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House Bill 44 would let statutory cities hire lateral officers without civil-service exams and allow municipal training academies
Summary
Sponsors told the House Public Safety Committee House Bill 44 would align statutory cities with charter cities by allowing departments to waive civil-service exams for qualified lateral police hires and would permit municipal police chiefs to run training programs; members asked about scope, background checks and safeguards for bad actors.
Representatives Joe Miller and Kevin Miller (sponsors) presented House Bill 44 in the House Public Safety Committee, proposing that statutory cities be permitted to hire qualified lateral police officers without a civil-service exam when the department demonstrates the competitive component is unnecessary, and that municipal chiefs may operate training schools aligned with Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy standards.
Sponsors said the change would speed hiring, reduce the time and cost of repeated testing and allow experienced officers to transfer sooner. "Filling positions with veteran officers avoids excessive time and money and allows for a trained officer to immediately make an impact," a sponsor told the committee.
Members asked for limits and safeguards. Representative Brent asked whether the bill covers positions beyond patrol officers; sponsors said it targets entry-level, road-patrol officers and not promotional ranks such as sergeant or lieutenant. Representative Brewer asked how jurisdictions would prevent "bad actors" from using lateral transfer to evade accountability; sponsors said most departments already conduct background checks and contact previous employers, and they were open to clarifying statutory background-check requirements.
Sponsors emphasized the bill is permissive, not mandatory, and would bring statutory cities in line with charter cities that currently have the same hiring flexibility. Ranking Member Thomas and other members said they supported the intent and recommended committee collaboration on implementation details and safeguards.
No formal action was taken. Committee members and sponsors said they will continue working on the bill language and on any necessary statutory changes for background checks and training authorization.
