NOTE: As provided in LFC policy, this report is intended for use by the standing finance committees of the legislature.  The Legislative Finance Committee does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information in this report when used in any other situation.

The LFC is only preparing FIRs on bills referred to the Senate Finance Committee, the Senate Ways and Means Committee, the House Appropriations and Finance Committee and the House Taxation and Revenue Committee. The chief clerks are responsible for preparing and issuing all other bill analyses.

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(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Duplicates/Conflicts with/Companion to/Relates to HB 2 and SB 2

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC files

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

The purpose of this bill is to make an appropriation of $2,230,000 from the general fund to the Department of Public Safety, for the purpose of recruiting, employing and training forty additional state police officers

Significant Issues

Any unexpended or unencumbered balances remaining at the end of fiscal year 2000 shall revert to the general fund.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

According to the Department of Public Safety (DPS), the funding is adequate to achieve the objective of this bill. The cost of employing the 40 additional police officers will be recurring. Second year costs will run approximately $1,591.6 for salaries and benefits, $24.0 for clothing, $172.8 for gas/maintenance, and $8.0 for supplies.

Also, the proposed legislation will not affect any other local, state or federal matching funds or appropriations.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

DPS reports no administrative impacts.

The Administrative Office of the Courts reports any additional fiscal impact on the judiciary would be proportional to the arrests these new officers make, and of those arrests, the cases that go to court. Hearings have the potential to increase caseloads in the courts, thus requiring additional resources to handle the increase.

The Administrative Office of the District Attorneys & District Attorneys' (DA) Offices reports administrative impact on the DA's offices would eventually be an increase in cases due to the increase in law enforcement efforts. The DA's Association is always in support of enhancing the enforcement efforts in this state. The rural nature of our state creates many areas where the only law enforcement efforts are by county and state police officers; and, unfortunately, many county law enforcement agencies are not sufficiently staffed and sometimes not trained to investigate serious, violent crimes. This creates a greater need for additional state police officers. This bill helps fill that need.

CONFLICT/DUPLICATION/COMPANIONSHIP/RELATIONSHIP

HB 268 relates to HB 2 and SB 2. House Appropriations and Finance Committee is recommending $2,230.3 in HB 2 for this purpose.

TECHNICAL ISSUES

DPS reports an emergency clause would enable the department to begin recruiting in the spring of FY99 for the additional 40 officers to be hired in FY2000. The first FY2000 school is scheduled to begin in July 1999. The recruiting process for this school has already begun and expenditures for the recruiting process, physicals and psychological evaluations, will be incurred in May 1999.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

Law's 1998, Chapter 4 appropriates $8.6 million from the general fund to the DPS for the purpose of recruiting, employing, training and equipping additional state police officers. Of the $8.6 million, $2.8 million is for the purpose of recruiting, employing, training and equipping fifty additional state police officers and $5.8 million is for the purpose of equipping forty additional state police officers during fiscal years 2000 through 2002.

HB 268 provides the FTE which complements the 1998 legislation.

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