BODY-WORN CAMERA; CONSERVATION OFFICER                                            H.B. 4969:

                                                                              SUMMARY OF HOUSE-PASSED BILL

                                                                                                         IN COMMITTEE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

House Bill 4969 (as passed by the House)

Sponsor:  Representative Beau Matthew LaFave

House Committee:  Military, Veterans and Homeland Security

Senate Committee:  Natural Resources

 

Date Completed:  5-17-22

 

CONTENT

 

The bill would amend Public Act 109 of 1986, which governs the powers and duties of conservation officers and immunities of peace officers, to require a conservation officer to wear a body-worn camera (BWC) while on duty.

 

Specifically, beginning on the bill's effective date, a conservation officer would have to wear a BWC while exercising his or her duties as a conservation officer. The disclosure of an audio or video recording recorded by a conservation officer's BWC would be subject to the Law Enforcement Body-Worn Camera Privacy Act. Body-worn camera" would mean that term as defined in the Law Enforcement Body-Worn Camera Privacy Act: a device that is worn by a law enforcement officer that electronically records audio and video of his or her activities.

 

Proposed MCL 300.21a                                                  Legislative Analyst:  Eleni Lionas

 

FISCAL IMPACT

 

The bill would have a negative fiscal impact on the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and no fiscal impact on local units of government. The bill would require all DNR conservation officers to wear a BWC while exercising their duties. The expenses to DNR would be categorized as either one-time or ongoing expenses; see the table below for more information.

 

According to the DNR Law Enforcement Division's 2021 estimate, compliance with the bill would cost approximately $3.4 million for 300 BWCs, the initial estimate of the amount that would be needed to comply with the bill in 2021.[1] This estimate was predicated on a five-year contract period that would include the initial cost of purchasing the BWCs and docking station equipment, as well as some training and configuration costs. The estimate also included ongoing costs of warranties for the BWCs and docking stations, licenses for unlimited data storage, and program administration over the contract period. Program administration would include additional staff that would be needed to administer a wide range of services related to the BWC program (e.g., Freedom of Information Act requests (FOIA), court preparation, video redacting, program and policy management, retention schedule management, and other administrative responsibilities).

 

The provided estimate does not reflect a current quote for goods and services by a vendor and, if the bill were enacted, the DNR would have to conduct a current purchase analysis.  There are several other extenuating factors that could change the cost for implementing the bill. These include, for example, inflationary increases in goods and services and the unknown increase in administrative expenses related to the volume of FOIA requests.

 

To illustrate the above information, the Department of State Police (MSP) is purchasing BWCs. The MSP is buying about 1,800 BWC for an estimated cost of $2.35 million (one-time). The cost of data storage per year is an estimated $500,000, while training costs are an estimated $250,000 (one-time). Additionally, program administration includes the salaries of 17.0 FTEs who are responsible for the storage, monitoring, and review of videos, as well as maintaining compliance with FOIA and professional standards.[2]

 

At this time, no appropriations have been made for the DNR to pay for acquiring and using BWCs. The fiscal year 2022-23 Governor's recommendation and Senate Bill 839, as passed by the Senate, did not include additional funding to support a BWC program. The House of Representatives included in the House-passed version of House Bill 5789 a one-time appropriation of $1.0 million for the purchase of BWC for the DNR.

 

Body-worn Camera Expense Forecast

Expense Type

One-Time

Ongoing

·      Initial cost of purchasing the equipment

·      Program administration

·      Training and configuration costs

·      Warranties for the BWCs and docking stations

 

·      Licenses for unlimited data storage

 

·      Program administration over the contract period

 

·      Training

 

                                                                                       Fiscal Analyst:  Ben Dawson

                                                                                                         Chris Semrinec

 

 

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.

 


[1] Department of Natural Resources, Information Request, May 17, 2022 (Department's Law Enforcement Division estimate from 2021).

[2] Department of Michigan State Police, Information Request, May 17, 2022 (Department's Law Enforcement Division estimate from 2021).

 

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This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.