public safety employees; counseling; wellness, the official text

House Engrossed
Senate Bill

public safety
employees; counseling; wellness

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

SENATE BILL 1400

AN
ACT

Amending title 38, chapter 8, article 1,
Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 38-1121; amending title 41, chapter
4, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 41-710.04; relating
to public safety employees.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it
enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1.1. Title
38, chapter 8, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding
section 38-1121, to read:

START_STATUTE38-1121. Law enforcement agency; wellness program; confidentiality;
definitions

A. A law enforcement agency in this
state may establish a wellness program to support the mental health and
well-being of the law enforcement agency's employees. the wellness
program may include all of the following:

1. access to licensed
counseling.

2. crisis response SERVICES.

3. training, equipment and technology
necessary for an employee to perform the employee's job.

4. Any other support systems.

B. If a law enforcement agency
creates a wellness program for the law enforcement agency's employees, the law
enforcement agency shall establish WRITTEN policies and procedures for the
program.

C. all proceedings, records,
opinions, conclusions and recommendations arising from any aspect of the
wellness program pursuant to this section are confidential and privileged from
disclosure except if any of the following occur:

1. The
designated person waives the person's right to CONFIDENTIALITY.

2. relevant INFORMATION is disclosed in response to a claim made by the holder of the
PRIVILEGE against a law enforcement agency related to any programs or services
provided by the wellness program.

3. Any
communications or advice given within the program indicates clear and present
danger to the designated person or to any other person.

4. The communication or advice is
made during the course of a criminal investigation.

5. The designated person violates any
of the law enforcement agency's policies and the violation amounts to a
violation of laws that is normally enforced by a law enforcement agency.

6. The designated person who received
crisis response services voluntarily testifies, in which case the critical
incident stress management team member or peer support team member may be
compelled to testify on the same subject.

D. This section does not restrict or
limit the right to discover or use in any civil action any evidence, document
or record that is subject to discovery INDEPENDENTLY of the proceedings of the
wellness program.

E. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Crisis response
services" has the same meaning PRESCRIBED in section 38-1111.

2. "Designated
person" means a law enforcement officer or a CIVILIAN employee of a law
ENFORCEMENT agency.

3. "Law enforcement agency"
means a municipal police department, a county SHERIFF'S office, a publicly
funded law enforcement department and the department of public safety.

4. "Licensed counseling"
means counseling provided by a licensed mental health professional.

5. "Licensed mental health
professional" has the same meaning PRESCRIBED by section 38-672.

Sec. 2.2. Title
41, chapter 4, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding
section 41-710.04, to read:

START_STATUTE41-710.04. Crisis response services program; confidential communications;
definitions

A. An agency in this state May
establish a crisis response services program to provide
support to public safety employees who have been in or exposed to a traumatic event or an emotional experience in
the course of employment.

B. Any crisis response services communication shall remain confidential and
may not be disclosed to any individual who was not present at the crisis response services session, except if any
of the following occurs and the communication is not
otherwise privileged:

1. The designated person waives the
person's right to CONFIDENTIALITY.

2. Any communications or advice given
within the program indicates clear and present danger to the designated person
or to any other person.

3. The communication or advice is
made during the course of a criminal investigation.

4. The designated person violates any
of the agency's policies and the violation amounts to a violation of laws that
is normally enforced by a law ENFORCEMENT agency.

5. The designated person who received
crisis response services voluntarily testifies, in which case the critical
incident stress management team member or peer support team member may be
compelled to testify on the same subject.

C. A crisis
response services designated person shall hold a
privilege from disclosure of any crisis response services
communication in any disciplinary proceeding or any civil or criminal
proceeding unless it contains information exempted pursuant to subsection B of
this section. Under this privilege, the crisis response
services communication is subject to the same protections as attorney-client
privilege.

D. This
section does not prohibit any of the following:

1. The agency using or sharing
anonymous data for research, statistical analysis or educational purposes.

2. An agency employee's disclosure of
an observation of a crisis response services designated
person outside of a crisis response services counseling
session that is not contained in any crisis response
services communication.

3. An agency law enforcement
officer's disclosure of knowledge about a crisis response
services designated person that is not gained from crisis
response services communication.

E. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Crisis response
services" has the same meaning PRESCRIBED in section 38-1111.

2. "Crisis
response services communication" means any oral or written crisis response services communication made in the course of, or
application for, a counseling session or any communication by a crisis response services DESIGNATED person regarding the contents of a
crisis response services counseling session to another crisis response services member, staff member of
a crisis response services program or the supervisor of a
crisis response services program.

3. "crisis
response services counseling session" means any counseling formally
provided through a crisis response services program
between a Crisis response services member and one or more
public safety employees.

4. "Designated person"
means a law enforcement officer or a CIVILIAN employee of a law ENFORCEMENT
agency.