The 2022-23 Budget: Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training

The 2022-23 Budget: Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training JANUARY 2022 Summary. In this post, we cover two proposals coming from criminal fines and fees. This amount in the Governor’s budget for the Commission on represents an increase of $23.3 million (27 percent) Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). from the revised 2021-22 level. The budget First, the Governor proposes General Fund proposes a total of 263 positions for POST in resources and additional positions to implement a 2022-23, an increase of 127 positions (93 percent) peace officer decertification program established above the revised 2021-22 level. The proposed by recent legislation. We find that POST has not increase in resources is largely related to the two requested resources to implement certain aspects proposals we describe below. of the new program and could face implementation challenges. We recommend the Legislature direct PEACE OFFICER POST to submit a revised proposal in the spring DECERTIFICATION PROGRAM that addresses these concerns. Second, the Governor proposes one-time General Fund support Background to develop a law enforcement officer wellness Peace Officer Certification. Existing state program. We find that key questions about the law requires peace officers (excluding certain proposal remain unanswered including the goals of classifications like correctional officers) to receive the program and the types of activities the program a basic certificate from POST. This certificate would fund and, thus, recommend the Legislature is issued by POST when officers have met all withhold action on the proposal until POST provides minimum standards and requirements, such as key details about the proposed wellness program. completing required training, passing background checks, and completing a probationary term of OVERVIEW OF POST employment with their law enforcement agency Roles and Responsibilities. POST is an (typically lasting 18 to 24 months after the 18-member commission responsible for overseeing date of hire). standards and training for certain California peace Peace Officer Decertification Program officers, including city police and county sheriff’s Established by Chapter 409 of 2021 (SB 2, deputies. Specifically, POST is responsible for Bradford and Atkins). Prior to the enactment of setting minimum selection and training standards, SB 2, POST lacked the authority to suspend or developing and running law enforcement training revoke an officer’s basic certificate. Specifically, programs, improving law enforcement management this legislation establishes a process for POST practices, and reimbursing local law enforcement to suspend or revoke a peace officer’s basic for training. About 600 law enforcement agencies certificate for serious misconduct. (POST is employing roughly 90,000 peace officers currently in the process of defining serious participate in POST’s programs and abide by the misconduct through regulations, as required by commission’s minimum standards. SB 2.) This decertification temporarily (in cases of Governor’s Proposed Budget. The Governor’s suspension) or permanently (in cases of revocation) January budget proposes a total of $110.2 million makes an individual ineligible to be a peace officer to operate POST in 2022-23, including $63 million in California. In addition, SB 2 requires officers from the General Fund, with most of the remainder who do not have a basic certificate (typically officers completing their probationary terms Governor’s Proposal and certain reserve officers) to obtain a proof of The Governor’s budget proposes $22.7 million eligibility (pre-certification) from POST. Similar to from the General Fund in 2022-23 (decreasing to a basic certificate, SB 2 allows POST to suspend $20.6 million annually beginning in 2023-24) and or revoke a peace officer’s proof of eligibility for 127 positions to implement SB 2. Specifically, the serious misconduct. Governor’s budget proposes the following: SB 2 requires POST to review allegations • Additional Staffing ($19.5 Million). of serious misconduct to determine whether The proposed budget includes 127 positions decertification is warranted. Beginning to staff the Peace Officer Standards and January 1, 2023, these allegations will be submitted Accountability Division and provide POST with to POST primarily in two ways. First, all agencies increased administrative staff. The positions for employing officers who are required to have a the new division include 51 decertification staff, basic certificate or proof of eligibility must report 20 certification staff, 14 legal staff, 16 intake and to POST allegations of serious misconduct that disposition staff, 4 support staff, and a Deputy occur in the future, as well as those that have Director position to oversee the new division. occurred since January 1, 2020. Second, members The additional administrative staff include six of the public can report allegations of serious human resources positions, six information misconduct directly to POST, including misconduct technology positions, five positions for that occurred prior to January 1, 2023. POST can accounting and procurement, and four positions also choose to review an allegation of serious for communications and Public Records Act misconduct it becomes aware of in other ways, requests. In addition, the budget