Bill Text: NY A04798 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Establishes the municipal gun tip hotline program and the municipal gun tip hotline fund.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-03-02 - print number 4798c [A04798 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A04798-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         4798--C
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 3, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, MAYER, GOTTFRIED, ABINANTI, JAFFEE,
          HARRIS,  HOOPER,  WEPRIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on
          Codes -- committee discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted  as
          amended  and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said
          committee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and  recommit-
          ted  to  said  committee  --  recommitted to the Committee on Codes in
          accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged,  bill
          amended,  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit-
          tee
        AN ACT to amend the penal law and the state finance law, in relation  to
          establishing a municipal gun tip hotline and municipal gun tip hotline
          fund
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 400.15  to
     2  read as follows:
     3  § 400.15 Municipal gun tip hotline program.
     4    1.  For  purposes  of this section, the following terms shall have the
     5  following meanings:
     6    (a) "Agency" means the police force or department of any county, city,
     7  town, or village or a county sheriff.
     8    (b) "Municipal gun tip hotline program" means any program in  which  a
     9  fully  functioning  illegal firearm, rifle, shotgun or ammunition may be
    10  reported or surrendered to an agency pursuant to this section.
    11    (c) "Superintendent" means the superintendent of the division of state
    12  police.
    13    (d) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department of state.
    14    2. The municipal gun tip hotline program is hereby established.  Agen-
    15  cies  may participate at their option as funds are allocated through the
    16  municipal gun tip hotline fund established under section ninety-seven-cc
    17  of the state finance law.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05420-06-8
        A. 4798--C                          2
     1    3. The division of state police, in conjunction with the department of
     2  state shall administer this program and promulgate any rules  and  regu-
     3  lations  the  superintendent  deems  necessary for the implementation of
     4  this program. Such rules may include:
     5    (a)  guidelines  for an agency participating in the program to coordi-
     6  nate with community groups  within  its  jurisdiction.  Such  guidelines
     7  shall include, but not be limited to:
     8    (i)  allowing  individuals  to  anonymously  report or turn in illegal
     9  fully functioning guns and then collect a five hundred dollar reward;
    10    (ii) all calls are anonymous and no arrest or conviction  is  required
    11  for the caller to receive the reward; and
    12    (iii)  individuals  with information about the location of fully func-
    13  tioning illegal guns or who wish to turn in such firearms shall make two
    14  phone calls to the anonymous tip  hotline  established  by  the  agency.
    15  During  the  initial  phone  conversation  in  which the caller provides
    16  information about the illegal firearm, the caller receives  a  confiden-
    17  tial  identification  number  and  is instructed to call back at a later
    18  date. During the second phone call, the caller uses  the  identification
    19  number  to check whether an illegal firearm was recovered as a result of
    20  the initial call and, if so, the caller is provided a second identifica-
    21  tion number and instructed  to  communicate  with  a  specific  bank  to
    22  collect the reward of five hundred dollars;
    23    (b)  the  manner  in  which an agency may apply for funds to support a
    24  municipal gun tip hotline program and the manner in which the funds will
    25  be allocated and distributed;
    26    (c)  guidelines  for  the  safe  storage  and  disposal  of  recovered
    27  firearms,  rifles,  shotguns,  or  ammunition  in  the possession of the
    28  participating agency, return of any recovered  stolen  property  to  its
    29  rightful  owner  as  appropriate,  and  retention  for  evidence  of any
    30  firearm, rifle, or shotgun determined to have been used in a crime; and
    31    (d) provisions for checking the serial number of every firearm, rifle,
    32  or shotgun obtained by such gun buyback program  against  the  New  York
    33  Statewide Police Information Network records.
    34    4.  Any  person  participating  in a municipal gun tip hotline program
    35  pursuant to this section shall be immune from criminal  prosecution  for
    36  the  criminal  offenses  established by sections 265.01, 265.02, 265.03,
    37  and 265.05 of this chapter, provided  the  person  is,  in  good  faith,
    38  acting to surrender a firearm through the program.
    39    5.  Any police agency shall be authorized to develop and implement its
    40  own municipal gun tip hotline program provided it is otherwise permitted
    41  by law and conforms to the rules outlined in subdivision three  of  this
    42  section.
    43    § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-cc to
    44  read as follows:
    45    §  97-cc.  Municipal  gun  tip hotline fund. 1. There is hereby estab-
    46  lished, in the joint custody of the superintendent of state  police  and
    47  the  secretary  of  state  a  fund  to be known as the municipal gun tip
    48  hotline fund.
    49    2. The superintendent and the secretary  shall  promulgate  rules  and
    50  regulations  for  the  implementation  and  distribution of this fund to
    51  assist municipalities in the municipal gun tip  hotline  program  estab-
    52  lished under section 400.15 of the penal law. Such rules and regulations
    53  shall  authorize  police  agencies  that develop and implement their own
    54  plans pursuant to subdivision five of section 400.15 of the penal law to
    55  be eligible to participate  in  the  municipal  gun  tip  hotline  fund,
        A. 4798--C                          3
     1  provided  the superintendent of state police authorizes participation in
     2  the fund.
     3    3.  Funding may be allocated from the general fund or acquired through
     4  donations from private businesses, charities  and  individuals  or  from
     5  assets, seizures and forfeitures collected by the agencies.
     6    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
     7  it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
     8  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
     9  tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be  made  and
    10  completed on or before such effective date.