Several Butler County officials are supporting a state House bill that would give county sheriff departments more law enforcement authority.

An amended version of House Bill 466, which was authored by Rep. Jim Marshall, R-14th, and co-sponsored by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, and state Rep. R. Lee James, R-64th, was approved State Government Committee Tuesday.

Sheriffs and deputies, according to the language of the proposed bill, “may exercise the same powers as municipal police officers to make arrests, without warrants, for all crimes and offenses,” while acting within the scope of their court-related duties, provided that they have completed “the same type of training” as municipal police.

Sheriffs and deputies currently deal with civil enforcement, executing arrest warrants, transporting prisoners, courthouse security and issuing concealed carry permits.

“We need to do everything we can to protect the safety and well-being of Pennsylvanians,” Marshall said in a news release. “This legislation would help clear up confusion and allow trained deputies and sheriffs to provide some additional protection in their county communities.”

Butler County Sheriff Mike Slupe, who was president of the Pennsylvania Sheriffs Association last year, said he has been working with legislators on various versions of this bill for several years. It has never been voted on by the House.

He attended the committee meeting Tuesday in Harrisburg where the bill was advanced by a vote of 15-11.

“The Sheriffs Association is very happy. There is a lot of work to do and a lot of talking with stakeholders to do,” Slupe said Wednesday, adding that he hopes the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania will support it.

Slupe said that his deputies, while executing arrest warrants will often come across criminal activity such as illegal drugs.

While they do have the authority to arrest a wanted person or detain a person suspected of criminal activity, they must request other law enforcement to respond.

“If there are drugs on the table,” he said about a warrant attempt, “That should be investigated. For that part, we would need the police officer to respond and obtain a search warrant. If the bill would pass, we could get our own search warrant.”

Sheriff deputies in Butler County are trained and certified through two programs: Act 120, also called Municipal Police Academy, and Act 1984-2, which is training for sheriffs and sheriff deputies, Slupe said.

“This is what's called a force multiplier. There are more good guys out there on the street than there were before,” he said.

The bill was laid on the table Tuesday for the House to consider and was removed Wednesday. Legislators could vote on it anytime before the end of the year.