Senate Bill 500: Community Safety Act

• Appropriates $200,000 to the Department of Justice to hire two full-time grant writers to assist law enforcement agencies in identifying and applying for grant funds, effective July 1, 2023.

• Appropriates $250,000 for grants to law enforcement agencies supporting community policing initiatives and $500,000 for grants to officers demonstrating exemplary service or to agencies meeting racial or gender diversity benchmarks, with individual grants capped at $10,000, effective July 1, 2023.

• Classifies strangulation and neck restraint techniques that restrict oxygen or blood flow as deadly force and requires law enforcement officers to use minimum necessary force and attempt de-escalation tactics when possible, effective October 1, 2024.

• Establishes minimum age requirement of 21 years for criminal justice officer entry-level employment and allows certification commissions to deny certification based on felony conviction or four or more misdemeanors regardless of expungement, effective January 1, 2024.

• Appropriates $1,000,000 in recurring grants to law enforcement agencies to fund additional detectives or investigative officers for investigating Class D felonies and higher crimes, effective July 1, 2023.