(Olympia, WA) Sen. Jeff Holy, the new Republican leader on the Senate Law and Justice Committee, has introduced a bipartisan bill ahead of the 2025 legislative session that aims to increase public safety by boosting the number of law-enforcement officers in Washington communities.
Holy’s proposal, Senate Bill 5060, would have the state Criminal Justice Training Commission develop and implement a grant program to help local and tribal governments hire law-enforcement officers. A $100 million appropriation from the state general fund would support the grant program.
“Crime is a growing problem in our state,” said Holy, R-Cheney. “Washington ranks among the worst states in several categories, including murders, auto theft and retail theft. A key reason is that we also rank 51st nationally for the number of law-enforcement officers per capita.
“As a retired police officer, I know we need more officers in our communities and on our roads,” said Holy, who serves the 6th Legislative District. “One of Governor-elect Ferguson’s campaign pledges this year was to increase the number of law-enforcement officers in our state – via a statewide grant program. I strongly agree with him on this issue, which is why I’m again sponsoring a bill that would add more officers throughout Washington. This could really help make our communities safer.”
SB 5060 also would require the CJTC to establish policies for applications from local agencies, including review criteria and reporting requirements from local governments, and annually report on the grant program’s utilization, application and hiring data.
The bill is co-sponsored by Sen. Manka Dhingra, chair of the Law and Justice Committee. The measure is expected to be sent to that committee for consideration.
The 105-day legislative session is scheduled to start Jan. 13 and end April 27.