ENROLLED
ACT No. 376
2023 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 563
BY REPRESENTATIVES SCHEXNAYDER, HILFERTY, AND KNOX
1 AN ACT
2 To enact Chapter 7-D of Title 40 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, to be comprised
3 of R.S. 40:1669, relative to law enforcement officer pay; to establish the Law
4 Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Program; to create the Law Enforcement
5 Recruitment Incentive Fund; to provide relative to disbursements of monies from the
6 fund; to provide for the administration of the program; to provide for program
7 eligibility; to provide relative to reimbursement of payments received from the
8 program; to provide for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.
9 Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
10 Section 1. Chapter 7-D of Title 40 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950,
11 comprised of R.S. 40:1669, is hereby enacted to read as follows:
12 CHAPTER 7-D. LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS - INCENTIVE PAYMENTS
13 ยง1669. Law Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Program
14 A. There is hereby created in the state treasury, as a special fund, the Law
15 Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Fund, hereinafter referred to in this Chapter as
16 the "fund". Monies in the fund shall be used solely for payments made in accordance
17 with the Law Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Program as provided in this
18 Section.
19 B. Monies in the fund shall be invested in the same manner as monies in the
20 state general fund. Interest earned on investment of monies in the fund shall be
21 credited to the fund. Until the termination of the program, unexpended and
22 unencumbered monies in the fund at the end of the fiscal year shall remain in the
23 fund.
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1 C. The Law Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Program, hereinafter
2 referred to in this Chapter as the "program", is hereby established to aid in the
3 recruitment of law enforcement officers within the state. The purpose of the program
4 is to provide one-time incentive payments of five thousand dollars to certain newly-
5 employed law enforcement officers in the state.
6 D. For purposes of this Section, the following terms shall have the following
7 meanings:
8 (1) "Eligible agency" means a sheriff's office, municipal police department,
9 or the office of state police within the Department of Public Safety and Corrections.
10 (2) "Law enforcement officer" means an officer whose permanent duties
11 actually include the making of arrests, the performing of searches and seizures, or
12 the execution of criminal warrants, and who is responsible for the prevention or
13 detection of crime or for the enforcement of the penal, traffic, or highway laws of
14 this state. "Law enforcement officer" shall not include any elected or appointed head
15 of a law enforcement department.
16 (3) "Municipality" means an incorporated city, town, or village.
17 (4) "Newly-employed officer" means a person who gains or is appointed to
18 full-time employment as a law enforcement officer with a Louisiana eligible agency
19 on or after July 1, 2023, and who has never before been employed as a law
20 enforcement officer in this state.
21 E. To qualify for the incentive payment, a newly-employed officer shall meet
22 the following criteria:
23 (1) Attain POST-certification within one year of the date on which
24 employment begins.
25 (2) Maintain continuous full-time employment with an eligible agency for
26 a least two years from the date on which employment begins. The required two-year
27 employment period may be satisfied by maintaining employment at one or more
28 eligible agencies, but such period shall not contain any break in service longer than
29 fifteen calendar days.
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1 F.(1) An incentive payment made pursuant to this Section shall be
2 reimbursed by the officer who received payment to the state treasurer under any of
3 the following circumstances:
4 (a) The officer voluntarily separates from employment with an employing
5 agency prior to completion of two years of employment, as provided in Paragraph
6 (E)(2) of this Section.
7 (b) The officer has a break in service of more than fifteen days.
8 (c) The officer is dismissed for cause by the employing agency.
9 (2) The employing agency shall notify the treasurer if an officer who
10 received payment does not meet the required two-year employment period.
11 (3) The treasurer shall send a determination letter to any officer who is
12 required to reimburse an incentive payment pursuant to this Subsection to the
13 officer's last-known mailing address. Reimbursement of the incentive payment shall
14 be made to the treasurer within twelve months of the date on the determination letter.
15 G.(1) Any request for an incentive payment for a deputy sheriff shall be
16 submitted by the sheriff of the respective parish to the Deputy Sheriff's Supplemental
17 Pay Board for review and approval. The board shall submit the approved request to
18 the state treasurer for payment. The treasurer shall remit payments from the fund for
19 deputy sheriffs to the sheriff's office of the respective parish. The sheriff of each
20 parish shall expend such funds solely for paying the incentive payment.
21 (2) Any request for an incentive payment for a municipal police officer shall
22 be submitted by the chief of police of the respective municipality to the
23 Supplemental Pay Board of Review for Municipal Police Officers for review and
24 approval. The board shall submit the approved request to the state treasurer for
25 payment. The treasurer shall remit payments from the fund for municipal police
26 officers to the police department of the respective municipality. The chief of police
27 of each municipality shall expend such funds solely for paying the incentive
28 payment.
29 (3) Any request for an incentive payment for a law enforcement officer
30 employed by the office of state police shall be submitted pursuant to rules
31 promulgated by the State Police Commission. The treasurer shall remit payments
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1 from the fund for the officer to the office of state police. The office of state police
2 shall expend such funds solely for paying the incentive payment.
3 (4) Every request submitted pursuant to this Subsection shall include:
4 (a) Certification from the submitting party that the newly-employed officer
5 meets the eligibility criteria for receiving the incentive payment.
6 (b) A form signed by the newly-employed officer acknowledging the
7 reimbursement requirements for failure to maintain eligibility.
8 H. Payments shall be made on a first-come, first-served basis upon receipt
9 of the approved request of any entity as provided for in Subsection G of this Section.
10 Payments shall cease when all monies in the fund have been expended.
11 I. To the extent necessary, any local civil service system shall promulgate
12 rules for the effective implementation of this Section within its jurisdiction.
13 J. The provisions of this Section shall terminate on July 1, 2025. Upon
14 termination of the program, the treasurer is hereby authorized and directed to transfer
15 any unexpended and unencumbered monies in the fund to the state general fund.
16 Section 2. This Act shall become effective upon signature by the governor or, if not
17 signed by the governor, upon expiration of the time for bills to become law without signature
18 by the governor, as provided by Article III, Section 18 of the Constitution of Louisiana. If
19 vetoed by the governor and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become
20 effective on the day following such approval.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA
APPROVED:
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