Captain Matt Amatucci of the Division of State Police gave the Transportation Committee an overview of the division’s structure, workload and enforcement activities, and described staffing pressures that complicate response and enforcement.

Amatucci said the division, when fully staffed, is composed of 362 sworn troopers, about 40 other state law-enforcement officers (including Marine Patrol and facility police) and roughly 300 civilian support staff. He described three bureaus — operations, investigative services and justice information — and said operations account for 83% of sworn staff. Troop G, which handles motor-vehicle-related enforcement and dealer/inspection-station audits, was highlighted as likely to provide testimony through the session.

Using 2022–2024 data, Amatucci told the committee that calls for service rose more than 20% over two years (from about 136,000 to over 171,000) and that motor-vehicle stops rose from ‘‘a little over 70,000’’ to ‘‘just under 100,000.’’ He said DWI arrests rose more than 21% over two years (from roughly 900 to 1,147 in the most recent year) and that other arrests were up about 33%. He added the division’s vacancy rate “as it relates to our sworn personnel” was about 17% (61 vacancies) and had been higher (about 80 vacancies) a year earlier.

Amatucci described the Automotive Equipment Inspectors (AEIs) and field enforcement work: in 2024 the AEIs completed 350 dealer audits, 449 inspection-station audits, more than 1,000 mechanic certification tests, and opened 131 dealer investigations and 144 inspection-station investigations. He said a centralized complaint process for vehicle-inspection complaints was implemented in May 2024 with a dedicated phone and email for consumers.

He also described special units — K-9, bomb squad, aviation, special events, drug recognition experts and a part-time SWAT — and said the aviation unit alone conducted 102 traffic enforcement flights that led to over 37,100 motor-vehicle stops and more than 1,100 stops for vehicles exceeding 90 miles per hour.

Amatucci told the committee the division refuses to lower hiring standards and encouraged anyone interested to apply; he said the division’s next test is March 1 (recruitment continuing).