Section 109.803 | Continuing professional training for peace officers and troopers.

• Effective: October 3, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly

(A)(1) Subject to divisions (A)(2) and (B) of this section, every appointing authority shall require each of its appointed peace officers and troopers to complete twenty-four hours of continuing professional training each calendar year. Twenty-four hours is intended to be a minimum requirement, and appointing authorities are encouraged to exceed the twenty-four hour minimum. A minimum of twenty-four hours of continuing professional training shall be reimbursed each calendar year and a maximum of forty hours of continuing professional training may be reimbursed each calendar year.

(2) An appointing authority may submit a written request to the peace officer training commission that requests for a calendar year because of emergency circumstances an extension of the time within which one or more of its appointed peace officers or troopers must complete the required minimum number of hours of continuing professional training set by the commission, as described in division (A)(1) of this section. A request made under this division shall set forth the name of each of the appointing authority's peace officers or troopers for whom an extension is requested, identify the emergency circumstances related to that peace officer or trooper, include documentation of those emergency circumstances, and set forth the date on which the request is submitted to the commission. A request shall be made under this division not later than the fifteenth day of December in the calendar year for which the extension is requested.

Upon receipt of a written request made under this division, the executive director of the commission shall review the request and the submitted documentation. If the executive director of the commission is satisfied that emergency circumstances exist for any peace officer or trooper for whom a request was made under this division, the executive director may approve the request for that peace officer or trooper and grant an extension of the time within which that peace officer or trooper must complete the required minimum number of hours of continuing professional training set by the commission. An extension granted under this division may be for any period of time the executive director believes to be appropriate, and the executive director shall specify in the notice granting the extension the date on which the extension ends. Not later than thirty days after the date on which a request is submitted to the commission, for each peace officer and trooper for whom an extension is requested, the executive director either shall approve the request and grant an extension or deny the request and deny an extension and shall send to the appointing authority that submitted the request written notice of the executive director's decision.

If the executive director grants an extension of the time within which a particular appointed peace officer or trooper of an appointing authority must complete the required minimum number of hours of continuing professional training set by the commission, the appointing authority shall require that peace officer or trooper to complete the required minimum number of hours of training not later than the date on which the extension ends.

(B) With the advice of the Ohio peace officer training commission, the attorney general shall adopt in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code rules setting forth minimum standards for continuing professional training for peace officers and troopers and governing the administration of continuing professional training programs for peace officers and troopers. The rules adopted by the attorney general under division (B) of this section shall do all of the following:

(1) Allow peace officers and troopers to earn credit for up to four hours of continuing professional training for time spent while on duty providing drug use prevention education training that utilizes evidence-based curricula to students in school districts, community schools established under Chapter 3314., STEM schools established under Chapter 3326., and college-preparatory boarding schools established under Chapter 3328. of the Revised Code.

(2) Allow a peace officer or trooper appointed by a law enforcement agency to earn hours of continuing professional training for other peace officers or troopers appointed by the law enforcement agency by providing drug use prevention education training under division (B)(1) of this section so that hours earned by the peace officer or trooper providing the training in excess of four hours may be applied to offset the number of continuing professional training hours required of another peace officer or trooper appointed by that law enforcement agency.

(3) Prohibit the use of continuing professional training hours earned under division (B)(1) or (2) of this section from being used to offset any mandatory hands-on training requirement.

(4) Require a peace officer to complete training on proper interactions with civilians during traffic stops and other in-person encounters, which training shall have an online offering and shall include all of the following topics:

(a) A person's rights during an interaction with a peace officer, including all of the following:

(i) When a peace officer may require a person to exit a vehicle;

(ii) Constitutional protections from illegal search and seizure;

(iii) The rights of a passenger in a vehicle who has been pulled over for a traffic stop;

(iv) The right for a citizen to record an encounter with a peace officer.

(b) Proper actions for interacting with a civilian and methods for diffusing a stressful encounter with a civilian;

(c) Laws regarding questioning and detention by peace officers, including any law requiring a person to present proof of identity to a peace officer, and the consequences for a person's or officer's failure to comply with those laws;

(d) Any other requirements and procedures necessary for the proper implementation of this section.

(C) The attorney general shall transmit a certified copy of any rule adopted under this section to the secretary of state.

(D) As used in this section:

(1) "Peace officer" has the same meaning as in section 109.71 of the Revised Code.

(2) "Trooper" means an individual appointed as a state highway patrol trooper under section 5503.01 of the Revised Code.

(3) "Appointing authority" means any agency or entity that appoints a peace officer or trooper.

Last updated September 22, 2023 at 9:26 AM

Available Versions of this Section

• October 16, 2009 – House Bill 1 - 128th General Assembly
• September 29, 2017 – Amended by House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly
• September 30, 2021 – Amended by House Bill 110 - 134th General Assembly
• October 3, 2023 – Amended by House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly