Bill Text: NY S05283 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Establishes an elderly crime prevention and control trust fund to be funded by an initial appropriation and administrative assessment penalties on persons convicted of felonies when an elderly person is a victim; provides that the fund is to be administered by the division of criminal justice services which shall give grants to organizations who will set up programs to prevent crimes against elderly persons.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO AGING [S05283 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S05283-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5283

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      March 1, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sens. PARKER, SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed,
          and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Aging

        AN ACT to amend the elder law, the penal law, the criminal procedure law
          and  the  state  finance  law,  in  relation  to  crime prevention and
          control; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon  expira-
          tion thereof

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

     1    Section 1. The elder law is amended by adding a new article 4 to  read
     2  as follows:
     3                                 ARTICLE IV
     4             ELDERLY CRIME PREVENTION AND CONTROL TRUST FUND ACT
     5  Section 401. Short title.
     6          402. Legislative finding and declaration.
     7          403. Definitions.
     8          404. Administration of trust fund.
     9          405. Application procedures.
    10          406. Rules and regulations.
    11          407. Reporting.
    12          408. Legislative hearings.
    13    §  401.  Short  title. This article shall be known and may be cited as
    14  the "Elderly Crime Prevention and Control Trust Fund Act".
    15    § 402. Legislative finding  and  declaration.  This  legislature  does
    16  hereby find and declare that the elderly population of this state, which
    17  for  the purposes of this article is defined as individuals over the age
    18  of sixty-two years, is uniquely vulnerable to actual and potential crim-
    19  inal victimization by virtue of physical frailty, concentrations in high
    20  risk urban neighborhoods, and socio-economic household factors advertis-
    21  ing seniors as high visibility crime targets.  This  heightened  vulner-
    22  ability  acts as a precursor for a generalized and debilitating sense of
    23  fear which impacts on mobility, concepts of  self-worth,  and  isolation
    24  from the larger society. The legislature further finds and declares that
    25  on  the  basis  of  available demographic information, the elderly popu-
    26  lation of this state will continue to expand, thus  requiring  that  the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09287-01-1

        S. 5283                             2

     1  problem  of criminal victimization of the elderly be a focus of continu-
     2  ing and paramount concern. This legislature further finds that  although
     3  the  state's commitment of general revenue funds to the criminal justice
     4  system  has  increased  nearly  three-fold  in  the  past  decade, crime
     5  prevention and control activities targeted  to  our  elderly  population
     6  have  been wedded to moneys originating within the federal system. Addi-
     7  tionally, statistical trends in the criminal victimization of the elder-
     8  ly promise a continued  escalation  in  seemingly  rampant  crime  rates
     9  despite  the  best efforts of law enforcement and community based organ-
    10  izations.  These findings, coupled with the philosophic shifts occurring
    11  on a national level, mandate that  responsibility  for  the  safety  and
    12  well-being  of elderly citizens rests principally with this legislature.
    13  In response to that obligation, this legislature does  hereby    declare
    14  and  endorse  the establishment of an exclusive dedicated revenue source
    15  for the operation and maintenance of crime  prevention,  detection,  and
    16  enforcement  activities for the sole benefit of elderly citizens in this
    17  state.
    18    § 403. Definitions. For the purposes of this article:
    19    1. "Elderly person" means a person sixty-two years of age or older.
    20    2. "Commissioner" means the chief administrative officer of the  divi-
    21  sion of criminal justice services.
    22    3.  "Grant recipient" means any local government, to include any town,
    23  city, or county, or any local government agency that administers a crime
    24  prevention, detection or enforcement program principally for the benefit
    25  of elderly persons.
    26    § 404. Administration of trust fund. The elderly crime prevention  and
    27  control trust fund, which is established pursuant to section ninety-sev-
    28  en-uuuu  of  the  state finance law shall be administered and supervised
    29  under the direction of the commissioner pursuant to this article, and it
    30  shall be for the establishment  and  continuance  of  crime  prevention,
    31  detection   or  enforcement  programs  principally  benefitting  elderly
    32  persons.
    33    § 405. Application procedures. Funds appropriated or available for the
    34  purposes of this article may be allocated for the purpose of  designing,
    35  expanding,  or implementing interactive crime prevention, detection, and
    36  enforcement activities that principally enhance  the  safety,  mobility,
    37  physical  security  and  emotional  well-being  of  elderly  persons  as
    38  proposed by grant recipients.
    39    1. Grant recipients shall be selected by the commissioner from  appli-
    40  cations submitted.
    41    2.  The director shall require that applications submitted for funding
    42  include, but need not be limited to, the following:
    43    (a) the cost of each proposed program including the  proposed  compen-
    44  sation of employees and purchase of support services and hardware;
    45    (b)  a description of the proposed community area of service and other
    46  characteristics as determined by the commissioner;
    47    (c) a program goal to be achieved and an assessment standard measuring
    48  achievement of that goal;
    49    (d) an endorsement of the chief administrative officer of the locality
    50  in which the grant recipient proposes to operate a  program,  that  said
    51  program  is  in  congruence  with  overall  efforts  of that locality in
    52  controlling, containing or reducing the criminal victimization of elder-
    53  ly persons;
    54    (e) such additional information as is determined to be relevant by the
    55  commissioner or the legislature.

