Police reform a burden for Connecticut communities

In its haste to pass the recent Police Accountability Act, or PAA, Gov. Ned Lamont and his allies in the General Assembly have awarded a $2 million no-bid contract to a Virginia company — with the fiscal note accompanying the legislation incorrectly stating that the provision has no fiscal impact.

Under the PAA, all law enforcement agencies in Connecticut must be accredited by 2025 by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc., or CALEA, headquartered in Gainesville, Va.

CALEA’s accreditation process is impressive, and its standards are high. But the same standards can be achieved without duplication of effort or high cost through Connecticut’s own Police Officers Standards and Training Council (POSTC) — which is itself a CALEA accredited training academy.

Connecticut currently offers its own version of accreditation through POSTC. These standards can meet (or exceed) CALEA mandates at no additional cost to state taxpayers.

At last count, POSTC regulates all 92 municipal police departments in Connecticut. POSTC also regulates numerous state law enforcement agencies, including those at universities (such as Yale University and UConn), environmental police (DEEP) and the state capitol police.

Twenty-three law enforcement agencies in Connecticut maintain CALEA accreditation, along with their POSTC credentials. Under the newly passed PAA, approximately 130 law enforcement agencies in Connecticut would be regulated by CALEA.

CALEA charges a fee for accreditation and reaccreditation based on the size of the law enforcement agency. For agencies with up to 24 full-time employees, the cost is $8,475; for those with 25 to 199 full-time employees, the fee is $11,450; and for those with 200 to 999 full time employees, the fee is $16,125.

As of October 2016, Connecticut’s municipal police departments ranged in size as follows:

⏩ 19 departments employed 100 or more police officers;

⏩ 53 departments employed 50 or fewer officers;

⏩ 14 departments employed fewer than 20 officers.

That means an average-sized law enforcement agency in Connecticut would be charged $11,450 in order to be accredited by CALEA.

The 130 police departments multiplied by (on average) $11,450.00 equals $1.48 million.

Even annual re-accreditation incurs hefty costs. Again, CALEA’s fees vary, but on average an accredited agency would owe CALEA a sum in the range of $4,065 per year.

The 130 police departments multiplied by (on average) $4,065.00 equals $528,000 per year.

In the first year of accreditation (2025), CALEA would reap a $2 million windfall from Connecticut — without a bid or even a written proposal.

The Police Accountability Act has handed what appears to be a completely unwarranted rebuke to the POSTC accreditation process and standards. As of Dec. 31, 2024, POSTC will cease to provide any accreditation services; it would be a welcome (but surprising) development if its budget were reduced to reflect the curtailment of its services.

Connecticut’s people deserve an explanation: Why did the General Assembly and governor decide to outsource a state service, which was free of charge to police departments, and award it to an out-of-state company that charges towns and cities thousands of dollars per year?

Those who legislated (and signed) PAA in haste have simply added another unnecessary expense to municipal budgets — all to mandate a credential that’s available at no cost here in Connecticut. It’s time to take another look, and reform a law riddled with unintended consequences and hidden costs.