To amend sections 109.761 and 109.802, to enact new section 109.803, and to repeal section 109.803 of the Revised Code to mandate up to 24 hours a year of continuing professional training for peace officers and state highway patrol troopers and to establish the method by which the Attorney General reimburses the training costs.

Section 1. That sections 109.761 and 109.802 be amended and new section 109.803 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 109.761. (A)(1) Each agency or entity that appoints or employs one or more peace officers shall report to the Ohio peace officer training commission all of the following that occur on or after the effective date of this section February 20, 2002:

(a) The appointment or employment of any person to serve the agency or entity as a peace officer in any full-time, part-time, reserve, auxiliary, or other capacity;

(b) The termination, resignation, felony conviction, or death of any person who has been appointed to or employed by the agency or entity as a peace officer in any full-time, part-time, reserve, auxiliary, or other capacity and is serving the agency or entity in any of those peace officer capacities.

(2) An agency or entity shall make each report required by this division not later than ten days after the occurrence of the event being reported. The agency or entity shall make the report in the manner and format prescribed by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission.

(B) Each agency or entity that appoints or employs one or more peace officers or state highway patrol troopers shall annually provide to the Ohio peace officer training commission a roster of all persons who have been appointed to or employed by the agency or entity as peace officers or troopers in any full-time, part-time, reserve, auxiliary, or other capacity and are serving, or during the year covered by the report have served, the agency or entity in any of those peace officer or trooper capacities. The agency or entity shall provide the roster in the manner and format, and by the date, prescribed by the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission.

(C) The Ohio peace officer training commission shall prescribe the manner and format of making reports under division (A) of this section and providing annual rosters under division (B) of this section and shall prescribe the date by which the annual rosters must be provided.

Sec. 109.802.  (A) There is hereby created in the state treasury the law enforcement assistance fund. The fund shall be used to pay reimbursements for law enforcement continuing professional training for paid peace officers as provided in this section and section 109.803 of the Revised Code, the compensation of any employees of the attorney general required to administer those sections, and any other administrative costs incurred by the attorney general to administer those sections.

(B) The attorney general shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code establishing application procedures, standards, and guidelines, and prescribing an application form, for the reimbursement of sheriffs, constables, chiefs of police of organized municipal and township police departments, chiefs of police of township police district police forces, and chiefs of police of university or college police departments for the costs of peace officer basic training programs, advanced peace officer training programs, basic jailer training programs, and firearms requalification programs successfully completed by them or the peace officers under their supervision, for the reimbursement of the superintendent of the state highway patrol and the director of natural resources for the costs of peace officer basic training programs, advanced peace officer training programs, and basic jailer training programs successfully completed by them or the peace officers under their supervision, and for the reimbursement of the chief of the adult parole authority and the chief probation officer of a county probation department, multicounty probation department, and municipal court department of probation for the costs of basic firearm training programs and firearms requalification programs successfully completed by them or by parole or probation officers under their supervision appointing authorities for the cost of continuing professional training for paid peace officers. The rules shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:

(1) A requirement that applications for reimbursement be submitted on a fiscal calendar-year basis;

(2) The documentation required to substantiate any costs for which the applicant seeks reimbursement;

(3) The procedure for prorating reimbursements if the amount of money appropriated for reimbursement for any fiscal year is not sufficient to pay all of the costs approved for reimbursement for that fiscal year;

(4) Any other requirements necessary for the proper administration of the reimbursement program.

(C) The Ohio peace officer training commission shall administer a program for reimbursing appointing authorities for the costs of continuing professional training that is successfully completed by the appointing authority's paid peace officers. The commission shall administer the reimbursement program in accordance with rules adopted by the attorney general pursuant to division (B) of this section.