        S. 5283                             3

     1    § 406. Rules and regulations. The commissioner shall promulgate  rules
     2  and  regulations  to  effectuate the purposes of this article, including
     3  but not limited to:
     4    1.  Provisions  for periodic monitoring and evaluation of each program
     5  awarded a grant recipient;
     6    2. Provisions that limit the expenditure of funds  for  administrative
     7  purposes  to  fifty per centum of the grant award; provided, however, if
     8  the local government, local government agency, or community based organ-
     9  ization shall match the state grant award with  equal  local  resources,
    10  seventy-five per centum may be used for administrative purposes.
    11    §  407.  Reporting.  Grant  recipients  shall  bi-annually provide the
    12  commissioner such data as  to  reasonably  reflect  the  funded  program
    13  activities  for the inclusive period of January first through June thir-
    14  tieth, and July first through December  thirty-first  of  each  calendar
    15  year in which fund moneys are received and expended. 1. The commissioner
    16  shall annually report to the appropriate committees of the legislature:
    17    (a)  the  name, address, and program description of all grant applica-
    18  tions received and funding level sought;
    19    (b) the name, address, and program description of all  grant  applica-
    20  tions approved;
    21    (c)  the  name, address, and program description of all grant applica-
    22  tions denied and a brief explanation for the basis of denial.
    23    2. An annual report for public distribution detailing  the  activities
    24  and  accomplishments  of  programs  funded  under the provisions of this
    25  article shall also be submitted.
    26    § 408. Legislative hearings. The legislature  shall  annually  conduct
    27  public  hearings  on  the  proposed  use and distribution of funds to be
    28  provided under this article. 1.  The  commissioner  shall  cause  to  be
    29  prepared  a detailed plan, for submission to the appropriate legislative
    30  committees, projecting:
    31    (a) anticipated revenues available  under  this  trust  fund  for  the
    32  forthcoming state fiscal year;
    33    (b)  unexpended  funds  from the current state fiscal year operations;
    34  and
    35    (c) encumbered and contracted funds  from  the  current  state  fiscal
    36  year.
    37    2.  On  the  basis  of  the  plan submitted by the commissioner, joint
    38  legislative committee hearings shall be conducted at  the  pleasure  and
    39  convenience of the appropriate committee chairpersons.
    40    3.  Expenses  attendant  to legislative hearings conducted pursuant to
    41  this article  shall  be  borne  by  the  division  of  criminal  justice
    42  services.
    43    § 2. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 80.20 to read as
    44  follows:
    45  § 80.20 Mandatory administrative assessments required upon conviction of
    46            a felony where an elderly person is a victim.
    47    1.  For  purposes  of  this  section  "elderly  person" means a person
    48  sixty-two years of age or older.
    49    2. Every person convicted of a felony involving a  victim  who  is  an
    50  elderly  person shall, in addition to any sentence imposed by the court,
    51  pay a mandatory administrative assessment of two hundred dollars.
    52    3. A person convicted and subject to the provisions set forth in  this
    53  article  shall  pay the mandatory administrative assessment to the clerk
    54  of the court that rendered the conviction. Each mandatory administrative
    55  assessment collected by the clerk shall be paid over to the state  comp-

