Bill Text: NY S02248 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Creates a veterans' mental health and suicide prevention task force to examine, evaluate and determine how to improve mental health and suicide prevention for our veterans.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-3)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-07-21 - referred to veterans' affairs [S02248 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S02248-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Creates a veterans' mental health and suicide prevention task force to examine, evaluate and determine how to improve mental health and suicide prevention for our veterans.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-3)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-07-21 - referred to veterans' affairs [S02248 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S02248-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2248 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 23, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sens. SANDERS, PARKER, RITCHIE, SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs AN ACT to create a veterans' mental health and suicide prevention task force; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature is concerned with the 2 health, safety, and welfare of all returning veterans of the United 3 States armed forces to New York and the high rate of mental health prob- 4 lems and suicides of members of the United States armed forces. 5 § 2. Veterans' suicide task force. (a) There is hereby created the 6 veterans' mental health and suicide prevention task force to examine, 7 evaluate and determine how to improve mental health and suicide 8 prevention for our veterans, consisting of seven members, each to serve 9 until May first, two thousand twenty-one. 10 (b)(1) Such members shall be appointed as follows: one member shall be 11 appointed by the governor; one member shall be appointed by the tempo- 12 rary president of the senate; one member shall be appointed by the 13 minority leader of the senate; one member shall be appointed by the 14 speaker of the assembly; one member shall be appointed by the minority 15 leader of the assembly; one member shall be appointed by the director of 16 the New York State Division of Veterans' Affairs; and one member shall 17 be appointed by the commissioner of health. Appointments shall be made 18 within sixty days of the effective date of this act. Vacancies in the 19 task force shall be filled in the manner provided for original appoint- 20 ments. 21 (2) All appointees shall have expertise in fields or disciplines 22 related to mental health. All appointments shall be coordinated to 23 ensure geographic representation from the entire state. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07156-02-9S. 2248 2 1 (3) The task force shall be chaired by the governor's appointee. The 2 task force shall elect a vice-chair and other necessary officers from 3 among all appointed members. 4 (4) A majority of the members of the task force then in office shall 5 constitute a quorum for the transaction of business or the exercise of 6 any power or function of the task force. An act, determination or deci- 7 sion of the majority of the members present during the presence of a 8 quorum shall be held to be the act, determination, or decision of the 9 task force. 10 (5) The task force shall meet at least quarterly at the call of the 11 chair. Meetings may be held via teleconference. Special meetings may be 12 called by the chair at the request of a majority of the members of the 13 task force. 14 (6) Members of the task force shall receive no compensation for their 15 services but shall be reimbursed for their actual expenses incurred in 16 the performance of their duties in the work of the task force. 17 (c) The task force shall: 18 (1) study current mental health practices and suicide prevention 19 efforts; and 20 (2) recommend mental health practices and suicide prevention to 21 increase effectiveness across the state. 22 (d) The task force may establish such advisory committees as it deems 23 appropriate on matters relating to the task force's functions, powers 24 and duties. Such committees shall be chaired by a task force member, but 25 may be composed of task force members as well as other individuals 26 selected by the task force to provide expertise of interest specific to 27 the charge of such committees. 28 (e) The task force may, as it deems appropriate, request that studies, 29 surveys, or analyses relating to the task force's powers and duties be 30 performed by any state department, commission, agency or public authori- 31 ty. All state departments, commissions, agencies or public authorities 32 shall provide information and advice in a timely manner and otherwise 33 assist the task force with its work. 34 (f) The task force shall submit a request for any appropriation as 35 shall be necessary to enable the task force to perform its functions and 36 duties to the governor, director of the division of budget, and chair- 37 persons of the senate finance committee and the assembly ways and means 38 committee. 39 (g) The task force may hold public hearings, take testimony and make 40 investigations at such places as it deems necessary. 41 (h) The task force shall make a preliminary report to the governor and 42 the legislature of its findings, conclusions, recommendations and activ- 43 ities already undertaken by the task force, not later than June 1, 2020, 44 and a final report of its findings, conclusions, recommendations and 45 activities already undertaken by the task force, not later than March 1, 46 2021 and shall submit with its reports legislative proposals as it deems 47 necessary to implement its recommendations. 48 § 3. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 49 have become a law and shall expire May 1, 2021 when upon such date the 50 provisions of this act shall be deemed to be repealed.
