Authorizes Class Three special law enforcement officers to provide security in places of religious worship; makes certain clarifications concerning their use in nonpublic schools.

A1933

ASSEMBLY, No. 1933

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblyman GARY S. SCHAER

District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� Authorizes Class Three special law enforcement
officers to provide security in places of religious worship; makes certain
clarifications concerning their use in nonpublic schools.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act

concerning Class Three special law enforcement
officers and amending P.L.1985, c.439.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 4 of P.L.1985,
c.439 (C.40A:14-146.11) is amended to read as follows:�

���� 4.��� a.� A person shall not
commence the duties of a special law enforcement officer unless the person has
successfully completed a training course approved by the commission and a
special law enforcement officer shall not be issued a firearm unless the officer
has successfully completed the basic firearms course approved by the commission
for permanent, regularly appointed police and annual requalification
examinations as required by subsection b. of section 7 of P.L.1985, c.439
(C.40A:14-146.14).� There shall be three classifications for special police
officers.� The commission shall prescribe by rule or regulation the training
standards to be established for each classification.� Training may be in a
commission approved academy or in any other training program which the
commission may determine appropriate.� The classifications shall be based upon
the duties to be performed by the special law enforcement officer as follows:�

���� (1)� Class One.� Officers of
this class shall be authorized to perform routine traffic detail, spectator
control, and similar duties. If authorized by ordinance or resolution, as
appropriate, Class One officers shall have the power to issue summonses for
disorderly persons and petty disorderly persons offenses, violations of
municipal ordinances, and violations of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes. The
use of a firearm by an officer of this class shall be strictly prohibited and a
Class One officer shall not be assigned any duties which may require the
carrying or use of a firearm.�

���� (2)� Class Two.� Officers of
this class shall be authorized to exercise full powers and duties similar to
those of a permanent, regularly appointed full-time police officer.� The use of
a firearm by an officer of this class may be authorized only after the officer
has been fully certified as successfully completing training as prescribed by
the commission.�

���� (3)� Class Three.�
(a)
�
Officers of this class shall be authorized to exercise full powers and duties
similar to those of a permanent, regularly appointed full-time police officer
while providing security at a public or nonpublic school or a county college on
the school or college premises during hours when the public or nonpublic school
or county college is normally in session or when it is occupied by public or
nonpublic school or county college students or their teachers or professors.�
While on duty in the jurisdiction of employment, an officer may respond to
offenses or emergencies off school or college grounds if they occur in the
officer's presence while traveling to a school facility or county college, but
an officer shall not otherwise be dispatched or dedicated to any assignment off
school or college property.

����
A school district which
procures the services of Class Three special law enforcement officers to
provide security at public schools in the district also shall procure these
services for nonpublic schools in the district.� The school district shall be
responsible for compensating the local unit for the security services rendered
by a Class Three officer in public and nonpublic schools.

����
(b)� Officers of this class
shall be authorized to exercise full powers and duties similar to those of a
permanent, regularly appointed full-time police officer while providing
security at a church, mosque, synagogue, temple, or any other building used by
a congregation as a place of religious worship.
���� �

���� The use of a firearm by an
officer of this class shall be authorized pursuant to the provisions of
subsection b. of section 7 of P.L.1985, c.439 (C.40A:14-146.14).� An officer of
this class shall not be authorized to carry a firearm while off duty unless the
officer complies with the requirements set forth in subsection l. of
N.J.S.2C:39-6 authorizing a retired law enforcement officer to carry a
handgun.���

���� b.��� The commission may, in
its discretion, except from the requirements of this section any person who
demonstrates to the commission's satisfaction that the person has successfully
completed a police training course conducted by any federal, state or other public
or private agency, the requirements of which are substantially equivalent to
the requirements of this act.�

���� c.��� The commission shall
certify officers who have satisfactorily completed training programs and issue
appropriate certificates to those officers.� The certificate shall clearly
state the category of certification for which the officer has been certified by
the commission.�

���� d.��� All special law
enforcement officers appointed and in service on the effective date of this act
may continue in service if within 24 months of the effective date of this act
they will have completed all training and certification requirements of this
act.�

(cf:� P.L.2016, c.68, s.2)�

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.�

STATEMENT

���� This bill expands the scope of
where Class Three special law enforcement officers may provide security to
include places of religious worship.� The bill further requires school districts
which hire these officers to provide security in public schools to also hire
them for the nonpublic schools in the district.� Under the bill, the school
district would be responsible for compensating the municipality for the
officer�s services in both public and nonpublic schools.�

���� P.L.2016, c.68 established an
additional category of �Class Three� special law enforcement officers under the
Special Law Enforcement Officers� Act to provide security in this State�s
public and nonpublic schools and county colleges. �Appointed by the local
police department, these officers are authorized to exercise the full powers
and duties as those accorded full-time police officers of the department.� A
person is eligible to be appointed as a Class Three special law enforcement
officer if he or she is a retired police officer less than 65 years old and has
served as a duly qualified, fully-trained, full-time municipal or county police
officer or was regularly employed as a full-time member of the State Police
within the previous three years.� The person also has to be physically capable
of performing the job and have the appropriate law enforcement and safe schools
resource officer training. These officers may only be employed to assist
municipal police departments and are not to be employed to replace or
substitute for full-time police officers. They may only be hired in a part-time
capacity.�

���� Specifically under the bill,
in addition to providing security in public and nonpublic schools and county
colleges, Class Three officers could provide security in churches, mosques,
synagogues, temples, or any other building used by a congregation as a place of
religious worship.�

���� The bill does not require
school districts to hire Class Three officers, but if they are hired to work in
the public schools, these officers also are to be made available in nonpublic
schools in the district.� School districts, not the public or nonpublic school,
would be required to directly pay for these officers under the bill.