(D) Each sheriff, constable, and chief of police of an organized municipal or township police department, township police district police force, or university or college police department appointing authority may apply each fiscal calendar year to the peace officer training commission for reimbursement for the costs of peace officer basic continuing professional training programs, advanced peace officer training programs, basic jailer training programs, and firearms requalification training programs that are is successfully completed by the sheriff, constable, or chief or a peace officer under the sheriff's, constable's, or chief's supervision. The superintendent of the state highway patrol and the director of natural resources may apply each fiscal year to the peace officer training commission for reimbursement for the costs of peace officer basic training programs, advanced peace officer training programs, and basic jailer training programs successfully completed by the superintendent or director or the peace officers under the superintendent's or director's supervision. The chief of the adult parole authority and each chief probation officer of a county probation department, multicounty probation department, or municipal court department of probation may apply each fiscal year to the peace officer training commission for reimbursement for the costs of basic firearm training programs and firearms requalification programs successfully completed by that chief or by parole or probation officers under the chief's supervision appointing authority's paid peace officers. Each application shall be made in accordance with, on an application form prescribed in, and be supported by the documentation required by, the rules adopted by the attorney general pursuant to division (B) of this section.

(D)(E) The commission, in accordance with rules of the attorney general adopted under division (B) of this section, shall review each application for reimbursement to determine if the applicant is entitled to reimbursement for the training for which the applicant seeks reimbursement. If the appointing authority complies with the requirements of this section, the commission shall approve reimbursing the appointing authority for the cost of continuing professional training. The actual amount of reimbursement for continuing professional training shall be determined by rules adopted by the attorney general under division (B) of this section.

(F) Each appointing authority that receives funds under this section shall keep those funds separate from any other funds of the appointing authority. No appointing authority that receives funds under this section shall use those funds to supplant or offset existing budgets for continuing professional training. The appointing authority shall use the funds received under this section only for continuing professional training and associated costs.

(G) As used in this section and section 109.803 of the Revised Code:

(1) "Peace officer" includes a sheriff, deputy sheriff, marshal, deputy marshal, chief of police and member of a municipal or township police department, chief of police and member of a township police district police force, chief of police of a university or college police department, state university law enforcement officer appointed under section 3345.04 of the Revised Code, superintendent of the state highway patrol, state highway patrol trooper, and employee of the department of natural resources who is a natural resources law enforcement staff officer, park officer, forest officer, preserve officer, wildlife officer, or state watercraft officer has the same meaning as in section 109.71 of the Revised Code and includes state highway patrol troopers.

(2) "Chief of police of an organized municipal police department" includes the chief of police of a village police department.

(3) "Chief of police of a village police department" means the village marshal.

(4) "Chief of police of a university or college police department" means the person who has direct supervisory authority over the state university law enforcement officers who are appointed for the university or college pursuant to section 3345.04 of the Revised Code by the board of trustees of the university or college "Appointing authority" means any public agency or entity that appoints or employs a peace officer.

Sec. 109.803. (A) Every appointing authority shall require each of its paid peace officers to complete up to twenty-four hours of continuing professional training each calendar year. The Ohio peace officer training commission may specify the content of up to eight of these hours of training. If an appointing authority complies with this training requirement and with division (B) of section 109.761 of the Revised Code and if the paid peace officers of the appointing authority comply with section 109.801 of the Revised Code to the extent that they are subject to that section and comply with all other training mandated by the general assembly or the Ohio peace officer training commission, the attorney general shall reimburse the appointing authority for the successful training costs of each of its paid peace officers as provided in section 109.802 of the Revised Code.

(B) No paid peace officer who fails to complete the minimum required hours of law enforcement training in any calendar year or who fails to comply with section 109.801 of the Revised Code or any other required training shall carry a firearm during the course of official duties or perform the functions of a peace officer until evidence of the peace officer's compliance with those requirements is filed with the executive director of the Ohio peace officer training commission.

(C) With the advice of the Ohio peace officer training commission, the attorney general shall adopt in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code rules setting forth minimum standards for continuing professional training for peace officers and governing the administration of the continuing professional training for peace officers. The attorney general shall transmit a certified copy of any rule adopted under this section to the secretary of state.

Section 2. That existing sections 109.761 and 109.802 and section 109.803 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.

Section 3. An appointing authority that provides continuing professional training in the 2006 calendar year is eligible to apply to the Peace Officer Training Commission for reimbursement for the costs of that training as provided in section 109.802, as amended, and section 109.803 of the Revised Code, as enacted, by this act.