LB1093 LB1093
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LEGISLATURE OF NEBRASKA
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH LEGISLATURE
SECOND SESSION
LEGISLATIVE BILL 1093
Introduced by Bostar, 29.
Read first time January 09, 2024
Committee: Revenue
1 A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to first responders; to amend sections
2 81-1401, 81-1403, and 81-1414, Revised Statutes Cumulative
3 Supplement, 2022, and sections 85-2601, 85-2602, 85-2603,
4 85-2603.01, and 85-2605, Revised Statutes Supplement, 2023; to
5 provide for limited law enforcement officer certificates for
6 federally trained investigators employed by state agencies; to
7 change eligibility requirements under the First Responder
8 Recruitment and Retention Act; to provide duties for public
9 postsecondary institutions and the Department of Revenue; to define
10 and redefine terms; to harmonize provisions; and to repeal the
11 original sections.
12 Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
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1 Section 1. Section 81-1401, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
2 2022, is amended to read:
3 81-1401 For purposes of sections 81-1401 to 81-1414.19, unless the
4 context otherwise requires:
5 (1) Class I railroad means a rail carrier classified as Class I
6 pursuant to 49 C.F.R. part 1201 1-1;
7 (2) Commission means the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and
8 Criminal Justice;
9 (3) Council means the Nebraska Police Standards Advisory Council;
10 (4) Director means the director of the Nebraska Law Enforcement
11 Training Center;
12 (5) Felony means a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term of
13 more than one year or a crime committed outside of Nebraska which would
14 be punishable by imprisonment for a term of more than one year if
15 committed in Nebraska;
16 (6) Handgun means any firearm with a barrel less than sixteen inches
17 in length or any firearm designed to be held and fired by the use of a
18 single hand;
19 (7) Law enforcement agency means the police department or the town
20 marshal in incorporated municipalities, the office of sheriff in
21 unincorporated areas, the Nebraska State Patrol, and Class I railroad
22 police departments;
23 (8)(a) Law enforcement officer means any person who has successfully
24 completed an entry-level law enforcement certification from a training
25 academy and who is responsible for the prevention or detection of crime
26 or the enforcement of the penal, traffic, or highway laws of the state or
27 any political subdivision of the state for more than one hundred hours
28 per year and is authorized by law to make arrests and includes, but is
29 not limited to:
30 (i) A full-time or part-time member of the Nebraska State Patrol;
31 (ii) A county sheriff;
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1 (iii) A full-time or part-time employee of a county sheriff's
2 office;
3 (iv) A full-time or part-time employee of a municipal or village
4 police agency;
5 (v) A full-time or part-time Game and Parks Commission conservation
6 officer;
7 (vi) A full-time or part-time deputy state sheriff;
8 (vii) A full-time employee of an organized and paid fire department
9 of any city of the metropolitan class who is an authorized arson
10 investigator and whose duties consist of determining the cause, origin,
11 and circumstances of fires or explosions while on duty in the course of
12 an investigation;
13 (viii) A member of a law enforcement reserve force appointed in
14 accordance with section 81-1438; or
15 (ix) A full-time Class I railroad police officer;
16 (b) Law enforcement officer includes a noncertified conditional
17 officer;
18 (c) Law enforcement officer includes an investigator holding a
19 limited certificate under subdivision (2)(d) of section 81-1414;
20 (d) (c) Law enforcement officer does not include employees of the
21 Department of Correctional Services, probation officers under the
22 Nebraska Probation System, parole officers appointed by the Director of
23 Supervision and Services of the Division of Parole Supervision, or
24 employees of the Department of Revenue under section 77-366; and
25 (e) (d) Except for a noncertified conditional officer, a law
26 enforcement officer shall possess a valid law enforcement officer
27 certificate or diploma, as established by the council, in order to be
28 vested with the authority of this section;
29 (9) Misdemeanor crime of domestic violence has the same meaning as
30 in section 28-1206;
31 (10) Noncertified conditional officer means a person appointed
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1 pursuant to subsection (6) of section 81-1414;
2 (11) Serious misconduct means improper or illegal actions taken by a
3 law enforcement officer that have a rational connection with the person's
4 fitness or capacity to serve as a law enforcement officer and includes,
5 but is not limited to:
6 (a) Conviction of a felony or misdemeanor crime of domestic
7 violence;
8 (b) Fabrication of evidence;
9 (c) Repeated substantiated allegations of the use of excessive
10 force;
11 (d) Acceptance of a bribe;
12 (e) Commission of fraud or perjury; or
13 (f) Sexual assault;
14 (12) Training academy means:
15 (a) The training center; or
16 (b) Another council-approved law enforcement training facility
17 which:
