Bill Text: NY S01332 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended


Bill Title: Relates to the appointment and reporting duties of the superintendent of the state police and to the appointment of employees of the state police; requires the approval of certain duties of the state police by the superintendent of the state police.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO FINANCE [S01332 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S01332-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         1332--B

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 11, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens.  KRUEGER,  BAILEY,  BRESLIN, LIU, PARKER, SERRANO,
          STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and  when  printed  to  be
          committed  to  the  Committee on Finance -- committee discharged, bill
          amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
          tee  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted as
          amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to  the  appointment  and
          reporting  duties  of  the  superintendent  of  the  state police, the
          appointment of employees of the  state  police  and  the  approval  of
          certain duties of the state police

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 210 of the executive law, as amended by chapter 169
     2  of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 210. Division of state police. (a) The division of state  police  in
     4  the executive department shall be known as the "New York State Police."
     5    (b) (1) The head of the New York state police shall be the superinten-
     6  dent  of state police who shall be appointed by the governor by and with
     7  the advice and consent of the senate, and hold office during his or  her
     8  pleasure.  The  superintendent  shall  be  a member of the state police,
     9  shall receive as salary such sum as may  be  appropriated  by  law,  and
    10  shall  accrue such leave credits and be eligible for the same retirement
    11  benefits, service credits and other benefits as any other member of  the
    12  state  police.  The superintendent of state police shall have control of
    13  all staffing decisions, resource allocation and unit assignments  within
    14  the state police. If, prior to appointment, the superintendent served as
    15  a  member  of  the  state  police, he or she, upon appointment, shall be
    16  entitled to continue to accrue and receive such credits and benefits  as
    17  he  or  she  would  have  been  entitled  to accrue and receive prior to
    18  appointment.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05755-04-1

        S. 1332--B                          2

     1    (2) If, prior to his or her appointment, the superintendent shall have
     2  served as a member of the State Police for a  period  of  ten  years  or
     3  more,  he  or  she shall, provided he or she is not eligible for retire-
     4  ment, upon termination of service  as  superintendent,  be  reappointed,
     5  without  examination,  as a member of the state police in the grade held
     6  by him or her prior to appointment  as  superintendent,  notwithstanding
     7  the  absence of any vacancy in such grade.  For the purpose of determin-
     8  ing the annual salary to be paid upon such reappointment, the period  of
     9  service  as  superintendent  shall be counted as service in the grade to
    10  which reappointed.
    11    (3) Effective with respect to any individual appointment by the gover-
    12  nor, by and with the advice and consent of  the  senate,  after  January
    13  first,  two  thousand twenty-two, the term of service of the superinten-
    14  dent of the state police shall be seven years. A superintendent may  not
    15  serve more than one seven-year term.  The appointment of the first depu-
    16  ty superintendent shall also be subject to senate confirmation.
    17    (4)  Notwithstanding  sections  thirty-three and thirty-three-a of the
    18  public officers law, a superintendent shall be removed from  office  for
    19  failure  to  fulfill  his  or her duties by the governor and with a two-
    20  thirds vote of the whole number of members of each house of the legisla-
    21  ture or in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs e,  f  or  g  of
    22  subdivision one of section thirty of the public officers law.
    23    (5)  In  the  event the superintendent resigns from office, is removed
    24  from office or is incapable of continuing  in  office  due  to  physical
    25  illness,  mental  illness or death the first deputy superintendent shall
    26  assume the superintendent position.  If after forty-five days the gover-
    27  nor has not appointed a new superintendent to a  full  term,  the  first
    28  deputy  superintendent  shall  complete  the  remainder  of the previous
    29  superintendent's term.  Upon assumption of the duties of superintendent,
    30  the first deputy superintendent shall be subject to all requirements and
    31  provisions associated with the superintendent's position. If  the  first
    32  deputy  superintendent  completes  the  term  of  a previously appointed
    33  superintendent, the first deputy is eligible for appointment to  a  full
    34  term  as  superintendent  in  his  or her own right. All other potential
    35  replacements within the ranks of the state police or  from  outside  its
    36  ranks  for  superintendent,  in  the event the first deputy is unable to
    37  complete the previous superintendent's position,  shall  have  the  same
    38  rights and eligibilities as the first deputy superintendent and shall be
    39  subject  to  all  the  requirements  and  provisions associated with the
    40  superintendent.
    41    § 2. The executive law is amended by adding a  new  section  210-a  to
    42  read as follows:
    43    §  210-a.  Superintendent's annual reports and biennial testimony. (a)
    44  The superintendent shall submit an annual report to  the  governor,  the
    45  temporary  president  of  the  senate,  the speaker of the assembly, the
    46  minority leader of the senate and the minority leader of the assembly no
    47  later than September first of each year.
    48    (1) Such report shall contain the following information:
    49    (A) a detailed description of any  special  requests  made  by  or  on
    50  behalf  of the governor or any member of the legislature for services of
    51  the state police beyond  traditional  services  provided  by  the  state
    52  police.  Such description shall include whether the request was approved
    53  or denied by the superintendent of state police;
    54    (B) a detailed description of any information, unless it is privileged
    55  or  requires confidentiality, provided by the state police to the gover-
    56  nor, and/or his or her staff, and/or to any member of  the  legislature,

