Bill Text: NY S06298 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Creates the New York state school resource officer program for school districts outside of New York City; requires retired police officers be certified by the department of education to become school resource officers; allows retired police officers employed as school resource officers to carry a firearm on school grounds given an appropriate license; relates to the earnings limitations for retired police officers employed as a school resource officer.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-23 - PRINT NUMBER 6298A [S06298 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S06298-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6298

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      June 3, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules

        AN ACT to amend the education law, the criminal procedure law,  and  the
          retirement and social security law, in relation to the creation of the
          Comprehensive  School  Resource  Officer  Training  and Implementation
          Program (SRO TIP)

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

     1    Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 2801-c
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  2801-c.  New  York  state  school  resource officer program. 1. For
     4  purposes of this section, the term "school resource officer" shall  mean
     5  a  school resource officer, school safety officer, school security offi-
     6  cer, or any other substantially similar position or office whose purpose
     7  is to provide improved public safety and/or security on school grounds.
     8    2. Any boards of cooperative educational services, public or nonpublic
     9  school which is not in a city school district in a city having  a  popu-
    10  lation  of  one  million or more may employ, in either the classified or
    11  unclassified service, any school resource officer. Such school  resource
    12  officer shall be: (a) a retired police officer, a retired state trooper,
    13  or  a  retired  deputy  sheriff and who, once a certification process is
    14  established, is certified as a school  resource  officer  under  section
    15  twenty-eight  hundred one-d of this article; or (b) an active duty state
    16  trooper, police officer in the service of a town, city  or  village,  or
    17  deputy sheriff from a county sheriff's department.
    18    3. Any boards of cooperative educational services, public or nonpublic
    19  school  which  is not in a city school district in a city having a popu-
    20  lation of one million or more may contract with the state of  New  York,
    21  or  a county, city, town or village, for the provision of a state troop-
    22  er, police officer or deputy sheriff, to  serve  as  a  school  resource
    23  officer.  A board of cooperative educational services or school district

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00319-06-9
        S. 6298                             2

     1  which is not in a city school district in a city having a population  of
     2  one  million  or  more  shall be authorized to employ or contract for as
     3  many school resource officers as such board of  cooperative  educational
     4  services or district deems necessary.
     5    4.  It  shall  be  the  primary role of the school resource officer to
     6  provide improved public safety and/or security on school grounds through
     7  community policing  techniques,  investigative  measures,  and  tactical
     8  preparedness. In addition to such primary role, school resource officers
     9  also may serve additional roles, including but not limited to:
    10    (a)  Proposing  and  enforcing  policies and administrative procedures
    11  related to school safety;
    12    (b) Utilizing technology in  the  implementation  of  a  comprehensive
    13  safety program;
    14    (c)  Serving as a liaison with other school officials and other commu-
    15  nity agencies, including but not limited to, other law enforcement enti-
    16  ties, courts, health care entities, and mental health entities;
    17    (d)  Proposing  and  implementing  strategies  concerning  prevention,
    18  response  and recovery efforts for incidents and/or emergency situations
    19  occurring on school grounds and/or involving students, faculty, adminis-
    20  tration or visitors to the school;
    21    (e) Proposing and assisting  in  the  execution  of  school  emergency
    22  drills  and  proposing  and  assisting  in the creation of school safety
    23  plans;
    24    (f) Providing educational and mentoring services to students;
    25    (g) Assisting in the design, explanation  and  enforcement  of  school
    26  safety and security policies and procedures; and
    27    (h)  Performing  such  other  and  further roles, responsibilities and
    28  activities as the school district may deem appropriate and proper for  a
    29  law  enforcement  officer  to perform, in order to advance the security,
    30  safety and well-being of students, faculty, administration and  visitors
    31  to  the  school  district's  schools, transportation vehicles and school
    32  grounds.
    33    5. Such school resource officer may carry and possess firearms  during
    34  the  course of their duties at such school district, but nothing in this
    35  subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such school resource officer to
    36  carry, possess, repair or dispose of a firearm  unless  the  appropriate
    37  license therefor has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal
    38  law.
    39    §  2.  The  education law is amended by adding a new section 2801-d to
    40  read as follows:
    41    §  2801-d.  New  York  state  school  resource  officer  certification
    42  program.  1.  For  purposes  of  this section, the term "school resource
    43  officer" shall mean a school resource officer,  school  safety  officer,
    44  school  security officer, or any other substantially similar position or
    45  office whose purpose is to provide improved public safety and/or securi-
    46  ty on school grounds.
    47    2. The department shall, utilizing boards of  cooperative  educational
    48  services, establish a school resource officer training program to certi-
    49  fy  retired  police officers, retired deputy sheriffs, and retired state
    50  troopers as school resource officers as well as a school resource  offi-
    51  cer  recertification  program  to recertify school resource officers who
    52  have previously completed and passed the  department's  school  resource
    53  officer  certification  program.  Such programs shall be designed by the
    54  department to include, but not be  limited  to,  counseling  techniques,
    55  community  policing  practices, gender and racial sensitivity awareness,
    56  and field and tactical training for prevention  and  response  to  inci-
        S. 6298                             3

