Senate Bill 801 - Community Safety Act

• Appropriates $200,000 to the Department of Justice to hire two full-time grant writers to assist law enforcement agencies in applying for grant funds.

• Provides $250,000 in grants to law enforcement agencies for community policing initiatives and $500,000 for grants to officers demonstrating exemplary service or to agencies meeting racial or gender diversity benchmarks (individual grants capped at $10,000).

• Classifies strangulation holds and neck restraints as deadly force and requires law enforcement officers to use minimum necessary force with de-escalation tactics when possible; Attorney General must develop uniform use of force policies by December 1, 2022.

• Establishes a minimum age requirement of 21 years for entry-level law enforcement officer employment and allows state commissions to access expunged records to deny, suspend, or revoke certification based on felony convictions or four or more misdemeanors.

• Appropriates $1,000,000 in grants to law enforcement agencies to fund additional detectives or investigative officers for investigating Class D felonies and higher-level person crimes.