February 21, 2020

Klarides Sisters, Superintendent Conway Urge Lawmakers to Remove Unnecessary Burdens Placed on Retired Police Officers and School Districts

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HARTFORD – State Representatives Themis Klarides and Nicole Klarides-Ditria joined Derby Superintendent Dr. Matt Conway at the Capitol on Friday to testify on legislation that will give schools the ability to hire the most qualified candidates to protect students, teachers and staff.

The bill, H.B. 5136, seeks to allow retired public safety personnel to receive retirement allowances while they are employed by a local or regional board of education in a public safety capacity. Currently, Section 7-438 of the Connecticut General Statutes restricts the ability for those who are receiving retirement pay to simultaneously be employed by his or her municipality for more than 20 hours per week or 90 days per year. As part of the broader dialogue on school safety, one of the most effective measures we can take is to simply enable municipalities to employ experienced personnel to better protect our children.

In his testimony Superintendent Dr. Conway said, “Currently the only individuals who can carry a weapon inside a school is a current or retired state, municipal or military police officer. Current SRO programs which employ active municipal police officers are very costly and unaffordable for many school districts. The alternative for districts, without sacrificing the quality of training and skill of candidates, is to offer security positions to retired police officers as School Security Officers. This allows districts to hire a retired police officer at an hourly rate and not have the cost burden of benefits on top of the hourly rate.”

Both Rep. Klarides and Klarides-Ditria added, “When police officers retire, they still offer a wealth of unique skills and experience that can be put to good use. The current way our laws are written prevent many police officers from continuing doing the work they love to do. We should change this law and let retired police officers serve their communities without being penalized.”

For more information on the legislation visit cga.ct.gov.

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