SENATE LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 1322

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  DECEMBER 11, 2020

      The Senate Law and Public Safety Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 1322.

      As amended and reported by the committee, this bill prohibits law enforcement agencies from considering how many arrests an officer makes or how many citations an officer issues as a factor when evaluating that officer’s overall performance or when making personnel determinations, including promotions, demotions, and other benefits of employment.  The bill provides that a law enforcement agency may collect, analyze, and apply information concerning the number of arrests and citations for the purpose of forwarding that information to the Superintendent of State Police to be included in the Uniform Crime Report. 

      As amended by the committee, law enforcement agencies are prohibited from posting arrest and citation data in common areas accessible to all law enforcement officers, such as a police station or barracks, to create competition between officers concerning arrests and citations. 

     Under current law, State and local law enforcement agencies are prohibited from establishing policies requiring officers to meet quotas for arrests and citations in enforcing the State’s motor vehicle code.  However, these agencies may consider arrest and citation data as part of the officer's overall performance evaluation.  This bill prohibits this practice. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

     The committee amended the bill to prohibit police departments from posting the number of arrests or citations in any common areas, including police stations or barracks, in order to create competition between officers with respect to arrests and citations.