State police tell Appropriations panel they need more troopers, forensic capacity and money for special responses

At a House Appropriations Committee hearing, senior Pennsylvania State Police officials described staffing shortfalls, new forensic capacity and rising costs tied to special emergency response operations while answering lawmakers’ questions about proposed budget items and policy changes.

Commissioner Colonel Paris told the committee the force has increased diversity from a low point in 2016 and now counts 408 members from underrepresented groups, but acknowledged the agency remains short of recruitment goals. "It is certainly not where we want to be," Paris said.

Lawmakers pressed the command staff about vacancies and the agency’s ability to respond across the Commonwealth. "As we sit here today, there are 248 vacancies," Paris said, distinguishing that figure from a larger statutory complement cap of 4,841. He said the department counts 219 vacancies against the legislative complement cap. Lieutenant Colonel George Bivens added that various leave types and limited-duty hours have the effect of removing the work-equivalent of roughly 98 full-time troopers, and additional leave policies could increase personnel pressure.

Committee members also probed the growth and cost of CERT, the state police’s tactical response team. Lieutenant Colonel Bivens said CERT was activated more than 650 times in the past year, is now staffed by about 67 full-time operators and is based full time "out of our aviation units." He said overtime tied to CERT activity is "a little over $2,000,000," and that the unit operates from six regional hubs with assigned vehicles and additional deployable equipment when needed.

On recruitment and training, officials described expanded youth and outreach programs and a $300,000 appropriation for Hill Impact and Law and Leadership programs aimed at encouraging young people to consider trooper careers. Paris said the agency removed a college requirement and established agreements with Commonwealth University (PASSHE) and the University of Maryland to award academy credits. He also described ongoing advertising and recruiter contacts but noted applicant pools remain smaller than a decade ago.

The committee heard an update on courtroom- and investigation-facing forensic work. Lieutenant Colonel Joanne Reed said the PSP tested about 800 sexual assault kits in 2024 and that approximately 200 remained in the backlog; the department is averaging 3.5 to 4 months to complete testing, faster than the statutory six-month requirement. Reed also described procurement of 15 rapid-DNA machines intended to speed field investigation results and said the new statewide DNA laboratory construction is scheduled for completion by the end of the year, which officials said will expand capacity and workspace constraints in current facilities.

Officials also briefed members on technology and equipment rollouts. Paris said the agency’s body-worn camera program moved from pilot to full implementation and was on budget and ahead of schedule for a full roll-out in April. Reed said IT optimizations discovered during the pilot ("split tunneling" modems) saved nearly $1 million per year in equipment costs.

On marijuana legalization, several legislators asked how PSP would use a $2.5 million line in the governor’s budget for enforcement if adult use is legalized. Paris and other witnesses said they had not been part of discussions that produced that figure and that how the funds would be used depends on final legislation. They outlined likely needs such as training additional drug recognition experts, potential increased blood-draw processing, and costs to replace narcotics-detection dogs trained on marijuana. Reed noted there is no field instrument that reliably measures marijuana impairment and investigators often must rely on officer observations, drug recognition experts and blood testing.

Lawmakers raised other public-safety and operational issues: commercial motor-vehicle inspection expansion, state police coverage for municipalities and response-time concerns, casino-assigned troopers paid by casinos, the PICS background-check system, an expungement backlog tied to Philadelphia filings, and the agency’s use of risk and vulnerability assessments for schools and houses of worship. Paris said PSP offers free risk and vulnerability assessments and that school assessments number in the hundreds annually, though the unit experienced temporary staffing shortfalls that created a backlog now being addressed.

Committee members and witnesses repeatedly emphasized that some operational costs are driven by unpredictable surge events—large public gatherings, mass-incident responses and planned major events such as national sporting events—and that coordinating planning involves many federal, state and local partners.

The Appropriations Committee adjourned after the exchange and scheduled subsequent hearings; witnesses offered to provide follow-up data lawmakers requested, including applicant-to-acceptance-to-graduation breakdowns for underrepresented applicants, detailed vacancy breakdowns and timelines for clearing forensic backlogs.