District Of Columbia 2025-2026 Regular Session

District Of Columbia Council Bill B26-0187 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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3	3	COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
4	4	OFFICE OF COUNCILMEMBER BROOKE PINTO
5	5	THE JOHN A. WILSON BUILDING
6	6	1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W., SUITE 106
7	7	WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004
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13	13	March 24, 2025
14	14	Nyasha Howard, Secretary
15	15	Council of the District of Columbia
16	16	1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
17	17	Washington, DC 20004
18	18	Dear Secretary Howard,
19	19	Today Councilmember Wendell Felder and I are introducing the “Metropolitan Police Department
20	20	Training Academy College Credit Opportunity Amendment Act of 2025.” Councilmember
21	21	Matthew Frumin is co-introducing this bill. This bill would allow the Metropolitan Police
22	22	Department (“MPD”) to enter into an agreement with an accredited college or university so that
23	23	college credit hours earned through the MPD Academy may count toward the 60-credit-hour
24	24	eligibility requirement for sworn officers. These transferrable credits may account for up to 15 of
25	25	the 60 required hours.
26	26	Currently, MPD has 3,236 sworn officers – one of the lowest numbers of sworn members in the
27	27	past 50 years
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29	29	. Recruiting is a nationwide challenge at this time. The International Association of
30	30	Chiefs of Police (IACP) found that the top two challenges in recruitment are that applicants do not
31	31	meet eligibility requirements and competition from other law enforcement agencies
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33	33	.
34	34	These challenges are acutely felt in the District, where we face significant competition from
35	35	neighboring jurisdictions that have different qualification requirements, starting salaries, and
36	36	incentives. Additionally, almost all other local police departments only require a high school
37	37	diploma or GED, whereas MPD requires 60 credit hours obtained at an accredited college or
38	38	university. Arlington and Montgomery Counties are the only other local police departments that
39	39	require 60 college credit hours, but they offer slightly higher starting salaries, a 37.5-hour work
40	40	week, and a variety of other benefits such as take-home cars.
41	41	The District rightly prides itself in having highly qualified police officers, and we must maintain
42	42	high standards. MPD Academy training includes coursework that is equivalent to many university-
43	43	level classes, including introductory coursework on the criminal justice system, contemporary
44	44	police systems and problems, and issues in criminal law. MPD recruits should have the opportunity
45	45	to earn college credit for curricula that meet the standards for college coursework by an accredited
46	46	university. It is reasonable and fair to ensure that college credits, earned from an accredited
47	47	institution through the MPD Academy prior to becoming a full sworn officer, count toward the 60-
48	48	hour requirement.
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51	51	Metropolitan Police Department, Staffing Reports, available here.
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53	53	International Association of Chiefs of Police, The State of Recruitment & Retention: A Continuing Crisis for
54	54	Policing, 2024 Survey Results, available here.
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58	58	To continue the progress that the District has made with public safety in the past year, the Council
59	59	must continually look at how to ensure MPD has enough recruits and sworn officers while
60	60	maintaining high standards for our officers. This bill would supplement MPD’s robust recruitment
61	61	efforts and help MPD compete with other local jurisdictions by streamlining the credits recruits
62	62	are required to earn when entering into the Department.
63	63	Should you have any questions about this legislation, please contact my Legislative Assistant,
64	64	Esther Bundens, at ebundens@dccouncil.gov
65	65	Thank you,
66	66
67	67	Brooke Pinto
68	68	Councilmember, Ward 2
69	69	Chairwoman, Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety
70	70	Council of the District of Columbia
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74	74	_____________________________ ______________________________ 1
75	75	Councilmember Wendell Felder Councilmember Brooke Pinto 2
76	76	3
77	77	4
78	78	______________________________ 5
79	79	Councilmember Matthew Frumin 6
80	80	7
81	81	A BILL 8
82	82	9
83	83	_________________________ 10
84	84	11
85	85	IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 12
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87	87	_________________________ 14
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90	90	To allow applicants for sworn officers of the Metropolitan Police Department to count certain 17
91	91	credit hours for completion of the initial training program towards the requirement that 18
92	92	certain applicants complete 60- hours of post-secondary education at an accredited college 19
93	93	or university. 20
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95	95	BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this 22
96	96	act may be cited as the “Metropolitan Police Department Training Academy College Credit 23
97	97	Opportunity Amendment Act of 2025” . 24
98	98	Sec. 2. Section 202(e)(1) of the Omnibus Police Reform Amendment Act of 2000, 25
99	99	effective October 4, 2000 ( D.C. Law 13- 160; D.C. Official Code § 5–107.01) , is amended to 26
100	100	read as follows: 27
101	101	“(1) Successfully completed 60 hours of post-secondary education at an accredited college or 28
102	102	university; except that, if MPD enters into an agreement with an accredited college or university 29
103	103	to award at least 15 credit hours to recruits successfully completing the Department’s initial 30
104	104	training program, an applicant may satisfy this paragraph by successfully completing 45 hours of 31
105	105	post-secondary education at an accredited college or university prior to joining the initial training 32
106	106	program;”. 33
107	107	Sec. 3. Fiscal impact statement. 34 The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement in the committee report as the fiscal 35
108	108	impact statement required by section 4a of the General Legislative Procedures Act of 1975, 36
109	109	approved October 16, 2006 (120 Stat. 2038; D.C. Official Code § 1- 301.47a). 37
110	110	Sec. 4. Effective date. 38
111	111	This act shall take effect after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the 39
112	112	Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto), a 30- day period of congressional review as 40
113	113	provided in section 602(c)(1) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, approved December 41
114	114	24, 1973 (87 Stat. 813; D.C. Official Code § 1- 206.02(c)(1)). 42
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