NC S647

All law enforcement agencies in North Carolina must adopt written policies prohibiting traffic stops motivated by race, color, ethnicity, age, gender, or sexual orientation, except when used in combination with other identifying factors to apprehend a specific suspect.

The School of Government at UNC Chapel Hill shall conduct annual studies of routine traffic stops by State Highway Patrol, municipal police, and county sheriffs, collecting at least 15 categories of data including driver demographics, reason for stop, searches conducted, and contraband seized.

UNC School of Government shall perform in-depth analysis of data from at least 8 municipal police departments per year, prioritizing departments with highest racial disparity in traffic stops, and develop guidelines to help all law enforcement agencies avoid racial profiling.

A Traffic Stop Advisory Board consisting of 10 members (including legislators, gubernatorial appointees, a community leader, a statistics professor, and the North Carolina Association of Chiefs of Police president) shall advise the School of Government on annual reports and standardized methods.

The act becomes effective October 1, 2021.