Amendment #334 to H3400

Restore Surcharge

[Sponsors] Mr. Turner of Dennis moves to amend the bill by inserting after section 111 the following section:-

“SECTION X.  Chapter 6 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 116 the following section:-

Section 116 1/2. (a) Sums for the estimated expenses of providing annual in-service specialized and statutorily-mandated training programs conducted by the municipal police training committee for veteran and reserve municipal police officers and for those officers employed by agencies of the commonwealth who exercise police powers and receive this training from the municipal police training committee, including but not limited to environmental police officers and campus police officers of the University of Massachusetts and state colleges and universities who exercise police powers, shall be paid to the commissioner of insurance by property and casualty insurance companies writing motor vehicle insurance policies in the commonwealth by means of a policy surcharge imposed upon the policyholder of any private passenger automobile policy issued by any property and casualty insurance company writing motor vehicle insurance policies in the commonwealth. These programs shall include new recruit training provided by the municipal police training committee; development and delivery of distance learning programs by the municipal police training committee; a standards and evaluations program for training courses and instructors of or certified by the municipal police training committee; the development and updating of training programs including curricula by the municipal police training committee, hiring, equipping, and training new state police recruits; and the development and operation of a state police cadet program including the hiring, equipping, and training of state police cadets, subject to appropriation, and the estimated cost of fringe benefits associated with this training hiring and employment. The amount of any surcharge shall be separately stated on either a billing or policy declaration sent to an insured. The rate of the policy surcharge shall be determined and adjusted annually by the commissioner of insurance to a rate sufficient to generate a surcharge to fund the expenses estimated by the secretary of public safety and security for the purposes described above.”