18 (i) Offers certification training that meets or exceeds the
19 certification training curriculum of the training center; and
20 (ii) Is operated and maintained by a law enforcement agency or by
21 multiple law enforcement agencies pursuant to the Interlocal Cooperation
22 Act.
23 (13) Training center means the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training
24 Center; and
25 (14) Training school means a public or private institution of higher
26 education, including the University of Nebraska, the Nebraska state
27 colleges, and the community colleges of this state, that offers training
28 in a council-approved pre-certification course.
29 Sec. 2. Section 81-1403, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
30 2022, is amended to read:
31 81-1403 Subject to review and approval by the commission, the
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1 council shall:
2 (1) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for law enforcement
3 pre-certification, certification, limited certification as described in
4 subdivision (2)(d) of section 81-1414, continuing education, and training
5 requirements. Such rules and regulations may include the authority to
6 impose a fine on any individual, political subdivision, or agency who or
7 which violates sections 81-1401 to 81-1414.19 or any rules and
8 regulations adopted and promulgated thereunder. The fine for each
9 separate violation of such sections or of any such rule or regulation
10 shall not exceed either (a) a one-time maximum fine of five hundred
11 dollars or (b) a maximum fine of one hundred dollars per day until the
12 individual, political subdivision, or agency complies with such rules or
13 regulations;
14 (2) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for the operation of
15 the training center;
16 (3) Recommend to the executive director of the commission the names
17 of persons to be appointed to the position of director of the training
18 center;
19 (4) Establish requirements for satisfactory completion of pre-
20 certification programs, certification programs, and advanced training
21 programs;
22 (5) Issue certificates or diplomas attesting satisfactory completion
23 of pre-certification programs, certification programs, and advanced
24 training programs;
25 (6) Revoke or suspend such certificates or diplomas according to
26 rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the council pursuant to
27 sections 81-1401 to 81-1414.19 for reasons which shall include, but not
28 be limited to:
29 (a) Final conviction of or pleading guilty or nolo contendere to a:
30 (i) Felony violation of state or federal law;
31 (ii) Misdemeanor crime of domestic violence; or
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1 (iii) Misdemeanor violation of state or federal law, if the
2 violation has a rational connection with the officer's fitness or
3 capacity to serve as a law enforcement officer;
4 (b) Serious misconduct; or
5 (c) A violation of the officer's oath of office, code of ethics, or
6 statutory duties;
7 (7) The council shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations
8 that:
9 (a) Provide for the revocation of a certificate or diploma without a
10 hearing upon the certificate or diploma holder's final conviction of or
11 pleading guilty or nolo contendere to a felony or misdemeanor described
12 in subdivision (6) of this section; and
13 (b) Include a procedure for hearing appeals of any person who feels
14 that the revocation or suspension of his or her certificate or diploma
15 was in error;
16 (8) Set the tuition and fees for the training center and all
17 officers of other training academies not employed by that training
18 academy's agency. The tuition and fees set for the training center
19 pursuant to this subdivision shall be adjusted annually pursuant to the
20 training center budget approved by the Legislature. All other tuition and
21 fees shall be set in order to cover the costs of administering sections
22 81-1401 to 81-1414.19. All tuition and fees shall be remitted to the
23 State Treasurer for credit to the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training
24 Center Cash Fund;
25 (9) Annually certify any training academies providing a basic course
26 of law enforcement training which complies with the qualifications and
27 standards promulgated by the council and offering training that meets or
28 exceeds training that is offered by the training center. The council
29 shall set the maximum and minimum applicant enrollment figures for
30 training academies training non-agency officers;
31 (10) Extend the programs of the training center throughout the state
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1 on a regional basis;
2 (11) Establish the qualifications, standards, and continuing
3 education requirements and provide the training required by section
4 81-1439; and
5 (12) Do all things necessary to carry out the purpose of the
6 training center, except that functional authority for budget and
7 personnel matters shall remain with the commission.
