By Staff Reporter |
A proposed bill making its way through the Arizona Senate promises to increase the number of police by relying on certain military veterans.
Senate Bill 1107 seeks to provide veterans with an alternative pathway for officer certification. This pathway would be limited to honorably discharged military veterans who served as military police. The Senate Public Safety Committee passed the bill unanimously on Wednesday.
The initial version of the bill extended the alternative pathway to all honorably discharged veterans. An amendment adopted by the Senate Public Safety Committee during Wednesday’s hearing modified the bill to limit the pathway to former military police.
Senate President Warren Petersen (R-LD14) authored the bill. Petersen said in a press release that this bill cut “unnecessary red tape” for those veterans with law enforcement training and experience, while remedying ongoing officer shortages.
“The law enforcement shortages we’re seeing around the state are affecting our officers’ abilities to respond to and stop illegal and criminal activities, hurting the morale of our brave men and women in blue and jeopardizing the freedoms of law-abiding Arizonans,” said Petersen. “Government’s first responsibility is to protect our citizens, which is what my bill does by giving an alternative to hire qualified officers. It’s time to have a surplus of officers in every community across our great state.”
Jeannette Garcia, a councilwoman for the city of Avondale and former military police officer, testified military police were more than qualified to enter the force without undergoing regular certification. Garcia said she may have become a police officer in Arizona herself had state laws not required her to start over in her law enforcement career.
“We operate under strict rules of engagement, high standards, and real consequences. We protect community, maintain order, and lead under pressure,” said Garcia. “This is not about making it easier to wear the badge. This is about making it possible for experienced veterans to continue serving without being forced to repeat training that they mastered.”
The bill would require the state to establish an alternative pathway for peace officer certification. That pathway would factor an applicant’s existing military police training and allow applicants to complete an abbreviated police standards and training program focusing on Arizona laws, procedures, and community policing requirements.
“Military police veterans possess substantial training, discipline, and law enforcement experience gained through active-duty service,” stated the bill’s legislative intent. “Transitioning veterans into civilian policing strengthens public safety while honoring their service.”
Applicants would still be required to pass a certification examination approved by the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board on Arizona’s police procedures and laws, as well as maintain statutory requirements relating to moral character, medical and physiological fitness, and background investigations.
As of this report, the bill only has individuals registered in support of the bill and none against.
Multiple states have adopted similar laws enabling veterans to have an expedited pathway for joining law enforcement, including Texas, Florida, and North Carolina.
If passed and approved by the governor, the bill would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
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