     1  dents.  The department shall utilize current or retired police officers,
     2  in order to train school resource officers  in  any  police  related  or
     3  tactical training provided for certification. The certifications granted
     4  from such programs shall expire one year after the program was completed
     5  and passed.
     6    3.  The  department shall separately offer the school resource officer
     7  training program and the school resource officer recertification program
     8  at least once per year per county.
     9    § 3. Section 2.10 of the criminal procedure law is amended by adding a
    10  new subdivision 85 to read as follows:
    11    85. Retired police officers, retired state troopers, or retired deputy
    12  sheriffs employed by boards of cooperative  educational  services  or  a
    13  school  district  as  a school resource officer; provided, however, that
    14  nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such officer to
    15  carry, possess, repair or dispose of a firearm  unless  the  appropriate
    16  license therefor has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal
    17  law.
    18    § 4. Subdivision 3 of section 212 of the retirement and social securi-
    19  ty  law,  as  added  by section 1 of part Y of chapter 55 of the laws of
    20  2013, is amended to read as follows:
    21    3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions one and two of  this
    22  section,  the  commissioner  of  education  may  determine,  pursuant to
    23  section two hundred eleven of this article, that such  earnings  limita-
    24  tions shall not apply to a retired police officer, retired state trooper
    25  or  retired deputy sheriff employed by boards of cooperative educational
    26  services or a school district as a school  resource  officer;  or  to  a
    27  retired police officer, retired state trooper, or retired deputy sheriff
    28  who  is employed as a school resource officer by a county, city, town or
    29  village police department pursuant to a contract with a school  district
    30  to provide such services.
    31    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          Insofar  as this bill will affect the New York State and Local Employ-
        ees' Retirement System (ERS) and the New York State and Local Police and
        Fire Retirement System (PFRS), this bill will allow the commissioner  of
        education  to  determine  that  the  earnings  limitations  set forth in
        section two hundred twelve shall not apply to retired  police  officers,
        retired state troopers and retired deputy sheriffs who are employed as a
        school  resource  officer  by  either a board of cooperative educational
        services or a school district, or by a county,  city,  town  or  village
        police  department  pursuant  to  a  contract  with a school district to
        provide such services. Currently, this  privilege  is  only  allowed  to
        retired police officers who are employed as a school resource officer by
        a school district.
          If  this bill is enacted, we expect few retirees to be affected. There
        would be negligible additional annual costs. However, if  large  numbers
        of  retirees  are  hired  into such positions, there would be additional
        annual costs which would be shared by the state of New York and  all  of
        the participating employers in the System.
          Summary of relevant resources:
          The  membership  data  used  in  measuring  the impact of the proposed
        change was the same as that used in the March 31, 2018  actuarial  valu-
        ation.    Distributions  and  other  statistics can be found in the 2018
        Report of the  Actuary  and  the  2018  Comprehensive  Annual  Financial
        Report.
        S. 6298                             4

          The  actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2015,
        2016, 2017 and 2018  Annual  Report  to  the  Comptroller  on  Actuarial
        Assumptions,  and  the  Codes  Rules and Regulations of the State of New
        York: Audit and Control.
          The Market Assets and GASB Disclosures are found in the March 31, 2018
        New  York  State  and  Local  Retirement System Financial Statements and
        Supplementary Information.
          I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali-
        fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
          This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the  viability
        of  the  proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for
        the professional judgment of an attorney.
          This estimate, dated May 20, 2019, and intended for  use  only  during
        the  2019  Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2019-125, prepared by
        the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.