8 Any administrative fine imposed under this section shall constitute
9 a debt to the State of Nebraska which may be collected by lien
10 foreclosure or sued for and recovered in any proper form of action by the
11 office of the Attorney General in the name of the State of Nebraska in
12 the district court of the county where the final agency action was taken.
13 All fines imposed by the council shall be remitted to the State Treasurer
14 for distribution in accordance with Article VII, section 5, of the
15 Constitution of Nebraska.
16 Sec. 3. Section 81-1414, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
17 2022, is amended to read:
18 81-1414 (1) On and after January 1, 1972, law enforcement officers
19 already serving under permanent appointment shall not be required to meet
20 any requirement of subsection (2) of this section as a condition of
21 tenure or continued employment.
22 (2) Except as provided in subsection (6) of this section, on and
23 after January 1, 1972, no person shall receive appointment as a law
24 enforcement officer unless such person:
25 (a) Has been awarded a certificate or diploma by the commission
26 attesting to satisfactory completion of the minimum curriculum of the
27 training center as established by the council;
28 (b) Has been awarded a certificate or diploma attesting to
29 satisfactory completion of a training program approved by the council as
30 equivalent to the curriculum in subdivision (2)(a) of this section; or
31 (c) Is certified as a law enforcement officer in another state and
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1 has successfully completed the requirements of a reciprocity program and
2 been approved as provided in section 81-1414.13; or .
3 (d)(i) Is employed as an investigator with a state agency and has
4 been awarded a limited certificate by the commission attesting to the
5 council's finding that the person:
6 (A) Has graduated from a federal training program in criminal
7 investigations;
8 (B) Holds a certification attesting to such status;
9 (C) Has been employed in a position related to criminal
10 investigations;
11 (D) Has attained the necessary training in particular areas of the
12 curriculum in subdivision (2)(a) of this section to fulfill the duties of
13 an investigator employed by a state agency; and
14 (E) Meets the admission criteria described in subsection (2) of
15 section 81-1410.
16 (ii) The limited certificate shall identify the state agency which
17 employs such person as an investigator.
18 (iii) A person who has been awarded a limited certificate shall only
19 be eligible to be appointed as a state deputy sheriff. The authority of
20 such person to act as a law enforcement officer shall be restricted to
21 such person's employment with the specific state agency identified on the
22 limited certificate and shall remain effective only as long as such
23 person remains employed with that agency.
24 (3) The council shall deem the successful completion of the federal
25 Bureau of Indian Affairs basic police training program as administered by
26 the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to constitute equivalent
27 training under subdivision (2)(b) of this section, and officers certified
28 by virtue of such equivalent training may exercise full law enforcement
29 authority exclusively on tribal lands.
30 (4) Law enforcement officers who are promoted in rank shall
31 satisfactorily complete such council-approved training within one year of
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1 such promotion.
2 (5) At the direction of the council, the director shall issue a
3 certificate or diploma attesting to a compliance with the requirements of
4 subsection (2), (3), or (4) of this section to any applicant who presents
5 evidence of satisfactory completion of a council-approved training
6 program.
7 (6)(a) A person who has not been awarded such a certificate or
8 diploma may rec