Requires AG to establish uniform police training curriculum.

A5298

ASSEMBLY, No. 5298

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED JUNE 23, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblywoman� LINDA S. CARTER

District 22 (Somerset and Union)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires AG to establish uniform police training
curriculum.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning a uniform police training curriculum,
supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes and amending P.L.1961, c.56.

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

���� 1.��� (New section)� a.� In
consultation with the Police Training Commission established pursuant to
section 5 of P.L.1961, c.56 (C.52:17B-70), the Attorney General shall develop a
uniform basic course curriculum, which the commission shall implement at each approved
school in the State. The Attorney General shall review the curriculum annually
and make updates as appropriate or required, in the Attorney General�s
discretion.

���� b.��� For the purposes of this
section, "basic course" and �approved school� shall have the same
meaning as set forth in section 1 of P.L.2009, c.222 (C.52:17B-71.10).

����

���� 2.��� Section 6 of P.L.1961,
c.56 (C.52:17B-71) is amended to read as follows:

���� 6.��� The commission shall
establish requisite standards for the training of law enforcement officers and
oversee the implementation of those standards.

���� The commission shall have the
authority:

���� a.���� To prescribe standards
for the approval and continuation of approval of schools at which police
training courses authorized by this act and in-service police training courses
shall be conducted, including but not limited to currently existing regional, county,
municipal, and police chief association police training schools or at which
basic training courses and in-service training courses shall be conducted for
State and county juvenile and adult correctional police officers and juvenile
detention officers;

���� b.��� To approve and issue
certificates of approval to these schools, to inspect the schools from time to
time, and to revoke any approval or certificate issued to the schools;

���� c.���� To
[
prescribe
]

implement

the curriculum
developed and prescribed by the Attorney General pursuant to
section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill)
,
and prescribe
the
minimum courses of study, attendance requirements, equipment and facilities,
and standards of operation for these schools and prescribe psychological and
psychiatric examinations for police recruits;

���� d.��� To prescribe minimum
qualifications for instructors at these schools and to certify, as qualified,
instructors for approved police training schools and to issue appropriate
certificates to the instructors;

���� e.���� To certify law
enforcement officers who have satisfactorily completed training programs and to
issue appropriate certificates to the officers;

���� f.���� To advise and consent
in the appointment of an administrator of police services by the Attorney
General pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1961, c.56 (C.52:17B-73);

���� g.��� (Deleted by amendment,
P.L.1985, c.491)

���� h.��� To make rules and
regulations as may be reasonably necessary or appropriate to accomplish the
purposes and objectives of this act;

���� i.���� To make a continuous
study of police training methods and training methods for law enforcement
officers and to consult and accept the cooperation of any recognized federal or
State law enforcement agency or educational institution;

���� j.���� To consult and
cooperate with universities, colleges, and institutes in the State for the
development of specialized courses of study for law enforcement officers in
police science and police administration;

���� k.��� To consult and cooperate
with other departments and agencies of the State concerned with police training
or the training of law enforcement officers;

���� l.���� To participate in
unified programs and projects relating to police training and the training of
law enforcement officers sponsored by any federal, State, or other public or
private agency;

���� m.�� To perform other acts as
may be necessary or appropriate to carry out its functions and duties as set
forth in this act;

���� n.��� To extend the time limit
for satisfactory completion of police training programs or programs for the
training of law enforcement officers upon a finding that health, extraordinary
workload, or other factors have, singly or in combination, effected a delay in
the satisfactory completion of the training program;

���� o.��� (1) To furnish approved
schools, for inclusion in their regular police training courses and curriculum,
with information concerning the advisability of high-speed chases, the risk
caused by them, and the benefits resulting from them, and to include any other
relevant police training courses that will assist the commission in providing
efficient training;

���� (2)�� To consult the New
Jersey State Police with respect to its administration of police training
courses or programs for the training of law enforcement officers to be
certified as a Drug Recognition Expert for detecting, identifying, and
apprehending drug-impaired motor vehicle operators, and to consult with the
Cannabis Regulatory Commission established by 31 of P.L.2019, c.153
(C.24:6I-24) with respect to any aspects of the course curricula that focus on
impairment from the use of cannabis items as defined by section 3 of P.L.2021,
c.16 (C.24:6I-33) or marijuana.

���� p.��� (Deleted by amendment,
P.L.2022, c.65)

���� q.��� To administer and
distribute the monies in the Law Enforcement Officers Training and Equipment
Fund established by section 9 of P.L.1996, c.115 (C.2C:43-3.3) and make rules
and regulations for the administration and distribution of the monies as may be
necessary or appropriate to accomplish the purpose for which the fund was
established.

(cf: P.L.2022, c.65, s.8)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect on the first day of the fourth month next following the date of
enactment, except that the Attorney General may take any anticipatory action in
advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires the
Attorney General to develop a uniform basic course curriculum to be implemented
at each police training school in the State.

���� The bill provides that in
consultation with the Police Training Commission, the Attorney General would be
required to develop a uniform basic course curriculum, which the commission
would implement at each approved school in the State. The bill requires the
Attorney General to review the curriculum annually and make updates as
appropriate or required, in the Attorney General�s discretion.

���� For the purposes of the bill,
a �basic course� is defined as an entry-level police training course designed
for trainees, and an �approved school� is defined as a school approved and
authorized by the commission to give police training courses.