CHAPTER 108
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CHAPTER 108
( HB 782 )
AN ACT relating to telecommunicators.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky:
SECTION 1. A NEW SECTION OF KRS 15.530 TO 15.590 IS CREATED TO READ AS FOLLOWS:
(1) The Public Safety Telecommunicator Work Group is hereby established as an independent entity to develop
a new delivery format for the public safety telecommunicator academy which will incorporate in-person and
online training components. The work group shall meet as necessary and submit to the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council within one (1) year of the effective date of this section a training delivery format that
shall be developed and unanimously agreed upon by the work group. The work group shall cease to exist
after the developed training delivery format is submitted to the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council for
approval unless the council directs its continuance. The members of the work group shall not be paid or
reimbursed for travel or other expenses. The work group shall consist of at least one (1) member of the
following entities:
(a) Department of Criminal Justice Training;
(b) Kentucky Chapter of the National Emergency Number Association; and
(c) Association of Public Safety Communications Officials.
(2) The Kentucky Law Enforcement Council shall, upon approval, implement the new training delivery format
developed under subsection (1) of this section for the public safety telecommunicator academy on July 1,
2026.
(3) Part-time telecommunicators hired prior to July 1, 2026, shall successfully complete the forty (40) hour
online course, "Telecommunicator overview training." All part-time telecommunicators hired after July 1,
2026, shall successfully complete the public safety telecommunicator academy.
Section 2. KRS 15.540 is amended to read as follows:
(1) An agency seeking to hire a telecommunicator[ after July 15, 2006,] shall certify to the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council within one hundred twenty (120) days after the hire date that[that before being
employed as a telecommunicator,] the applicant:
(a) Is a citizen of the United States and has reached the age of majority;
(b) 1. Is a high school graduate, regardless of whether the school is accredited or certified by a
governing body, provided that the education received met the attendance and curriculum
standards of Kentucky law at the time of graduation, as determined by the Kentucky Department
of Education; or
2. Possesses a High School Equivalency Diploma;
(c) Has not been convicted of a felony or other crimes involving moral turpitude as determined by
submission of each applicant's fingerprints to the information systems section of the Department of
Kentucky State Police and to the Federal Bureau of Investigation identification division, and by such
other investigations as required by the hiring agency;
(d) Has taken a psychological suitability screening administered or approved by the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council to determine his or her suitability to perform the duties of a telecommunicator.
Any agency that administers its own suitability screening shall certify the results to the department;
(e) Has taken a polygraph examination administered or approved by the Kentucky Law Enforcement
Council to determine his or her suitability to perform the duties of a telecommunicator. Any agency that
administers its own polygraph examination shall certify the results to the department; and
(f) Has passed a drug screening administered or approved by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council. A
person shall be deemed to have passed a drug screening if the results are negative for the use of an
illegal controlled substance or prescription drug abuse. Any agency that administers its own screening
shall certify passing results to the department. ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2
(2) Provisions of the Open Records Act, KRS 61.870 to 61.884, to the contrary notwithstanding, the applicant's
home address, telephone number, date of birth, Social Security number, and results of any background
investigation, psychological suitability screening, and polygraph examination conducted under this section
shall not be subject to disclosure.
(3) An agency that provides CJIS data using a CJIS terminal to law enforcement agencies and is seeking to
hire a telecommunicator after the effective date of this section, shall certify the applicant through the CJIS
online training program before the applicant can deliver CJIS data to law enforcement.
(4) An agency that does not have a CJIS terminal but receives CJIS data from an agency holding its
originating agency identifier, shall complete the CJIS security and privacy training before the applicant can
deliver CJIS data to law enforcement.
(5) If a public safety telecommunicator's only function is a call-taker at an agency that has a CJIS terminal,
the telecommunicator shall not be required to complete the CJIS online program but shall complete the
CJIS security and privacy training.
