to the application to the police department. The bill also permits counties and municipalities to adopt more stringent educational standards for initial appointment to the police department. Pursuant to N.J.S.40A:14-122, municipal police department applicants are required to be able to read, write and speak English "well and intelligently." Law enforcement officers are highly paid professionals who are accorded great authority and responsibility in our society. It is in the public interest to increase the minimum educational requirements for those seeking to enter this profession.

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Troy Singleton (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee (on 10/29/2020)