KentuckySB 2372025 Regular SessionSenateWALLET

AN ACT relating to public safety.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 1 costs, 2 mixed.

Dispatcher training deadlines put jobs at risk

Beginning July 1, 2026, dispatchers without prior Kentucky Law Enforcement Council certification must finish required training within 12 months of hire. Full-time workers need at least 160 academy hours; part-time workers need the 40-hour online overview course. Part-time workers, including those hired before that date, must complete the overview and receive 40 hours of academy credit when moving full-time. The commissioner or designee can grant up to 180 extra days for circumstances beyond the worker's control. Missing the deadline means termination and a one-year ban from dispatcher work for any Kentucky government agency.

Experienced officers can skip agility testing

Experienced out-of-state officers can skip Kentucky's physical agility test when applying for peace officer certification. Applicants must provide certified records to the hiring agency when applying. They must still work as certified officers elsewhere or have left that service less than three months before applying. They must be in good standing or have left in good standing. They also need at least 10 years of continuous service in that state immediately before applying and a previously passed job-related agility test.

More emergency workers face dispatcher rules

Kentucky's dispatcher rules cover public employees, sworn or civilian, who take 911 calls, dispatch emergency services, or provide live crime-database information. This broader definition brings those workers under applicable dispatcher training rules. The law also defines the full-access crime-database course as online training run and approved by the Kentucky State Police. That replaces the former definition of a 40-hour course approved by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council, both before and beginning July 1, 2026.

Dispatchers need yearly training with stress support

Beginning July 1, 2026, all public safety dispatchers must complete eight hours of training each calendar year. Training must match their job duties and come from a school certified or recognized by the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council. Each course must include mental health content on post-traumatic stress disorder and work-related stress. That content must cover warning signs, treatment, and available help.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

Jason Howell
Republican • Senate

Cosponsors

Danny Carroll
Republican • Senate
Matt Nunn
Republican • Senate

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 167 • No: 0

Senate vote • 3/14/2025

passed

Yes: 36 • No: 0

House vote • 3/13/2025

3rd reading, passed

Yes: 95 • No: 0

Senate vote • 3/5/2025