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NEWS STORY

 * Government & Politics


GOVERNOR NIXES PROPOSAL TO RELAX POLICE TRAINEE STANDARDS FOR MARIJUANA, DRUG
USE


PROPOSAL PART OF EFFORT TO INCREASE APPLICANTS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT POSITIONS

BY: PAUL HAMMEL - AUGUST 12, 2023 5:00 AM



With Nebraska law enforcement agencies struggling to attract recruits, a state
council had proposed relaxing drug- and marijuana-use standards. (Paul
Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)

LINCOLN — Gov. Jim Pillen has rejected a proposed relaxation in drug-use
standards to qualify for training as a Nebraska law enforcement officer, saying
it could be viewed as a “watering down” of the standards.

A panel of state law enforcement officials had recommended the change as part of
a broader effort to qualify more applicants for the necessary state training to
work in law enforcement.

Currently, a recruit cannot have used marijuana for 24 months, or used a
narcotic or other “dangerous drug” for five years. prior to being admitted to
the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center in Grand Island.

Gov. Jim Pillen speaks at a press conference Wednesday in Kearney during an
annual ag and economic development summit. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)



The Police Standards Advisory Council had proposed to lower the standards to 12
months for marijuana and three years for narcotics.

NOT ‘PRUDENT’

Pillen, in a July 18 letter rejecting the proposed rule change, said he didn’t
think it was “prudent” to adopt such a change without data that shows “a
significant number” of applicants are being rejected due to the current drug-use
standards.

“It is therefore imperative that we have the necessary data before making a
policy change that could be perceived as watering down the standards to become a
law enforcement officer in the State of Nebraska,” Pillen wrote.

He urged the Police Standards Advisory Council to collect the data and, if they
wish, resubmit their proposed rule change.

On Wednesday, the police council will meet to decide what to do next.

DATA BEING SOUGHT

Brian Jackson, the president of the council and an assistant chief with the
Lincoln Police Department, said that he and others on the council are seeking
numbers on how many potential recruits have been disqualified due to the current
drug standards.

Jackson said it was impossible to know how many potential applicants didn’t
apply after learning of the drug-use standards, but he knows that some
applicants have been disqualified, after applying, due to the current
requirements.



 * The Nebraska Police Standards Advisory Board sets minimum standards to become
   a law enforcement officer for agencies across the state.
 * Law enforcement agencies, such as those in Omaha, Lincoln and Sarpy County,
   which have their own training academies, can establish higher standards.





“There have been people who have been disqualified due to drug standards but
there have been people who have been disqualified for other reasons,” he said.

 “Not every idea is a good idea,” Jackson added.

 He said multiple reasons exist for why fewer men and women are seeking to
become law enforcement officers.

The proposed changes in training center entry requirements come as police
agencies across Nebraska, and across the nation, struggle to attract new
recruits, despite recent salary increases at some.

Negative publicity about police work, inspired in large part by police custody
deaths such has the suffocation death of George Floyd during a police stop in
Minneapolis, has been blamed for much of it.

Meanwhile, laws concerning marijuana use are relaxing across the country, with
23 states, including nearby Colorado and Minnesota, allowing recreational use of
pot as of June 1, Reuters reported.

RECRUITING HAS IMPROVED FROM ‘WORST EVER’

In February, the superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol described the
volume of new trooper candidates as “the worst it’s ever been.”

The situation has improved somewhat since then — in February, the Patrol
reported 69 vacant posts for state troopers out of an authorized force of 482
uniform officers. Just recently, the vacant post figure had dropped to around
60.

Staffing has also improved at the Lincoln Police Department, which hiked its
starting pay to $64,000 — the highest in the state.

Lincoln television station KOLN/KGIN reported last month that Lincoln police
were short 27 officers, or about 7% of the force, compared to 40 vacancies in
June of 2022.

The proposed rule changes rejected by the governor included several other
changes, though Pillen only mentioned the drug-use standards as problematic. The
changes were a mixture of new requirements passed by the State Legislature to
increase the professionalism of law enforcement officers, and attempts to
attract more applicants.

The other changes include: allowing graduates of home schools to qualify for
admittance for law enforcement training; requiring new recruits to undergo
psychological testing to determining their fitness for the job; and
disqualifying someone who was convicted of  threatening violence, and not just
using it.

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PAUL HAMMEL

Senior Reporter Paul Hammel has covered the Nebraska state government and the
state for decades. Previously with the Omaha World-Herald, Lincoln Journal Star
and Omaha Sun, he is a member of the Omaha Press Club's Hall of Fame. He grows
hops, brews homemade beer, plays bass guitar and basically loves traveling the
state. A native of Ralston, Nebraska, he is vice president of the John G.
Neihardt Foundation.

MORE FROM AUTHOR

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proper attribution and link to our web site.

