§ 78 — Recruitment, hiring and retention of municipal police officers and firefighters commission

[ Text of section added by 2024, 238, Sec. 163 effective November 20, 2024.]Section 78. (a) There shall be a permanent commission on recruitment, hiring and retention of municipal police officers and firefighters in the commonwealth to consist of 1 member appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, who shall serve as co-chair, 1 member appointed by the president of the senate, who shall serve as co-chair and 1 member appointed by the governor, who shall serve as co-chair; and consisting of the following members or their designees: the chairs of the joint committee on public service and the chairs of the joint committee on public safety and homeland security, who may serve as vice chairs; the secretary of administration and finance; the chief human resources officer for the commonwealth; the chair of the civil service commission; the attorney general; the secretary of public safety and security; the chair of the Massachusetts peace officer standards and training commission; the executive director of the municipal police training committee; the president of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, Inc.; the president of the Massachusetts major city chiefs of police; the chair of the Massachusetts Law Enforcement Policy Group, Inc.; a representative of police officers selected by the co-chairs from candidates recommended from a major federation of police officer unions in the commonwealth; a member of a correctional officers' union; the president of Massachusetts Association of Minority Law Enforcement Officers, Inc.; the president of Massachusetts Association of Women in Law Enforcement, Inc.; the chair of the Massachusetts fire training council; the state fire marshal; the president of Fire Chiefs' Association of Massachusetts, Inc.; the president of the Professional Fire Fighters Association of Massachusetts; the secretary of veterans affairs; the president of the Massachusetts veteran service agents; the commander of the disabled veterans of Massachusetts; the executive director of Massachusetts Municipal Association, Inc.; the president of the Massachusetts Mayors Association, Inc.; the chair of the Massachusetts Municipal Human Resources Association; the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, Inc.; the president of the Boston chapter of the New England area conference of the National Association for Advancement of Colored People; and the chair of the Massachusetts commission against discrimination.(b) The co-chairs may appoint a steering committee and subcommittees to carry out the mandate of the commission. Members of the commission shall be subject to chapter 268A as it applies to special state employees and shall receive no compensation for their services.(c) The commission shall be a resource to the commonwealth and municipalities on issues related to the recruitment, hiring and retention of highly qualified candidates of diverse backgrounds for municipal police officer and firefighter positions. In support of this objective, the commission may: (i) obtain, interpret and apply current research and evaluation data, including information reported pursuant to section 67, to program initiatives and policy development and identify and advocate for solutions to address gaps in strategies for employment of highly qualified and diverse municipal public safety personnel; and (ii) recommend measures to increase, where appropriate, representation within municipal public safety departments of historically under-represented populations, including, but not limited to, females and persons of color, and monitor the compliance by municipal public safety departments with any commitments they may have entered into to diversify their workforces.(d) The commission may examine and evaluate the implementation of all reforms related to the recruitment, hiring and retention of municipal police officers and firefighters in the commonwealth made by the special legislative commission to study and examine the civil service law, personnel administration rules, hiring procedures and by-laws for municipalities not subject to the civil service law and state police hiring practices, established in section 107 of chapter 253 of the acts of 2020, by: (i) studying, reviewing and reporting on the hiring outcomes of: (A) any civil service appointments facilitated by sections 59A to 59C, inclusive; (B) reforms made to civil service residency preference provisions of section 58; and (C) any other civil service reforms implemented, including, but not limited to, the increased frequency of civil service examinations and the lowering of examination fees; and (ii) making recommendations: (A) to ensure that adopted reforms are being implemented consistent with the intent of the special legislative commission; and (B) for further legislation in furtherance of the commission's mandate.(e) The commission may examine and evaluate all aspects of the recruitment, hiring and retention of municipal police officers and firefighters in all municipalities in the commonwealth and make pertinent recommendations to agencies and officers of the commonwealth and local subdivisions of government not governed by this chapter that advance basic merit principles in the recruitment, hiring and retention of highly qualified police officers and firefighters of diverse backgrounds across the commonwealth.(f) The commission may obtain from all state agencies and municipalities such information and assistance as the commission may require.(g) Not later than July 1 of each year, the commission shall submit an annual report on its activities and findings, including any recommendations, to the governor, the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, the joint committee on public service and the joint committee on public safety and homeland security.