Amd §3.16, Pks & Rec L (as proposed in S.7680-A & A.6634-A)
Provides that an operational safety plan developed by the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation shall require that any employee check in with the incident commander or safety officer for incident specific procedures prior to taking any action at the incident location; provides that when deployment occurs in coordination with one or more other entities, and the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation is not the lead response agency, the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that employees are provided with the incident specific operational safety plan developed by the lead agency and/or incident commander.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9517
SPONSOR: Kim TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the parks, recreation and historic preservation law, in
relation to requiring operational safety plans to require an employee to
check in with the incident commander or safety officer prior to taking
action at an incident location, and requiring the office of parks,
recreation and historic preservation to make reasonable efforts to
provide employees with incident specific operational safety plans under
certain circumstances
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to clarify language regarding occupational
safety plans for employees of the office of parks, recreation and
historical preservation prior to being deployed into emergency situ-
ations.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 1 and 3 of section 3.16 of the parks,
recreation and historical preservation law to require employees to check
in with their incident commander before deploying to a potentially
hazardous situation. It also requires that employees are to be provided
with incident-specific operational safety plans developed by the lead
agency or incident commander in cases where the office is not the lead
agency.
Section 2 provides an immediate effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
This legislation increases protections for parks, recreation, and
historical preservation employees who are being deployed into potential-
ly hazardous conditions.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be Determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9517
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2026
___________
Introduced by M. of A. KIM -- read once and referred to the Committee on
Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development
AN ACT to amend the parks, recreation and historic preservation law, in
relation to requiring operational safety plans to require an employee
to check in with the incident commander or safety officer prior to
taking action at an incident location, and requiring the office of
parks, recreation and historic preservation to make reasonable efforts
to provide employees with incident specific operational safety plans
under certain circumstances
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 3.16 of the parks, recre-
2 ation and historic preservation law, as added by a chapter of the laws
3 of 2025 amending the parks, recreation and historic preservation law
4 relating to mandating the development and approval of operational safety
5 plans, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 7680-A and A. 6634-A,
6 are amended to read as follows:
7 1. The office shall develop and approve operational safety plans prior
8 to the deployment of any employee in hazardous conditions. The plan
9 shall include, but not be limited to, a comprehensive risk assessment
10 identifying potential hazards associated with the deployment, mitigation
11 measures to address identified risks, detailed information on team
12 composition including roles and responsibilities, identification of an
13 on-site authorized person responsible for overseeing operations, a clear
14 chain of command for decision-making during the deployment, emergency
15 contact information for all team members, and [evacuation procedures
16 tailored to the specific deployment scenario], to the extent applicable,
17 evacuation procedures. The plan shall require that any employee check
18 in with the incident commander or safety officer for incident specific
19 procedures prior to taking any action at the incident location. The
20 commissioner or the commissioner's designee shall review and approve all
21 operational safety plans to ensure compliance with established safety
22 standards, verify that the employees being deployed are adequately
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10348-04-6
A. 9517 2
1 trained for their roles, and confirm that the operation is essential
2 under hazardous conditions.
3 3. When deployment occurs in coordination with one or more other enti-
4 ties, and the office is not the lead response agency, the office shall
5 make reasonable efforts to ensure that employees are provided with the
6 [information described in subdivision one of this section, to the extent
7 practicable] incident specific operational safety plan developed by the
8 lead agency and/or incident commander.
9 § 2. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same
10 manner as a chapter of the laws of 2025 amending the parks, recreation
11 and historic preservation law relating to mandating the development and
12 approval of operational safety plans, as proposed in legislative bills
13 numbers S. 7680-A and A. 6634-A, takes effect.
