Item 5: Ratification of IGR Actions

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Contact Respondent Dept Updated Priority Recommendation Chuck Tilby EPD-ADM 3/5/2011 Pri 1 Oppose Comments: See comments for HB 2951, appears identical: Amending first sections to include "serious physical injury" to the definitions is just fine. The next change increases the number of sessions with a mental health professional that the City will pay for from 2 to 6. Not only would this be a 3x increase in these sessions, but adding "involved officer" could increase these another 2 or more times - monetary impact 9 times the cost to the City. Mandates involved officers attend ALL of the sessions (currently it says "at least one"). Not all involved officers need this amount of work. In most cases, a single session as described works well in that it describes the symptoms of traumatic incidents so that the officers are able to recognize normal reactions that otherwise may be disturbing. To mandate 6 sessions for all involved is way too much - doesn't serve officers well, but serves mental health professionals quite well. The requirement for a 72 hour re- assignment is essentially our existing policy. OK to mandate it because many agencies in the state do not do this. The next session mandates testing for controlled substances and anabolic steroids. Currently, this is an option that is offered to employees, but lacking reasonable grounds to believe an officer is taking such substances, the City cannot mandate the test. Expect a large negative reaction to this paragraph from unions. Typically, the City sees advantage for taking the tests, but current labor rules support the option. Mandating the tests is not advisable and increases the City's costs for paying for such tests. The next section (6) is a major problem with this bill. It takes the investigation out of the hands of a multi-agency investigation team (SB111 - In Lane County it is the Interagency Deadly Force Investigation Team) which has been successfully operating for several years. This bill mandates the Department of Justice conducts the investigation and then is reimbursed by the DA's office. First, DOJ does not have the resources to conduct the investigations we request of them, now, but to add responsibility to investigate all officer-involved shootings would result in inordinate delay in investigations, which is a major stressor for involved officers (often times more than the incident itself). Additionally, DOJ does not have investigatory expertise when it comes to investigating such incidents - a major advantage of the current system where experienced investigators from different agencies, coordinated by OSP, conduct the investigation. DOJ also does not have forensic capabilities. All of these issues will significantly reduce the quality and timeliness of these critical investigations. Removes local control provided by SB111 and turns it over to the state in the form of DOJ. Section 8 of this bill (appropriately numbered) mandates that DPSST establish a periodic psychological exam as a condition of employment as a police officer. This is a major departure from existing industry standards. Psychological testing is not an exact science, and often reach conclusions only if they are supported by observable behaviors, relying on a background during a hiring process. Standards do not exist for retention decisions., Mandating such a periodic test would undoubtedly result in litigation of cases where an officer was deemed not to have passed. Current law allows for agencies to address psychological issues and mandating tests would be costly and fraught with legal problems. SB 0899 Relating Clause: Relating to sex trafficking. Title: Creates Assistance to Victims of Sex Trafficking Program. Sponsored by: By Senator STARR; Senators ATKINSON, DEVLIN, Representatives BARKER, DOHERTY, ESQUIVEL, HUFFMAN, KENNEMEW, KRIEGER, LINDSAY, TOMEI 19 | Page March 16, 2011 IGR Committee Meeting