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1
X



GOVERNOR NIXES PROPOSAL TO RELAX POLICE TRAINEE STANDARDS FOR MARIJUANA, DRUG
USE

by Paul Hammel, Nebraska Examiner
August 12, 2023

<h1>Governor nixes proposal to relax police trainee standards for marijuana,
drug use</h1> <p>by Paul Hammel, <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com">Nebraska
Examiner</a> <br />August 12, 2023</p> <p>LINCOLN — Gov. Jim Pillen has rejected
a proposed relaxation in drug-use standards to qualify for training as a
Nebraska law enforcement officer, saying it could be viewed as a “watering down”
of the standards.</p> <p>A panel of state law enforcement officials had
recommended the change as part of a broader effort to qualify more applicants
for the necessary state training to work in law enforcement.</p> <p>Currently, a
recruit cannot have used marijuana for 24 months, or used a narcotic or other
“dangerous drug” for five years. prior to being admitted to the Nebraska Law
Enforcement Training Center in Grand Island.</p> <figure><i></i> Gov. Jim Pillen
speaks at a press conference Wednesday in Kearney during an annual ag and
economic development summit. (Paul Hammel/Nebraska Examiner)</p></figure> <p>The
Police Standards Advisory Council had proposed to lower the standards to 12
months for marijuana and three years for narcotics.</p> <h4>Not ‘prudent’</h4>
<p>Pillen, in a July 18 letter rejecting the proposed rule change, said he
didn’t think it was “prudent” to adopt such a change without data that shows “a
significant number” of applicants are being rejected due to the current drug-use
standards.</p> <p>“It is therefore imperative that we have the necessary data
before making a policy change that could be perceived as watering down the
standards to become a law enforcement officer in the State of Nebraska,” Pillen
wrote.</p> <p>He urged the Police Standards Advisory Council to collect the data
and, if they wish, resubmit their proposed rule change.</p> <p>On Wednesday, the
police council will meet to decide what to do next.</p> <h4>Data being
sought</h4> <p>Brian Jackson, the president of the council and an assistant
chief with the Lincoln Police Department, said that he and others on the council
are seeking numbers on how many potential recruits have been disqualified due to
the current drug standards.</p> <p>Jackson said it was impossible to know how
many potential applicants didn’t apply after learning of the drug-use standards,
but he knows that some applicants have been disqualified, after applying, due to
the current requirements.</p> <p> <div class="newsroomSidebarContainer"> <div
class="newsroomSidebar "></p> The Nebraska Police Standards Advisory Board sets
minimum standards to become a law enforcement officer for agencies across the
state. Law enforcement agencies, such as those in Omaha, Lincoln and Sarpy
County, which have their own training academies, can establish higher standards.
<p></div> </div> </p> <p>“There have been people who have been disqualified due
to drug standards but there have been people who have been disqualified for
other reasons,” he said.</p> <p> “Not every idea is a good idea,” Jackson
added.</p> <p> He said multiple reasons exist for why fewer men and women are
seeking to become law enforcement officers.</p> <p>The proposed changes in
training center entry requirements come as police agencies across Nebraska, and
across the nation, struggle to attract new recruits, despite recent salary
increases at some.</p> <p>Negative publicity about police work, inspired in
large part by police custody deaths such has the suffocation death of George
Floyd during a police stop in Minneapolis, has been blamed for much of it.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, laws concerning marijuana use are relaxing across the country,
with 23 states, including nearby Colorado and Minnesota, allowing recreational
use of pot as of June 1,<a
href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-states-where-recreational-marijuana-is-legal-2023-05-31/">
Reuters reported</a>.</p> <h4>Recruiting has improved from ‘worst ever’ </h4>
<p>In February, the superintendent of the Nebraska State Patrol described the
volume of new trooper candidates as “the worst it’s ever been.”</p> <p>The
situation has improved somewhat since then — in February, the Patrol reported 69
vacant posts for state troopers out of an authorized force of 482 uniform
officers. Just recently, the vacant post figure had dropped to around 60.</p>
<p>Staffing has also improved at the Lincoln Police Department, which hiked its
starting pay to $64,000 — the highest in the state.</p> <p><a
href="https://www.1011now.com/2023/07/12/lincoln-police-give-fewer-traffic-tickets-amid-ongoing-low-staffing-levels/">Lincoln
television station KOLN/KGIN reported</a> last month that Lincoln police were
short 27 officers, or about 7% of the force, compared to 40 vacancies in June of
2022.</p> <p>The proposed rule changes rejected by the governor included several
other changes, though Pillen only mentioned the drug-use standards as
problematic. The changes were a mixture of new requirements passed by the State
Legislature to increase the professionalism of law enforcement officers, and
attempts to attract more applicants.</p> <p>The other changes include: allowing
graduates of home schools to qualify for admittance for law enforcement
training; requiring new recruits to undergo psychological testing to determining
their fitness for the job; and disqualifying someone who was convicted of 
threatening violence, and not just using it.</p> <a href="/subscribe"> <div
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