CHAPTER 149

An Act establishing a toll-free "Law Enforcement Officer Crisis Intervention Services" telephone hotline, supplementing Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes and amending R.S.39:5-41.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

C.11A:2-25 "Law Enforcement Officer Crisis Intervention Services" telephone hotline.

1. a. The Commissioner of Personnel shall establish and maintain, on a 24-hour daily basis, a toll-free information "Law Enforcement Officer Crisis Intervention Services" telephone hotline. The hotline shall receive and respond to calls from law enforcement officers and sheriff's officers who have been involved in any event or incident which has produced personal or job-related depression, anxiety, stress, or other psychological or emotional tension, trauma, or disorder for the officer. The operators of the hotline shall seek to identify those officers who should be referred to further debriefing and counseling services, and to provide such referrals.

b. The operators of the hotline shall be trained by the commissioner and, to the greatest extent possible, shall be persons, who by experience or education, are: (1) familiar with post trauma disorders and the emotional and psychological tensions, depressions, and anxieties unique to law enforcement officers and sheriff's officers; or (2) trained to provide counseling services involving marriage and family life, substance abuse, personal stress management and other emotional or psychological disorders or conditions which may be likely to adversely affect the personal and professional well-being of a law enforcement officer and a sheriff's officer.

c. To ensure the integrity of the telephone hotline and to encourage officers to utilize it, the commissioner shall provide for the confidentiality of the names of the officers calling, the information discussed by that officer and the operator, and any referrals for further debriefing or counseling; provided, however, the commissioner may, by rule and regulation, establish guidelines providing for the tracking of any officer who exhibits a severe emotional or psychological disorder or condition which the operator handling the call reasonably believes might result in harm to the officer or others.

C.11A:2-26 Preparation of referral list.

2. The commissioner shall prepare a list of appropriately licensed or certified psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers; other appropriately trained and qualified counselors; and experienced former law enforcement officers who are willing to accept referrals and to participate in the debriefing and counseling offered law enforcement officers and sheriff's officers under the provisions of this act.

C.11A:2-27 Consultation in establishment of hotline.

3. In establishing the hotline authorized under the provisions of section 1 of this act, the commissioner shall consult with a representative from the New Jersey Association of Chiefs of Police; a State representative from the New Jersey State Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, Fraternal Order of Police, the New Jersey Corrections Officers Association, and any other exclusive bargaining representative for a law enforcement agency; and such others as the commissioner may deem appropriate.

4. R.S.39:5-41 is amended to read as follows:

Fines, penalties; forfeitures, disposition of; exceptions.

39:5-41. a. All fines, penalties and forfeitures imposed and collected under authority of law for any violations of R.S.39:4-63 and R.S.39:4-64 shall be forwarded by the judge to whom the same have been paid to the proper financial officer of a county, if the violation occurred within the jurisdiction of that county's central municipal court, established pursuant to N.J.S.2B:12-1 et seq. or the municipality wherein the violation occurred, to be used by the county or municipality to help finance litter control activities in addition to or supplementing existing litter pickup and removal activities in the municipality.

b. Except as otherwise provided by subsection a. of this section, all fines, penalties and forfeitures imposed and collected under authority of law for any violations of the provisions of this Title, other than those violations in which the complaining witness is the director, a member of his staff, a member of the State Police, a member of a county police department and force or a county park police system in a county that has established a central municipal court, an inspector of the Board of Public Utilities, or a law enforcement officer of any other State agency, shall be forwarded by the judge to whom the same have been paid as follows: one-half of the total amount collected to the financial officer, as designated by the local governing body, of the respective municipalities wherein the violations occurred, to be used by the municipality for general municipal use and to defray the cost of operating the municipal court; and one-half of the total amount collected to the proper financial officer of the county wherein they were collected, to be used by the county as a fund for the construction, reconstruction, maintenance and repair of roads and bridges, snow removal, the acquisition and purchase of rights-of-way, and the purchase, replacement and repair of equipment for use on said roads and bridges therein. Up to 25% of the money received by a municipality pursuant to this subsection, but not more than the actual amount budgeted for the municipal court, whichever is less, may be used to upgrade case processing.

All fines, penalties and forfeitures imposed and collected under authority of law for any violations of the provisions of this Title, in which the complaining witness is a member of a county police department and force or a county park police system in a county that has established a central municipal court, shall be forwarded by the judge to whom the same have been paid to the financial officer, designated by the governing body of the county, for all violations occurring within the jurisdiction of that court, to be used for general county use and to defray the cost of operating the central municipal court.

Whenever any county has deposited moneys collected pursuant to this section in a special trust fund in lieu of expending the same for the purposes authorized by this section, it may withdraw from said special trust fund in any year an amount which is not in excess of the amount expended by the county over the immediately preceding three-year period from general county revenues for said purposes. Such moneys withdrawn from the trust fund shall be accounted for and used as are other general county revenues.

c. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1993, c.293.)

d. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections a. and b. of this section, $1.00 shall be added to the amount of each fine and penalty imposed and collected under authority of any law for any violation of the provisions of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes or any other motor vehicle or traffic violation in this State and shall be forwarded by the person to whom the same are paid to the State Treasurer. In addition, upon the forfeiture of bail, $1.00 of that forfeiture shall be forwarded to the State Treasurer. The State Treasurer shall annually deposit those moneys so forwarded in the "Body Armor Replacement" fund established pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1997, c.177 (C.52:17B-4.4). Beginning in the fiscal year next following the effective date of this act, the State Treasurer annually shall allocate from those moneys so forwarded an amount not to exceed $400,000 to the Department of Personnel to be expended exclusively for the purposes of funding the operation of the "Law Enforcement Officer Crisis Intervention Services" telephone hotline established and maintained under the provisions of P.L.1998, c.149 (C.11A:2-25 et al.).

5. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month following enactment, but the Commissioner of Personnel may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of the act.

Approved January 5, 1999.