NEW HOLLAND – In an E-mail published online, the New Holland Police Department, one of over 100 statewide Police agencies, failed to submit required Continuing Personal Training on-time, drawing comments and calls for compliance from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
The E-mail, posted online today, February the 5th, states that the New Holland Police Department is in a “Cease Function” mode, due to the lack of paperwork submission, which was due no later than January 31st, 2018.
According to Ohio’s 2017 CPT handbook, officers must complete, and document, 20 hours of continuing education annually, and submit the documentation to the state of Ohio. The E-mail alleges that New Holland’s Police Chief, Jason Lawless, failed to do so.
The CPT handbook states “A peace officer or trooper who, in any calendar year, fails to comply with the CPT requirements shall cease carrying a firearm and shall cease performing the functions of a peace officer or trooper until such time as evidence of compliance is filed with the executive director. This rule does not apply to peace officers or troopers for whom an extension of time has been granted by the executive director. ”
However, in an E-mail exchange between the Scioto Post and the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, Communications/Publications Specialist Dorcas T Jones confirmed with the Scioto Post that New Holland has submitted their CPT Roster to the OPOTA as of the afternoon of February the 5th.
In a follow-up exchange with the Ohio Attorney General, the Scioto Post is trying to ascertain the extent of issues that the failure may have created for New Holland. According to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, “OPOTA will not pay the reimbursement costs associated with CPT until the rosters are received.”
According to the State of Ohio, officers completing the continuing training are eligible for reimbursement of $20.00 per hour of training completed “. . . each public appointing authority entitled to reimbursement for the cost of continuing professional training shall receive one hundred per cent reimbursement from the state for eleven of the required twenty hours of training. Of the remaining nine hours of required training, each eligible public appointing authority shall receive state reimbursement at the rate of: (a) one hundred per cent for the first fifty full-time officers or troopers trained, and (b) eighty per cent for any full-time officers or troopers trained after the first fifty full-time officers or troopers are trained.”
We are waiting for further comment from New Holland’s mayor regarding the paperwork failure, and if the lapse in reporting has caused any further issues for the village, or if the issue has been fully resolved.
