Bill Text: NJ S1521 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires law enforcement agencies to provide law enforcement officers with cultural diversity training and develop diversity action plan.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee [S1521 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S1521-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator SHIRLEY K. TURNER
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Requires law enforcement agencies to provide law enforcement officers with cultural diversity training and develop diversity action plan.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning law enforcement practices and amending P.L.2016, c.23.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 2 of P.L.2016, c.23 (C.52:17B-77.14) is amended to read as follows:
2. a. As used in this act, "law enforcement agency" means a State, county, or municipal law enforcement department in this State and every campus police department at an institution of higher education that appoints police officers pursuant to P.L.1970, c.211 (C.18A:6-4.2 et seq.).
b. Every [State, county, and municipal law enforcement department in the State and every campus police department at an institution of higher education in the State that appoints police officers pursuant to P.L.1970, c.211 (C.18A:6-4.2 et seq.)] law enforcement agency in this State shall provide once every five years in-service training of its personnel utilizing the training course materials or online tutorial developed or identified by the Department of Law and Public Safety pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2016, c.23 (C.52:17B-77.13). A law enforcement agency shall report to the Attorney General as to whether every law enforcement officer has completed the course as part of the cultural diversity action plan established pursuant to subsection c. of this section.
c. Every law enforcement agency in this State shall develop and adopt a cultural diversity action plan. The plan shall include strategies to develop outreach programs that address the social needs and concerns regarding crime in the community and to form partnerships with various cultural, religious, and civic organizations, which shall include organizations formed on the basis of preventing discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. One of the primary objectives of each plan shall be to establish positive relationships between the police and various community groups that encourage a willingness to collaborate in identifying community safety issues and establishing innovative strategies designed to create safe and stable neighborhoods.
In order to evaluate the effectiveness of each cultural diversity action plan, the chief law enforcement officer of each law enforcement agency shall submit to the Attorney General the cultural diversity action plan adopted pursuant to this subsection within one year of the effective date of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill) and at least once every three years thereafter. The Attorney General may periodically assess the plans to determine whether each law enforcement agency is meeting its goals in providing in-service training pursuant to subsection b. of this section and formulating a cultural diversity action plan established pursuant to this subsection.
(cf: P.L.2020, c.68, s.2)
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires law enforcement agencies to provide cultural diversity training to its law enforcement officers and develop a cultural diversity action plan.
Current law authorizes State, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies to provide to their officers in-service cultural diversity training that utilizes course materials and an on-line tutorial developed or identified by the Department of Law and Public Safety. This bill makes this cultural diversity training mandatory.
The bill also requires these law enforcement agencies to develop and adopt a cultural diversity action plan. The plans are to include strategies for outreach programs that address the social needs and concerns regarding crime in the community. The plans also are to include strategies to form partnerships with various cultural, religious, and civic organizations, including those formed on the basis of preventing discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. A primary objective of each plan is to emphasize positive relationships between the police and various community groups that encourage a willingness to collaborate in identifying community safety issues and establishing innovative strategies designed to create safe and stable neighborhoods and campuses.
The bill requires law enforcement agencies to submit the plans to the Attorney General within one year of the bill's effective date and at least once every three years thereafter. The bill also authorizes the Attorney General to periodically assess the plans to determine whether each agency is meeting its goals in providing the in-service training and formulating the cultural diversity action plans.
