Bill Text: NY A03454 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Establishes four mental health coordinators to provide mental health support and education for members of law enforcement; establishes that coordinators shall provide training, assistance, reporting and set standards for continuing mental health education.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to governmental operations [A03454 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A03454-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3454

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 3, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. BURKE -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Governmental Operations

        AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to law enforcement mental
          health coordinators

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

     1    Section  1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 214-i
     2  to read as follows:
     3    § 214-i. Mental health coordinators. 1. There  is  hereby  established
     4  within  the  division  a  mental  health  coordinator program to provide
     5  mental health support and education for law enforcement in New York.
     6    2. Four mental health coordinators shall be appointed by the governor,
     7  by and with the advice and consent of the senate. Each shall serve for a
     8  term of six years. Mental health coordinators  shall  receive  a  salary
     9  within  amounts  appropriated  therefor and shall be eligible for re-ap-
    10  pointment.
    11    3. (a) Each mental health coordinator shall  have  a  specific  region
    12  they  are  responsible  for. The four groupings, comprised of individual
    13  state troop regions are: (i) A, E and C; (ii) B, D and G; (iii) F, K and
    14  L; and (iv) NYC. Troopers should  belong  to  one  of  the  state  troop
    15  regions they serve as coordinator.
    16    (b) Each mental health coordinator shall:
    17    (i)  be  an  active  duty  state trooper with an established career in
    18  different aspects of law enforcement, including,  but  not  limited  to,
    19  patrol  officer  and  detective, and have served in both urban and rural
    20  settings;
    21    (ii) be a law enforcement professional with a  history  of  developing
    22  and  disseminating  evidence-based training in mental health and resili-
    23  ence; and
    24    (iii) have an established history  of  working  with  police  adminis-
    25  trations and police unions.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03074-01-3
        A. 3454                             2

     1    4. Mental health coordinators shall:
     2    (a)  cooperate  with  police  training  academies  to introduce police
     3  recruits to mental health issues they could face throughout their career
     4  in law enforcement;
     5    (b) assist in establishing mental health training for law enforcement,
     6  including resilience training, trauma-based training, inter- and  intra-
     7  departmental training, and training for law enforcement families;
     8    (c) contribute to updating the office of mental health's environmental
     9  analysis of mental health and wellness resources for first responders;
    10    (d) cooperate with police agencies to establish peer support programs;
    11    (e)  cooperate  with  private limited liability companies who train in
    12  mental health and wellness to ensure that their programs  are  scientif-
    13  ically sound and factual;
    14    (f)  utilize  the  state  university  system to establish training and
    15  produce research documentation of training effectiveness; and
    16    (g) set standards for continuing education in mental  health  with  an
    17  emphasis  on  meeting  the  developmental training needs for officers at
    18  various stages of their career.
    19    5. Mental health coordinators shall report to  the  office  of  mental
    20  health  on  the  development and implementation of programs and training
    21  for law enforcement officers and  shall  advise  the  office  of  mental
    22  health  and receive advice from the office of mental health on direction
    23  and training needs for law  enforcement  agencies  that  vary  in  size,
    24  location, and demographics.
    25    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.