includes such as through media coverage. certain one-time and ongoing operating SB 2 creates a new division within POST—the expenses to support these positions such as Peace Officer Standards and Accountability travel costs, startup equipment, storage for Division—to review all allegations of serious confidential information, and training. misconduct to determine whether decertification • Allegation Intake Software System is warranted. For cases in which the division ($2 Million). The budget includes $2 million recommends decertification and the officer one time and $900,000 ongoing for POST to agrees with the recommendation, the case ends procure a software system to facilitate and and the officer’s certificate or proof of eligibility manage the intake of allegations of serious is suspended or revoked. If the officer contests misconduct submitted by law enforcement a decertification recommendation, the case is agencies, which will likely include lengthy referred to a new nine-member board within supporting documentation, such as documents POST—the Peace Officer Standards Accountability related to internal investigations. (We note that Advisory Board. (The members of the new POST has already developed a system for board will be appointed by the Governor and accepting allegations of serious misconduct Legislature.) If the board determines decertification from the public.) is warranted, the case is referred to the full • Lease Costs ($1 Million). The budget 18-member POST commission, who will then vote includes $1 million ongoing for POST to lease whether to decertify the officer. If the commission additional office space to accommodate the votes for decertification, the case is referred expanded workforce. to an administrative law judge who will render the final decision. • Peace Officer Standards Accountability Advisory Board Costs ($179,000). The budget includes $158,000 ongoing and $21,000 one time to support the new Standards and Accountability Advisory Board for costs such as travel, per diem, and training for the board members. 2022-23 Budget Series 2 Assessment a decertification). In addition, POST’s current office space is insufficient to accommodate the It appears that POST staff have done a notable proposed expansion in its workforce and POST amount of research into how best to structure has been informed by the Department of General and implement the decertification program Services that it will likely take a year or more to required by SB 2, such as by meeting with similar secure additional office space. It is unclear how agencies in other states to review various models POST will accommodate the increase in its staff in for administering similar programs. While these the meantime. Lastly, POST will need to procure efforts are encouraging, we find that POST has not an allegation intake software system to receive requested resources to implement certain aspects of reports from law enforcement agencies and have SB 2 and could face implementation challenges. We the system operational by January 1, 2023. While it describe these concerns below. is feasible that POST can address these challenges, Resources for Certain Aspects of SB 2 the Legislature will want to understand POST’s Implementation Not Requested. The proposal implementation plans and any contingency plans that does not include the staffing necessary to address POST has to ensure it implements the SB 2 program workload associated with the one-time surge on time. Effective implementation in the early stages in reports expected for allegations of serious of the program will be important for instilling public misconduct occurring prior to January 1, 2023. trust in the program and meeting program goals in a This is because POST indicates that its workload timely manner. estimates and staffing requests are based on assumptions only about ongoing workload. Recommendation Moreover, POST has not provided estimates of the Direct POST to Present Revised Proposal in expected size of this one-time surge in workload. Spring. We recommend that the Legislature direct The Governor’s proposal also does not include POST to submit an updated proposal in the spring staffing for the one-time certification workload to that addresses the above concerns. Specifically, issue proof of eligibility certificates to officers who do the proposal should provide additional workload not have a basic certificate, including approximately estimates on the number of reports POST anticipates 4,400 officers who are still in the probationary period receiving related to alleged serious misconduct with their employing agency and 2,000 reserve occurring before January 1, 2023 and how POST officers who do not have a basic certificate. Without plans to accommodate this one-time surge in resources for this workload, it will be difficult for workload, as well as the one-time workload to issue POST to fully implement the decertification program proof of eligibility certificates. Lastly, the revised as envisioned by the Legislature, which could proposal should include a plan for addressing the result in individuals who have engaged in serious implementation challenges we have identified, such misconduct serving as peace officers longer than as how POST will hire sufficient staff and house they otherwise would. them in its existing office space to implement SB 2 in POST Faces Significant SB 2 Implementation a timely manner. Challenges. POST will likely face