AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Public Safety Commission made changes Thursday to the Department of Public Safety’s physical fitness policies by relaxing, but not eliminating, controversial “command presence” rules that set limits on troopers’ waist sizes, according to an approved resolution.
Richard Jankovsky, president of the Department of Public Safety Officers Association, spoke out against the command presence rules Thursday. He said the policies have become a source of “frustration” and “stress” for commissioned employees. While speaking to the commission, he referenced a Dallas Morning News report from April that found over 200 commissioned DPS employees had passed their physical fitness test but faced potential disciplinary actions because their waists were too large.
The command presence rules said men’s waists must be under 40 inches and women’s under 35, according to the policy.
“DPSOA maintains that if an officer is passing the physical fitness test, their waist size should be irrelevant. Therefore, we are asking the commission to eliminate command presence policy,” Jankovsky said. “Is a policy that removes law enforcement officers from an enforcement role for no reason other than the way they look good for Texas or good for Texans?”
Before the policy changes Thursday, those who failed to meet command presence standards would be placed on a fitness plan and could face other consequences, including loss of promotion eligibility, being prohibited from wearing a DPS...
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