Press Statement  Auditor Bump on Police Reform Bill Passage: “An Important Step Forward in Both Public Safety and Civil Rights”

Boston — Below is a statement from State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump on the House and Senate passage of the police reform legislation:

“This measure will significantly improve law enforcement in the Commonwealth. The training it provides will be of benefit to both law enforcement and the public, and it is balanced by accountability. It represents an important step forward in both public safety and civil rights. I commend the Black and Latino Legislative Caucus members for their leadership and the legislative conferees for their forthrightness in addressing questions of effectiveness and equity, and I urge Governor Baker to quickly sign it into law.”

Background

In November 2019, the Division of Local Mandates, within Bump’s office, released a study examining municipal police training in the Commonwealth. The study found that while Massachusetts has one of the highest hourly requirements for in-service police training in the nation, at 40 hours annually, it does not provide enough training opportunities to allow officers to meet this requirement and has no mechanism to hold officers and municipalities accountable for meeting it. To address this issue, Bump called for the establishment of a Police Officer Standards & Training system, a database to track police training credits, and expanded training opportunities, all of which are included in the measure passed today.