HB 5060 proposes law enforcement recruiting grant

OLYMPIA – A bipartisan bill to create a law enforcement hiring grant program was introduced to the Senate Law and Justice Committee on Tuesday by Sen. Jeff Holy, R- Cheney. 

If enacted, the bill would invest $100 million in the Washington Criminal and Justice Training Commission for local and tribal agencies to hire and train more officers. These efforts align with Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson’s stated priority of increasing law enforcement as Washington ranks last in the nation in number of officers per capita, including the District of Columbia.  

“(Washington law enforcement agencies are) trying their darndest to play catch up, but they're bleeding as fast as they're gaining on this,” Holy said.  

James McHahan, a policy director for the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs testified in support of the bill. During his testimony, he said the state has been experiencing severe understaffing across departments of all sizes, falling further behind during the last 14 years.  

“One thousand three hundred seventy is the number of additional officers that Washington needs to tie for last,” McHahan said. “That's more than double the size of (Seattle PD), Washington's largest law enforcement agency.”  

Holy said many smaller agencies are shouldering the burden as they cannot offer the same pay as larger agencies, leading many to transfer to those departments.   

Grant County Sheriff Joey Kriete said there were about 12 to 13 retirements and transfers during 2024 from his agency. Kriete said that while his department does not experience significant understaffing, he is concerned about the sustainability of officers.  

“Sustainability is a concern for agencies all across a state, especially as the more the deputies are given that grant, the more responsibility for each agency to fund the budget when the 36 months run out,” Kriete said.  

The process to train one police officer- including the academy, field officer training, and a probationary period- costs about $250,000, according to Holy. If implemented, the bill would alleviate some of the costs by allocating a percentage of its funding to entry-level salaries and benefits for up to 36 months.  

Holy admits that the funding is not sustainable in the long term, especially in a deficit year, but said it would help as a stopgap to ensure sufficient law enforcement statewide. 

“We sort of have done this many different times before where you prime the pump and you're trying to get people in the system,” Holy said.  

While the purpose of the legislation is to reestablish interest, some are concerned with the lack of accountability and trust between law enforcement and citizens.  

“I know we need more police officers, but we need good officers, and the problem is we can't keep good officers because they're forced out,” said Tonya Hardwick, who testified against the bill.  

Hardwick argued that government spending should focus on ensuring citizen protection and upholding rights, citing a negative experience with law enforcement she had.  

Although conflicting stigma has contributed to the lack of recruits, Steve Strachan, executive director of Washington Association of Sheriff and Police Chiefs, believes the public is starting to turn the corner.  

“Our communities cannot thrive without safety, and I think everybody sees that,” Strachan said.  

Strachan shares that while this bill alone will not get Washington out of last place, it is still a step in the right direction to improve staffing and ensure officers feel comfortable and supported doing their jobs.