A house bill hopes to address some of the staffing issues facing local law enforcement agencies across Kentucky.
HB 414 would remove the age ceiling for applicants as, under the current statute, applicants must be between 18 and 45 years old.
The bill would also allow local law enforcement agencies to operate under an 80-hour, 14-day work period instead of a 40-hour, seven-day work period.
Another provision of the bill makes an effort to strengthen the reputation of police and fire departments by amending the disciplinary process to allow more time for complaints against law enforcement officers to be filed, supporters of the bill said.
Under this provision, the window for a complaint to be filed would be extended from three days to 10 days. The bill would then give the mayor, city manager or legislative body 10 days instead of five days to file charges if there is probable cause.
The Kentucky House of Representatives approved the bill by an 85-12 vote earlier this week and it will now go before the Senate for consideration.