HB 4944 Summary

• Creates a police recruit scholarship grant program administered by the department to help units of local government train police recruits, with grants requiring 1-to-1 matching funds from local governments and capped at $50,000 per fiscal year.

• Requires applicant units of local government to develop strategic personnel hiring and retention plans designed to improve police force diversity in terms of economic, racial, and ethnic composition.

• Prioritizes grant selection for qualified demographic groups (women, minorities, historically underrepresented groups) and applies only to cities, villages, or townships with populations of 80,000 or more.

• Mandates police recruits trained through the program maintain employment with their hiring unit for a specified period or repay training costs, with exceptions for layoffs or terminations.

• Appropriates $500,000 from the general fund for fiscal year 2019 and requires annual reporting to the governor and legislature on grant recipients, recruits trained, diversity metrics, and applicant numbers.