Section 3. KRS 15.530 is amended to read as follows:
For the purposes of KRS 15.530 to 15.590:
(1) "CJIS" means the Criminal Justice Information System;
(2) "CJIS-full access course" means an online training program administered and approved by the Kentucky
State Police CJIS Services Agency[a training program of forty (40) hours approved by the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council];
(3) ["CJIS telecommunicator" means any public employee, sworn or civilian, whose primary responsibility is to
dispatch law enforcement units by means of radio communications for an agency that utilizes the Criminal
Justice Information System, and is part of or administered by the state or any political subdivision;
(4) ]"Commissioner" means the commissioner of the Department of Criminal Justice Training;
(4)[(5)] "Public safety telecommunicator" or "telecommunicator" means any public employee, sworn or
civilian, who functions as a public safety dispatcher, 911 telecommunicator, or 911 call taker, whose duties
and responsibilities include the:
(a) Answering, receiving, transferring, or dispatching functions related to 911 calls, as the primary or
secondary public safety answering point or emergency communication center;
(b) Dispatching law enforcement officers, fire rescue services, emergency medical services, emergency
management, and other public safety services to the scene of an emergency; or
(c) Providing real-time information from federal, state, and local crime databases; and
(5) "Public safety telecommunicator academy" means a training course of at least one hundred sixty (160)
hours approved by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council and delivered by one (1) of the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council-approved academies in the state["Non-CJIS telecommunicator" means any full-time
public employee, sworn or civilian, whose primary responsibility is to dispatch law enforcement units by
means of radio communications for an agency that does not utilize the Criminal Justice Information System
and is part of or administered by the state or any political subdivision;
(6) "Non-CJIS telecommunicator academy" means a training course of one hundred twenty (120) hours approved
by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council; and
(7) "Telecommunications academy" means a training course of one hundred sixty (160) hours approved by the
Kentucky Law Enforcement Council].
Section 4. KRS 15.560 is amended to read as follows:
(1) All public safety telecommunicators not previously certified as a telecommunicator by the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council shall complete the public safety telecommunicator academy within twelve (12)
months from the date of hire[No person shall receive an official appointment on a permanent basis as a law
enforcement telecommunicator unless the person has previously been awarded a certificate by the Kentucky
Law Enforcement Council attesting to such person's satisfactory completion of a non-CJIS
telecommunications academy. Every person who is employed after June 24, 2003, as a law enforcement
telecommunicator by any law enforcement agency in this state, regardless of prior experience as a non-CJIS
telecommunicator, shall forfeit his or her position as such unless, within twelve (12) months from the date of CHAPTER 108
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his or her employment, he or she satisfactorily completes the non-CJIS telecommunications academy and is
awarded a certificate attesting thereto. The council shall waive the training requirements listed in this section
for all law enforcement telecommunicators who are serving on July 15, 2006, and possess a certificate of
completion of an approved law enforcement telecommunicator basic training program].
(2) All[ non-CJIS] telecommunicators[, whether originally employed before or after July 15, 2006,] shall
successfully complete each calendar year an in-service training course, appropriate to their job assignment and
responsibility, of eight (8) hours' duration at a school certified or recognized by the Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council. Each in-service training course shall include a mental health component which
highlights post-traumatic stress disorder and work-induced stress, including symptom recognition, treatment,
and available resources.
(3) In the event of extenuating circumstances beyond the control of a[ non-CJIS] telecommunicator that prevent
completion of training within the time specified, the commissioner or the commissioner's designee may grant
the[ non-CJIS] telecommunicator an extension of time, not to exceed one hundred eighty (180) days, in which
to complete the training.
(4) A[ non-CJIS] telecommunicator who fails to complete the training within a period of twelve (12) months and
any extension of time granted under this section shall be terminated by the employing agency and shall not be
permitted to serve as a telecommunicator with any governmental agency in the Commonwealth for a period of
one (1) year.
