Relates to police staffing at certain parks; bases the number of officers deployed to regions upon a percentage of the region's park attendance average.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A4837
SPONSOR: Ramos TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the parks, recreation and historic preservation law, in
relation to police staffing at certain parks
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to ensure that the Commissioner of Parks,
Recreation and Historic Preservation provide for the health, safety and
welfare of the public using the facilities under its jurisdiction by
ensuring adequate state park police officers at such facilities.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill calls for a minimum staff of 385 permanently
appointed full time regional state park police officers at state parks,
beaches, campgrounds, historic sites and concert venues. Staffing at
each site will be determined by each region's three-year attendance
average. Calls for the commissioner to submit a staffing plan to the
legislature prior to opening any new state park facilities, and allows
for the commissioner to redeploy regional state park police officers
outside their region in case of an emergency.
Section 2 provides for an effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
This bill would ensure the more than 78 million visitors to New York
State's parks, beaches, and historic sites are kept safe for the general
public by ensuring a minimum of 385 State Park Police officers are
employed by the state.
In 2020 New York's parks hit new attendance records with 78 million
Visits. Its 180 parks and 35 historic sites were sort after resources
due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They were safe places where people could
exercise and seek relief from the stresses of the pandemic. Prior to
2020, NYS has seen a 9 years of visitor growth or 34% rise. Visitors to
New York State Parks deserve an appropriate level of police protection.
With NYS parks' attendance rates steadily on the rise, this bill is now
more important than ever.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A.6146 of 2021-22 referred to tourism, parks, arts and sports develop-
ment
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4837
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 23, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. RAMOS -- 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 police staffing at certain parks
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 3.07 of the parks, recreation and historic preser-
2 vation law is amended by adding three new subdivisions 3, 4 and 5 to
3 read as follows:
4 3. The commissioner shall provide for the health, safety and welfare
5 of the public using facilities under its jurisdiction, which shall
6 include ensuring a minimum staff of three hundred eighty-five permanent-
7 ly appointed, full time regional state park police officers at state
8 parks, beaches, campgrounds, historic sites and concert venues. The
9 number of regional state park police officers deployed to each region
10 shall be equivalent to the percentage of each region's three year
11 attendance average.
12 4. The commissioner shall not open a new state park, beach, camp-
13 ground, historic site or concert venue unless it submits a staffing plan
14 to the legislature that demonstrates there is a sufficient number of
15 regional state park police to provide adequate and appropriate delivery
16 of police services to patrons visiting the new site.
17 5. The commissioner may redeploy regional state park police officers
18 outside of their assigned region in the case of an emergency. Emergen-
19 cies are defined as natural disasters, declared emergencies and mass
20 casualty incidents.
21 § 2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
22 law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08281-01-3