        S. 1332--B                          3

     1  and/or  his  or her staff, beyond the general programmatic and budgetary
     2  reporting requirements of the state police  and  a  description  of  the
     3  purpose for which such information was provided;
     4    (C)  a  description  of  any special disciplinary actions taken by the
     5  superintendent regarding inter- or intra-governmental affairs  involving
     6  state  police  personnel,  based upon special requests made to the state
     7  police by or on behalf of the governor, any member  of  the  legislature
     8  and/or any other public or quasi-public entity;
     9    (D) a description of each request made by or on behalf of the governor
    10  and/or his or her staff, and/or any member of the legislature and/or his
    11  or  her staff, for information of any kind other than the general infor-
    12  mation provided by the state police to the executive branch, the  legis-
    13  lative branch, public authorities or local government entities; and
    14    (E)  a  description  of all officer transfers to or from the executive
    15  services unit or any other unit associated with security and/or protect-
    16  ing other elected officials, and reason for the  change.  For  transfers
    17  from  the  executive  services  unit  the superintendent of state police
    18  shall include a description of what unit the officer transferred to. All
    19  officer transfers to or from the executive services unit  shall  require
    20  the approval of the superintendent of state police.
    21    (2)  The  superintendent shall include a signed certification with the
    22  report that the information provided is true to the best of his  or  her
    23  knowledge.  If  such certification is found to be false, the superinten-
    24  dent may be subject to removal by the legislature.
    25    (b) Every two years, commencing in two thousand twenty-two, the super-
    26  intendent shall attend a proceeding to testify before the senate finance
    27  committee, the assembly ways and means committee,  the  senate  investi-
    28  gations  and government operations committee and the assembly oversight,
    29  analysis and investigation committee to review the personnel and  admin-
    30  istrative activities of the state police and the future plans and initi-
    31  ative of the state police. Such proceeding shall be conducted jointly at
    32  the  direction  of the temporary president of the senate and the speaker
    33  of the assembly and shall take place no later  than  November  first  of
    34  every other year during which the proceeding is conducted.
    35    (c)  The  reporting requirements described in this section shall be in
    36  addition to, and not  in  lieu  of,  any  other  reporting  requirements
    37  provided by law.
    38    (d)  As  used  in  this section, "traditional services" means services
    39  rendered by the state police  to:
    40    (1) protect people and property;
    41    (2) prevent and detect crime and other violations of  law  and  pursue
    42  criminal  investigations  and  arrest criminals; and make roads safe for
    43  all users;
    44    (3) reduce  the  deaths,  injuries and property damage caused by motor
    45  vehicle accidents through   vehicle   and   traffic   enforcement    and
    46  education;
    47    (4)  provide   disorder  control  and security in all types of natural
    48  and man-made emergencies; and provide for the  safety  and  security  of
    49  individuals  and  groups  of citizens in furtherance  of  their  rights,
    50  duties  and responsibilities; and
    51    (5) support other entities by creating  partnerships  for  safety  and
    52  security  with  individuals,  groups    and   communities throughout the
    53  state.
    54    § 3. Section 211 of the executive law, as amended by  chapter  331  of
    55  the laws of 1993, is amended to read as follows:

        S. 1332--B                          4

     1    § 211. Employees. (a) The superintendent may appoint such employees as
     2  may  be  necessary  and fix their compensation within such sum as may be
     3  appropriated by law. Persons appointed to competitive  positions  within
     4  the  division  who meet the definition of veteran or disabled veteran as
     5  defined  in  section eighty-five of the civil service law shall be enti-
     6  tled to additional credit and preference as conferred by that law and in
     7  the same manner, except that, notwithstanding any law to  the  contrary,
     8  with respect to any candidate applying for credit in a competitive exam-
     9  ination  for original appointment as a disabled or non-disabled veteran,
    10  such candidate may apply provisionally for such credit  while  still  an
    11  active member of the armed forces. The application for provisional cred-
    12  it  may  be  made at any time between the date of his or her application
    13  for the competitive examination and the date the eligible list is estab-
    14  lished. In cases where there has been  a  provisional  application,  the
    15  superintendent shall grant final credit only if the candidate renews his
    16  or  her  application  within  ninety  days  following termination of the
    17  candidate's military duty, and the candidate's period of eligibility  on
    18  the  list  has  not expired, and the candidate satisfies the appropriate
    19  statutory requirements for eligibility. Pending the  granting  of  final
    20  credit,  the  candidate's ranking on any eligible list shall reflect the
    21  provisional credit.
    22    (b) (1) Any employee appointed to the executive services unit  or  any
    23  other  unit  associated  with  security  and/or protecting other elected
    24  and/or public officials shall hold such appointment for no more than two
    25  years after which period, the employee shall be reappointed to the posi-
    26  tion he or she held prior to the appointment to the  executive  services
    27  unit  or any other unit associated with security and/or protecting other
    28  elected and/or public officials or to such other position and duties  as
    29  are determined by the superintendent.
    30    (2)  No employee appointed as provided in paragraph one of this subdi-
    31  vision shall  provide  services  that  constitute  a  violation  of  the
    32  provisions of paragraph (d) of subdivision three of section seventy-four
    33  of  the  public  officers law.   Any requests for such services shall be
    34  referred by the employee to his or her  superior  who  shall  refer  the
    35  request  to  the  superintendent.  The  superintendent  shall approve or
    36  disapprove all such requests.
    37    § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of January next  succeed-
    38  ing the date upon which it shall have become a law.
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