Provides for the chief administrator of the courts to, upon request by a municipality, ensure the assignment and presence of a uniformed court officer during court proceedings or a law enforcement officer where no uniformed court officer is available.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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5256
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 12, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. TAGUE, BLANKENBUSH, HAWLEY, E. BROWN, DeSTEFANO,
MANKTELOW, LEMONDES, BEEPHAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the uniform justice court act, the judiciary law, and
the criminal procedure law, in relation to providing for the presence
of either a uniformed court officer or law enforcement officer during
court proceedings
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 109 of the uniform justice court act is amended by
2 adding a new closing paragraph to read as follows:
3 Provided, however, that the chief administrator of the courts shall,
4 upon request by the municipality, ensure the assignment and presence of
5 a uniformed court officer during court proceedings. If a uniformed court
6 officer is not available, the chief administrator of the courts shall be
7 responsible for coordinating and ensuring the presence of a law enforce-
8 ment official during such court proceedings. Political subdivisions
9 which provide security services for the courts shall be entitled to
10 reimbursement from the state. No costs associated with facilitating the
11 presence of a law enforcement officer in lieu of a uniformed court offi-
12 cer shall be incurred by the municipality.
13 § 2. Section 216 of the judiciary law is amended by adding a new
14 subdivision 7 to read as follows:
15 7. The chief administrator of the courts shall, upon request by the
16 municipality, ensure the assignment and presence of a uniformed court
17 officer during court proceedings. If a uniformed court officer is not
18 available, the chief administrator of the courts shall be responsible
19 for coordinating and ensuring the presence of a law enforcement official
20 during such court proceedings.
21 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 849-h of the judiciary law, as added by
22 chapter 280 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08450-01-5
A. 5256 2
1 2. Funds available pursuant to this article may be used for any
2 purpose having as its end enhancement of the justice courts' ability to
3 provide suitable and sufficient services to their respective communi-
4 ties. These purposes may include, but shall not be limited to, costs
5 associated with hiring nonjudicial court security or reimbursement of
6 costs for utilizing local law enforcement services; automation of court
7 operations; improvement or expansion of court facilities; provision of
8 appropriate means for the recording of court proceedings; provision of
9 lawbooks, treatises and related materials; and provision of appropriate
10 training for justices and for nonjudicial court staff. Except as may
11 otherwise be provided by rule of the chief administrator, funds avail-
12 able pursuant to this article shall not be used to compensate justices
13 [and nonjudicial court staff], nor shall they be used as a means of
14 reducing funding provided by a town or village to its justice court.
15 § 4. Subdivision 4 of section 849-i of the judiciary law, as amended
16 by chapter 127 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
17 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the chief administrator
18 shall not approve any application for funding in excess of [thirty] two
19 hundred and fifty thousand dollars unless such application is a joint
20 application and the aggregate funding sought thereunder does not exceed
21 an amount equaling the product of the number of joint applicants making
22 such application and [thirty] two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
23 § 5. Subdivision 1 of section 219-b of the judiciary law, as added by
24 chapter 548 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
25 1. There shall be established a New York state court officer academy
26 (hereinafter referred to in this section as the "academy"). This academy
27 shall serve as a center for the provision of education and training to
28 New York state court officers and other non-judicial employees of the
29 New York state courts. For the purpose of this section, New York state
30 court officers shall include court officers assigned to or employed by a
31 unified justice court.
32 § 6. Paragraph a of subdivision 21 of section 2.10 of the criminal
33 procedure law, as added by chapter 843 of the laws of 1980, is amended
34 to read as follows:
35 a. Uniformed court officers [of the unified court system], who have
36 received and completed training at the New York state court officer
37 academy.
38 § 7. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
39 it shall have become a law.