        S. 5283                             4

     1  troller for deposit under the provisions of section ninety-seven-uuuu of
     2  the state finance law.
     3    4. When a person is convicted of a felony involving a victim who is an
     4  elderly person, the mandatory administrative assessment shall be paid to
     5  the  state comptroller for deposit under the provisions of section nine-
     6  ty-seven-uuuu of the state finance law.
     7    5. For the purposes of this section, adjudication as a youthful offen-
     8  der shall not exempt a person from the provisions of this section.
     9    6. The clerk of the court, wherein the conviction occurred,  resulting
    10  in a mandatory administrative assessment being collected, shall be enti-
    11  tled,  on  behalf  of  the court, to retain a fee not to exceed five per
    12  centum of the mandatory administrative assessment.
    13    § 3. The criminal procedure law is amended by  adding  a  new  section
    14  420.37 to read as follows:
    15  § 420.37 Mandatory    administrative   assessments;   applicability   to
    16             sentences mandating payment of fines.
    17    The provisions of section 430.20 of this title governing  the  commit-
    18  ment  of  a  defendant  for failure to pay a fine shall be applicable to
    19  mandatory administrative assessments imposed pursuant to  section  80.20
    20  of the penal law.
    21    §  4. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-uuuu
    22  to read as follows:
    23    § 97-uuuu. Elderly crime prevention and control trust fund.  1.  There
    24  is  hereby established in the custody of the state comptroller a special
    25  fund to be known as the "elderly  crime  prevention  and  control  trust
    26  fund".
    27    2. Such fund shall consist of all moneys appropriated for the purposes
    28  of  such fund, and all moneys received as a result of mandatory adminis-
    29  trative assessments and any other sums payable to the fund  pursuant  to
    30  section 80.20 of the penal law.
    31    3. Moneys of the elderly crime prevention and control trust fund, when
    32  allocated,  shall  be  available  to  the  division  of criminal justice
    33  services for  the  purposes  of  administering  and  funding  activities
    34  related  to  the prevention and control of criminal victimization of the
    35  elderly pursuant to the provisions of article four of the elder law.
    36    4. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or  special  law,  no
    37  moneys  shall be available from the elderly crime prevention and control
    38  trust fund until a certificate of allocation and a schedule  of  amounts
    39  to  be  available therefor shall have been issued by the director of the
    40  budget, upon the recommendation of the commissioner of the  division  of
    41  criminal  justice services and a copy of such certificate filed with the
    42  comptroller, the chairperson of the senate  finance  committee  and  the
    43  chairperson  of  the assembly ways and means committee. Such certificate
    44  may be amended from time to time by the director of the budget, upon the
    45  recommendation of the commissioner of the division of  criminal  justice
    46  services and a copy of each such amendment shall be filed with the comp-
    47  troller,  the chairperson of the senate finance committee and the chair-
    48  person of the assembly ways and means committee.
    49    5. The moneys, when allocated, shall be paid out of the  fund  on  the
    50  audit  and  warrant of the comptroller on vouchers certified or approved
    51  by the commissioner of the division of criminal justice services  or  by
    52  an  officer  or  employee  of  the division of criminal justice services
    53  designated by the commissioner.
    54    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire June  30,
    55  2024  when  upon  such  date  the provisions of this act shall be deemed
    56  repealed.
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