Legislation to make it easier for law enforcement agencies to find out how police applicants performed in previous jobs at private employers stalled in a senate committee this week on a party-line vote.
Republicans on the State, Veterans & Military committee refused to move forward Senate Bill 17-092 and postponed it indefinitely on Monday. Those voting to sideline the legislation were Sen. Ray Scott, R-Grand Junction, the assistant majority leader; Vicki Marble, R-Fort Collins, and Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling.
They did not give a reason for opposing the bill. Telephone messages seeking comment were not returned.
Senate sponsor Rachel Zenzinger, a Democrat who represents Arvada and Westminster, said partisanship was behind the Republican opposition.
“Itap disappointing because people don’t want politicians to behave this way and have politics get in the way of common-sense legislation that protects people,” Zenzinger said.
The bill had the support of the Colorado Association of the Chiefs of Police and County Sheriffs of Colorado.
It would have required police officer applicants to sign a waiver allowing private employers to provide personnel files to police agencies interviewing those applicants. The waivers would have protected those employers from fears of litigation for providing damaging information about an applicant. Such waivers already are required from applicants that allow past public employers, without fear of litigation. Zenzinger’s bill would have provided similar protections to private employers, such as grocery stores or security guard firms.
The issue of police background checks was in 2015 and 2016 that found unfit officers were getting hired by rural police agencies with scant attention to past transgressions.
Zenzinger said nobody had spoken out against the bill in committee and that no business opposition had surfaced. She said the legislation had been a top priority of the Arvada Police Department.
“It wasn’t mandating anything of businesses,” Zenzinger said in an interview. “It was just saying that if you choose to cooperate and you would like to share your files with us, we’ll extend you the same liability protection that governmental agencies already have. Nothing would have forced them to comply.”
She said Rep. Jovan Melton, a Democrat from Aurora, told her he will continue to pursue the legislation by trying to get the House to pass it first.