Section 5. KRS 15.565 is amended to read as follows:
(1) [No person shall receive an official appointment on a permanent basis as a CJIS telecommunicator unless that
person has previously been awarded a certificate by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council attesting to that
person's satisfactory completion of the CJIS telecommunications academy. Every person who is employed
after July 15, 2006, as a CJIS telecommunicator shall forfeit his or her position as such unless, within six (6)
months from the date of employment, that person satisfactorily completes the CJIS telecommunications
academy and is awarded a certificate attesting thereto. The council shall waive the training requirements listed
in this section and award a CJIS telecommunicator certificate for all CJIS telecommunicators who are serving
on July 15, 2006, and have successfully completed the CJIS-full access course.
(2) A non-CJIS telecommunicator who gains employment as a CJIS telecommunicator shall successfully complete
the CJIS-full access course within six (6) months from the date of his or her employment. A non-CJIS
telecommunicator whose employing agency initiates the use of CJIS shall successfully complete the CJIS-full
access course within six (6) months from the date that the agency initiates the use of CJIS.
(3) All CJIS telecommunicators, whether originally employed before or after July 15, 2006, shall successfully
complete each calendar year an in-service training course, appropriate to their job assignment and
responsibility, of eight (8) hours' duration, of which the number of hours shall not be changed by the Kentucky
Law Enforcement Council, at a school certified or recognized by the council. Each in-service training course
shall include a mental health component which highlights post-traumatic stress disorder and work-induced
stress, including symptom recognition, treatment, and available resources.
(4) ]All[ CJIS] telecommunicators who have access to CJIS[, whether originally employed before or after July
15, 2006,] shall successfully complete eight (8) hours of CJIS in-service training every year[two (2) years] at a
school certified or recognized by the Kentucky State Police CJIS Services Agency[Kentucky Law
Enforcement Council].
(2)[(5)] Extensions of time in which to complete the training specified in this section may be granted by the
commissioner of the Department of Kentucky State Police or the commissioner's designee.
(3)[(6)] A[ CJIS] telecommunicator who has access to CJIS and fails to complete the training within a period
of six (6) months and any extension of time granted under this section shall be terminated by the employing
agency and shall not be permitted to serve as a telecommunicator with any governmental agency in the
Commonwealth for a period of one (1) year.
Section 6. KRS 15.590 is amended to read as follows:
(1) KRS 15.530 to 15.590 shall be administered by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council, which shall
promulgate administrative regulations as necessary regarding training, in-service training, and
telecommunications practices. ACTS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY 4
(2) The Kentucky Law Enforcement Council may, by administrative regulations promulgated in accordance with
KRS Chapter 13A, explicitly set the exact number at a different number of hours from that established in KRS
15.530 required for completion of the public safety telecommunicator academy[:
(a) Non-CJIS telecommunicators academy; and
(b) Telecommunications academy].
If the council sets an exact number of hours at a different number from that established in KRS 15.530 in an
administrative regulation as set out in this subsection, it shall not further change the number of hours without
promulgating administrative regulations in accordance with the provisions of KRS Chapter 13A to set the
exact number of hours required for each of the academies.
(3) Nothing in KRS 15.530 to 15.590 shall be interpreted to permit the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council to
increase or decrease the eight (8) hours required to be completed by telecommunicators for in-service training
as established in KRS 15.560(2) and 15.565(1)[(3) and (4)].
(4) The Kentucky Law Enforcement Council shall include mental health training and resources for post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and work-induced stress during each in-service training for all telecommunicators.
(5) At the conclusion of each in-service training, a guideline for recognizing the symptoms of and available
treatment resources for PTSD or work-induced stress shall be provided to all supervisors of
telecommunicators.
(6) All telecommunicators shall have access to the Law Enforcement Professional Development and Wellness
Program established in KRS 15.158.
Section 7. Sections 3 to 6 of this Act take effect July 1, 2026.
Signed by Governor April 5, 2024.