Utah Division of Natural Resources wants to combine police agencies
Feb 20, 2024, 6:49 AM | Updated: 2:01 pm
If you find a fawn in the wild, give it plenty of space. Its mother hid it where you found it. She knows where it is. Photo credit: Utah Division of Natural Resources.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Division of Natural Resources is working with lawmakers to condense all four of its law enforcement agencies.
House Bill 469 would create a law enforcement division managed by the DNR.
Todd Royce, director of law enforcement for the DNR, says it will allow the division’s 160 officers to cross-train. Then, they would be able to help out where needed and be more efficient in their jobs.
“We believe we could be more efficient in the long run with actually less people,” Royce said.
According to Royce, the division worked with Rep. Ryan Wilcox to write the bill. Wilcox represents Weber County.
The jobs of Utah Division of Natural Resources law enforcement
The bill would combine law enforcement services related to the Utah Division of Natural Resources into one agency. DNR law enforcement currently works on wildlife resources, outdoor recreation, forestry, fire and state lands, and Utah’s state parks.
“This way we can have one training staff that’ll be able to train the whole division of law enforcement and all law enforcement within the Department of Natural Resources,” eliminating confusion and other unnecessary tasks given to officers, Royce said.
“The easiest way to think of it is, we’ve got a tool — we need to use the right tool for the right project,” he said.
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