Rep. Nuccio Speaks in Support of State Police Contract that Addresses Retention, Recruitment and Fair Wages

HARTFORD – Rep. Tammy Nuccio, R-Tolland, recently spoke on the House floor in support of a new contract for Connecticut State Troopers that provides fair compensation for men and women who put their lives on the line for our communities every day.

This four-year contract addresses overtime, benefits, changes in stipends, training pay and wage increases (2.5% in the first year).

“I’m grateful there are men and women out there who are willing to do a highly stressful and difficult job. But we are seeing a steady decline in the number of people who are applying, and the number of people who are becoming, troopers. A goal of this contract was to address recruiting and retention. To put that in perspective, the number of state police troopers has decreased from 1,170 in 2010 to 888 currently. When those ranks become too thin, it puts public safety at risk,” Rep. Nuccio said. “It is a cost of more than $70 million. But we have to ask ourselves, is our safety, and the safety of our families, worth that number? I say yes, absolutely it is, which is why I joined in bipartisan support of the agreement.”

You can listen to Rep. Nuccio’s comments on the House floor in the video below:

But there’s more to do and House Republicans have proposed several measures to give police the tools they need to do their jobs.

• Protect law enforcement and municipalities from being forced to settle in qualified immunity cases because any denial under current law bars them from appealing that decision until after jury decision. (HB 5361)
• Evaluate the use of force from the perspective of a reasonable officer in the same situation, based on the totality of the circumstances known to or perceived by the officer at the time, rather than with the benefit of hindsight, and that the totality of the circumstances shall account for occasions when officers may be forced to make quick judgments about the use of force. (HB 5361)
• Provide clarity and list circumstances under which police can be decertified for undermining public confidence. (HB 5362)
• Restore the ability for police to request consent searches during motor vehicle stops when there is reasonable suspicion of a crime. (HB 5361)
• Require P.O.S.T. to rewrite the police pursuit policy to allow pursuit of property crime offenses. (HB 5361)
• Create a special account for families of officers killed in action. (HB 5363)