State legislators across the nation are actively pursuing reforms aimed at discouraging law enforcement agencies from pressuring officers into meeting ticket quotas. Roughly half of the states have taken measures to discourage this practice, with Alabama and Virginia being the most recent additions, while several others are contemplating similar legislative changes.
Illinois is revisiting its decade-old law intended to curb aggressive police ticketing. A proposed House bill, HB4976, led by Rep. Bob Morgan, seeks to expand protections by eliminating language that allows municipalities to evaluate officers based on their points of contact. The bill explicitly prohibits the use of quotas as criteria for officer demotion or penalization.
In Iowa, a bill in progress aims to amend statutes regarding ticket quotas. The existing law already prevents law enforcement agencies from imposing quotas on citation numbers, and the proposed bill, HF2304, seeks to extend this rule to traffic stops without requiring issuance of a citation to be considered a violation.
Maryland is also addressing the issue with a proposed House bill, HB6, that would repeal the authorization for law enforcement agencies to use arrest and citation numbers as criteria for personnel actions. This bill aims to prevent agencies from pressuring officers to increase their citation and arrest statistics.
In New York, multiple bills target potential abuses related to ticket quotas. A4799 addresses the possibility of denying promotions to officers who fail to meet quotas, while A5622 and S169 seek to forbid state agencies from imposing or suggesting enforcement quotas. S169 proposes penalties for quota violations, constituting a class A misdemeanor.
Ohio is considering a bill, HB333, to outlaw the use of arrest or citation quotas for evaluating, promoting, compensating, transferring, or disciplining officers. The bill allows data collection on arrests and citations while requiring the state’s attorney general to investigate and cease any verified quota usage.
Oklahoma is grappling with two bills addressing ticket quotas. HB3265 proposes a cap on annual traffic tickets for small municipalities, and SB1316 seeks to prohibit any political subdivision or state agency from establishing or maintaining ticket quotas.
Notably, legislative efforts in Arizona and Utah to address ticket quotas have faced setbacks. A bipartisan bill in Arizona, HB2179, failed to advance, while a Utah bill, HB547, aiming to revise existing laws on ticket quotas, also failed to progress. Despite Utah already prohibiting quotas since 2018, concerns persist about some entities using performance-based systems that effectively amount to quotas.
Source: Land Line
