CINCINNATI — Ohio lawmakers are pushing for bipartisan legislation that would eliminate ticket and arrest quotas for law enforcement agencies.
State representatives on Wednesday introduced House Bill 131, which would make such quotas illegal.
"In Ohio, it is completely legal for us to mandate a police officer to go out every single day on a taxpayer dime to produce 10-20 tickets," said State Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake).
Her remarks came during a discussion emphasizing the bill's intent to restore integrity within law enforcement practices.
"When the public believes that police officers are writing tickets based on a need to meet a weekly quota rather than a desire to keep them safe, it undermines the public trust in law enforcement," Sweeney said.
Watch video from today's news conference on House Bill 131:
Ken Kober, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Queen City Lodge 69, expressed support for the bill and said it would impact smaller departments in villages and townships that rely on officers to generate revenue, as departments in Hamilton County does not operate on a quota system.
"There’s some communities that should be focused on violence — should be focusing on community and or policing," Kober said. "If you’re requiring officers to go write tickets, it kind of takes away from an opportunity for an officer to do those things."
His advocacy highlights the pressing need for police to prioritize safety and community relations over revenue generation. Residents are also expressing their concerns regarding the burdens placed on individuals by demanding ticket quotas.
"A lot of things are going on right now, people are trying to make ends meet," Cincinnati resident Stacey Cure said.
This sentiment resonates widely, as many individuals find themselves grappling with financial strains.
"If they’re having issues in an area, they can certainly send officers to that area to work and increase public safety. What our bill does is say you can’t mandate a certain amount of tickets written, because my question would be, where’s your data that says if you write 10 citations in this area versus make 10 traffic stops? It’s just an arbitrary number. What we’re saying is that discretion needs to lie with the police officer when they make that traffic stop,'" said State Rep. Kevin Miller (R-Newark).
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