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SB 454

requiring the department of health and human services to update existing relevant public health outreach programs by incorporating information to aid public understanding and awareness of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Kevin Avard and 5 co-sponsors

Requires uniform use-of-force policies statewide, classifies neck restraints as deadly force, and mandates de-escalation whenever possible.

Signed by the Governor on 06/05/2026; Chapter 125; Effective 08/04/2026
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Bill Summary · SB 454

SB 454 — Community Safety Act (North Carolina) — Summary

Status: Passed 1st Reading (filed 2025)
Primary sponsors: Senators Everitt, Grafstein, and Bradley

Purpose

To strengthen law‑enforcement hiring, training, and use‑of‑force standards across the State of North Carolina, provide targeted funding for community policing and officer incentives, and direct the Attorney General and Department of Justice (DOJ) to develop and support implementation of uniform policies and grant assistance.

Key provisions and timeline

  • Part I — DOJ grant assistance and staffing

    • DOJ must assist local law enforcement in identifying and applying for grant funds and help draft applications.
    • Appropriates $1,000,000 in recurring General Fund for FY 2025–26 to hire grant writers in DOJ.
    • Effective July 1, 2025.

  • Part II — Community policing grants

    • Appropriates $1,000,000 in recurring funds for DOJ to award grants supporting community policing initiatives.
    • Effective July 1, 2025.

  • Part III — Incentives for officers and agencies

    • Appropriates $1,500,000 in recurring funds for DOJ to provide grants:
    • Awards to officers for exemplary service (criteria set by DOJ).
    • Grants to agencies that meet racial or gender diversity benchmarks (benchmarks set by DOJ).
    • Individual awards capped at $10,000.
    • Effective July 1, 2025.

  • Part IV — Use‑of‑force policy changes

    • Amends G.S. 15A‑401(d): explicitly treats strangleholds, lateral vascular neck restraints, carotid restraints, and any tactics that restrict oxygen or blood flow to the head/neck as deadly force.
    • Requires officers to use the minimum force reasonably necessary and to attempt de‑escalation when possible.
    • Attorney General, in consultation with NC Sheriffs’ Association and NC Association of Chiefs of Police, must develop uniform use‑of‑force policies, publish them, and submit them to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Justice and Public Safety by December 1, 2025.
    • Use‑of‑force statutory change effective October 1, 2025; other duties effective upon enactment.

  • Part V — Minimum hiring/training standards and decertification authority

    • Amends Commission statutes to set minimum entry age at 21 for criminal justice officers/officers (applies to new hires/employment as specified).
    • Allows the relevant Commissions to access misdemeanor and felony conviction records (including certain expunged records) and to deny, suspend, or revoke certification based solely on a felony conviction or four or more misdemeanors — even if expunged — except where expungement was under specified statutes.
    • Effective January 1, 2026 for hires and for application to convictions on/after that date (with some provisions limited to new hires/employees as described).

  • Part VI — (Text truncated) — appears to appropriate funds to hire additional detectives/investigative officers to investigate serious crimes.

Who is affected

  • Local law‑enforcement agencies (policy changes, grant eligibility, recruitment support).
  • Individual officers and applicants (minimum age requirement, background/decertification rules, eligibility for incentive awards).
  • Department of Justice and Attorney General (new responsibilities; grant writer positions).
  • Communities served by agencies receiving community‑policing grants and experiencing changes to use‑of‑force policy and officer certification standards.

Potential impacts

  • Short‑term: recurring appropriations (~$3.5M total in proposed recurring funds for FY 2025–26) to DOJ for grant writers, community policing grants, and incentive grants; agencies gain grant support and funding options.
  • Medium/long‑term: adoption of uniform use‑of‑force policies and reclassification of neck restraints as deadly force likely to change training, operational directives, and liability exposure; minimum age and stricter access to and consideration of criminal records may reduce eligible applicant pool and affect recruitment and decertification outcomes.
  • Standardization may increase statewide consistency in training and accountability, while the funding components aim to encourage community policing and agency diversity.

Important dates

  • Introduced/filer: 2025 (passed 1st reading March 25, 2025 per docket).
  • DOJ grant‑writer and community policing funding: effective July 1, 2025.
  • Use‑of‑force statutory change: effective October 1, 2025 (applies to actions on/after that date).
  • Hiring/decertification provisions: effective January 1, 2026 (apply to hires/convictions as specified).
  • AG’s uniform policy deadline: submit by December 1, 2025.

If you want, I can:
- Extract the exact statutory amendments (G.S. sections) and produce a side‑by‑side comparison of current vs. proposed language.
- Draft a short one‑page memo on likely operational impacts for a mid‑sized municipal police department.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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