significant challenges implementing SB 2, primarily due to OFFICER WELLNESS PROGRAM the fact that the commission’s staffing will need to roughly double by January 1, 2023—only six Background months after receiving funding in the budget if the Officer Wellness Can Impact Officer Governor’s proposal is approved. This challenge is Effectiveness. In recent years, greater attention has compounded by the fact that POST will first need to been placed on the wellness of first responders such fill the requested human resources positions before as peace officers. The job requirements of a peace having the capacity to scale up the hiring of a large officer can be physically, mentally, and emotionally number of staff, particularly staff for classifications taxing. This is because officers can face dangerous it does not currently employ (such as the attorneys situations, work late night shifts, and have repeat who will handle the cases when an officer contests 2022-23 Budget Series 3 exposure to violent situations. The overall wellness • What Activities Would Be Funded? While the of officers is important for their ability to effectively proposal identifies numerous potential carry out their duties, such as responding to and activities, it is unclear whether the proposal deescalating dangerous situations. For example, would fund all of the listed activities or just studies have noted significant rates of Post Traumatic some of them and how much funding would be Stress Disorder (PTSD) among peace officers with at allocated to each. least one study finding a correlation between PTSD • What Outcomes Are Expected? POST has and excessive use of force. not described the outcomes it expects to achieve, such as the number of officers that it Governor’s Proposal will reach or the number of trainings it intends Funding for New Officer Wellness Program. to offer. The Governor’s budget proposes $5 million one time • How Will SB 2 Implementation Affect from the General Fund available over three years for the Program? As discussed above, POST POST to develop a law enforcement officer wellness faces considerable SB 2 implementation program. The proposal identifies various categories challenges, including the need to roughly of wellness the program would seek to improve, double its workforce by January 1, 2023. It is including individual officer wellness, organizational unclear how POST will be able to effectively wellness, and community wellness. The proposal implement SB 2 and the officer wellness also identifies numerous potential wellness activities program simultaneously. that might be developed or conducted with the requested funds, such as creating a podcast, holding We note that POST staff have indicated that many workshops, improving training, developing videos, of the above questions cannot be answered until the and other activities. program is more fully developed, which they indicate will take about 12 months. However, without answers Assessment to these questions, it is difficult for the Legislature to Key Questions About Proposal Remain evaluate the merits of the proposal. Unanswered. While the general concept Recommendation of improving officer wellness has merit, the administration has not been able to provide detailed Direct POST to Provide Key Details Regarding information about the proposal at this time to Proposal. While the proposed program could determine whether the proposed program would have some merit, given the significant unanswered in fact improve officer wellness. Specifically, the questions about the proposal, it is difficult at this time administration has been unable to adequately to assess whether it would be effective at improving respond to the following key questions: officer wellness. Accordingly, we recommend that the Legislature direct the administration to provide • What Are the Primary Goals of the Program? sufficient details about how the program would be While it is clear the program is intended to implemented. Until such information is provided, we improve officer wellness, the more specific, recommend the Legislature withhold action on the primary goals of the program remain unclear. Governor’s proposal. If such information is provided For example, POST has not provided demonstrating that the program is consistent with information on the type of wellness—mental, legislative priorities, would be likely to improve officer physical, or emotional—the program is intended wellness, and would not interfere with the timely to improve. implementation of the SB 2 decertification program, • What Problem Would the Program we would recommend the Legislature approve the Solve? POST has not identified what the proposal. Otherwise, we would recommend the highest-priority needs for improving officer Legislature reject the proposal without prejudice wellness are or whether there are gaps in to allow POST to more fully develop a proposal to existing wellness programs offered by law improve officer wellness for consideration as part of enforcement agencies that it is attempting to fill. the 2023-24 budget. 2022-23 Budget Series 4 2022-23 Budget Series 5 2022-23 Budget Series 6 2022-23 Budget Series 7 LAO PUBLICATIONS This post was prepared by Jessica Peters, and reviewed by Drew Soderborg and Anthony Simbol. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) is a nonpartisan office that provides fiscal and policy information and advice to the Legislature. 2022-23 Budget Series 8