(a) The Office of Policy and Management shall, within available resources, administer a grant program to provide grants-in-aid to reimburse (1) each municipality for the costs associated with the purchase by such municipality of body-worn recording equipment, electronic defense weapon recording equipment for use by the sworn members of such municipality’s police department or for use by constables, police officers or other persons who perform criminal law enforcement duties under the supervision of a resident state trooper serving such municipality, and digital data storage devices or services, provided such equipment and device or service conforms to the minimal technical specifications approved pursuant to subsection (b) of section 29-6d, if applicable, and (2) any municipality making a first-time purchase of one or more dashboard cameras with a remote recorder. Any such municipality may apply for such grants-in-aid to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management in such manner as prescribed by said secretary. Such grants-in-aid shall be distributed as provided in subsection (b) of this section.

(b) (1) (A) Any municipality that purchased such body-worn recording equipment or electronic defense weapon recording equipment or made a first-time purchase of one or more dashboard cameras with a remote recorder during the fiscal years ending June 30, 2017, and June 30, 2018, and digital data storage devices or services during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017, shall, within available resources, be reimbursed for up to one hundred per cent of the costs associated with such purchases, provided the costs of such digital data storage services shall not be reimbursed for a period of service that is longer than one year, and provided further that in the case of reimbursement for costs associated with the purchase of body-worn recording equipment, such body-worn recording equipment is purchased in sufficient quantity, as determined by the chief of police in the case of a municipality with an organized police department or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or the first selectman of the municipality, as the case may be, to ensure that sworn members of such municipality’s police department or constables, police officers or other persons who perform criminal law enforcement duties under the supervision of a resident state trooper serving such municipality are supplied with such equipment while interacting with the public in such sworn members’, such constables’, such police officers’ or such persons’ law enforcement capacity.

(B) Any municipality that purchased such body-worn recording equipment or digital data storage devices or services on or after January 1, 2012, but prior to July 1, 2016, shall be reimbursed for costs associated with such purchases, but not in an amount to exceed the amount of grant-in-aid such municipality would have received under subparagraph (A) of this subdivision if such purchases had been made in accordance with said subparagraph (A).

(C) Any municipality that was reimbursed under subparagraph (B) of this subdivision for body-worn recording equipment and that purchased additional body-worn recording equipment during the fiscal years ending June 30, 2017, and June 30, 2018, shall, within available resources, be reimbursed for up to one hundred per cent of the costs associated with such purchases, provided such equipment is purchased in sufficient quantity, as determined by the chief of police in the case of a municipality with an organized police department or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or the first selectman of the municipality, as the case may be, to ensure that sworn members of such municipality’s police department or constables or other persons who perform criminal law enforcement duties under the supervision of a resident state trooper serving such municipality are supplied with such equipment while interacting with the public in such sworn members’, such constables’, such police officers’ or such persons’ law enforcement capacity.

(2) Any municipality that was not reimbursed under subdivision (1) of this subsection and that purchased such body-worn recording equipment or electronic defense weapon recording equipment, digital data storage devices or services or for a first-time purchase of one or more dashboard cameras with a remote recorder during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, shall, within available resources, be reimbursed for up to fifty per cent of the costs associated with such purchases, provided the costs of such digital data storage services shall not be reimbursed for a period of service that is longer than one year.

(c) For the purposes of this section, “electronic defense weapon recording equipment” means an electronic defense weapon that is equipped with electronic audio and visual recording equipment, “electronic defense weapon” has the same meaning as provided in section 53a-3, “dashboard camera with a remote recorder” means a camera that affixes to a dashboard or windshield of a police vehicle that electronically records video of the view through the vehicle’s windshield and has an electronic audio recorder that may be operated remotely.

(June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-4, S. 8; P.A. 17-225, S. 2.)

History: June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-4 effective January 1, 2016; P.A. 17-225 added provisions re electronic defense weapon recording equipment and re constables, police officers or other persons who perform criminal law enforcement duties under supervision of resident state trooper, amended Subsec. (a) by designating provisions re costs associated with equipment and devices as Subdiv. (1) and amending same by adding “if applicable” re Sec. 29-6d and adding Subdiv. (2) re first-time purchase of dashboard cameras, amended Subsec. (b) by adding provisions re first-time purchase of dashboard cameras during fiscal years ending June 30, 2017 and June 30, 2018 in Subdiv. (1)(A), adding “within available resources” re reimbursement for costs and adding provisions re purchase of equipment in sufficient quantity determined by chief of police or warden of borough or first selectman in Subdivs. (1)(A) and (1)(C), adding “and June 30, 2018” in Subdiv. (1)(C), adding provision re first-time purchase of dashboard cameras, replaced “June 30, 2018” with “June 30, 2019” and added “within available resources” re reimbursement for costs, added Subsec. (c) re definitions, and made technical and conforming changes, effective July 10, 2017.