Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has proposed a program to make premium pay available to officers in the state for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the pandemic, Yost says 2020 was one of the deadliest years on record for police, mainly due to many officers nationwide who died from COVID-19.
While many professions were able to work from home or have six feet of social distance between co-workers, Yost says officers did not have this option in order to perform essential functions for their jobs.
In a letter to Gov. DeWine and Statehouse leaders, Yost proposed the establishment of the Law Enforcement Support Program which would make at least $1,000 in premium pay available to eligible officers in the state who served during the pandemic.
The program could be funded with money received from the American Rescue Plan, according to Yost.
Yost says federal funding for the program is permissible.
