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A05780 Summary:

A05780 Actions:

A05780 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
 submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)



 
BILL NUMBER: A5780
 
SPONSOR: Giglio (MS)

 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the correction law, in relation to
establishment of a staffing plan for all uniformed and non-uniformed
employees at correctional facilities
 
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
 
To ensure adequate staffing levels at correctional facilities.
 
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
 
This legislation amends Section 112 of the Correction Law to require the
commissioner of the department of correctional services to establish a
staffing plan for all uniformed and non-uniformed staff. This staffing
plan shall establish the number of necessary security posts, administra-
tive, programmatic and other positions within the department's correc-
tional facilities and administrative offices.This legislation would also
require the commissioner to provide a copy of the staffing plan to the
Chairs of the Senate Finance, Senate Crime and Corrections, Assembly
Ways and Means and Assembly Correction Commit- tees by December 31 of
each year. In the event the department deviates from the staffing plan,
the commissioner shall provide details on why the staffing plan was not
implemented as required by this legislation.
 
 
JUSTIFICATION:
 
Current law allows the Commissioner of Department of Correctional
Services to establish staffing protocols according to his or her general
powers and duties to manage correctional facilities. This bill would
instead provide by statute specific staffing plan requirements.
 
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2010 - A.11198 (Giglio);
2012 - A3680 (Giglio);
2014 - A6009 (Giglio)
2017-18 - A.4780
 
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
 
This bill will result in savings to the State.
 
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This law shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that effec-
tive immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or
regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective
date is authorized and directed to be made and completed on or before
such effective date.

A05780 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          5780
 
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    February 19, 2019
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  GIGLIO,  BRABENEC, HAWLEY, B. MILLER, SMITH,
          DeSTEFANO, LAWRENCE, MONTESANO, DiPIETRO, McDONOUGH, MORINELLO, FINCH,
          MIKULIN, RA -- Multi-Sponsored by  --  M.  of  A.  FRIEND,  PALMESANO,
          SAYEGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Correction
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the correction law, in relation to establishment of a
          staffing plan for all uniformed and non-uniformed employees at correc-
          tional facilities
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Section 112 of the correction law, as amended by section 19
     2  of  subpart A of part C of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to
     3  read as follows:
     4    § 112. Powers and duties  of  commissioner  relating  to  correctional
     5  facilities   and   community   supervision.   1.  The  commissioner  [of
     6  corrections and community supervision] shall have  the  superintendence,
     7  management  and control of the correctional facilities in the department
     8  and of the inmates confined therein, and of all matters relating to  the
     9  government, discipline, policing, contracts and fiscal concerns thereof.
    10  He or she shall have the responsibility to ensure that adequate staffing
    11  exists  at  every  correctional  facility pursuant to subdivision two of
    12  this section. He or she shall have the power and it shall be his or  her
    13  duty to inquire into all matters connected with said correctional facil-
    14  ities.  He or she shall make such rules and regulations, not in conflict
    15  with the statutes of this state, for the government of the officers  and
    16  other  employees  of  the department assigned to said facilities, and in
    17  regard to the duties to be performed by them, and for the government and
    18  discipline of each correctional facility, as he or she may deem  proper,
    19  and  shall cause such rules and regulations to be recorded by the super-
    20  intendent of the facility, and a copy thereof to be  furnished  to  each
    21  employee  assigned  to  the  facility.  He or she shall also prescribe a
    22  system of accounts and records to be kept at each correctional facility,
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06871-01-9
        A. 5780                             2
 
     1  which system shall be uniform at all of said facilities, and he  or  she
     2  shall  also  make  rules and regulations for a record of photographs and
     3  other means of identifying each inmate received into said facilities. He
     4  or  she  shall appoint and remove, subject to the civil service law [and
     5  rules], subordinate officers and other employees of the  department  who
     6  are assigned to correctional facilities.
     7    2.  [The commissioner shall have the management and control of persons
     8  released on community supervision and of all matters  relating  to  such
     9  persons'  effective reentry into the community, as well as all contracts
    10  and fiscal concerns thereof. The commissioner shall have the  power  and
    11  it  shall  be his or her duty to inquire into all matters connected with
    12  said community supervision. The commissioner shall make such  rules  and
    13  regulations,  not  in  conflict with the statutes of this state, for the
    14  governance of  the  officers  and  other  employees  of  the  department
    15  assigned  to  said community supervision, and in regard to the duties to
    16  be performed by them, as he or she deems proper  and  shall  cause  such
    17  rules  and  regulations  to  be  furnished  to each employee assigned to
    18  perform community supervision. The commissioner shall also  prescribe  a
    19  system  of  accounts and records to be kept, which shall be uniform. The
    20  commissioner shall also make rules  and  regulations  for  a  record  of
    21  photographs  and  other  means  of  identifying  each inmate released to
    22  community supervision. The commissioner shall appoint officers and other
    23  employees of the department who are assigned to perform community super-
    24  vision.] The commissioner  shall  establish  a  staffing  plan  for  all
    25  uniformed  and  non-uniformed employees. With regard to uniformed staff,
    26  the commissioner shall establish a staffing plan  which  shall  include,
    27  but  not  be limited to, the number of total security posts that must be
    28  staffed by correction officers and correctional sergeants by correction-
    29  al facility. These posts shall be delineated by those that are necessary
    30  five days per week and seven days per  week.  The  staffing  plan  shall
    31  require that every post be staffed using a ratio of 1.8 correction offi-
    32  cers  for  every  seven day post and a ratio of 1.25 correction officers
    33  for each five day post. The commissioner shall provide a  copy  of  such
    34  staffing plan to the chairs of the senate finance, senate crime victims,
    35  crime  and  correction,  assembly ways and means and assembly correction
    36  committees by December thirty-first of each year. Such report shall also
    37  provide detailed information regarding how the staffing plan was  imple-
    38  mented  during the current fiscal year.  This information shall include:
    39  (a) the number of correction  officers  and  sergeants  by  correctional
    40  facility that the staffing plan required as well as the actual number of
    41  correction  officers  and  sergeants that were available by correctional
    42  facility during the current fiscal year.   In the event  the  department
    43  deviated  from the staffing plan, the commissioner shall provide details
    44  on why the staffing plan was not implemented  as  required  pursuant  to
    45  this  section; (b) the number of posts included in the staffing plan for
    46  each facility that have been closed on a daily  basis,  by  correctional
    47  facility  security classification (minimum, medium and maximum); (c) the
    48  number of security positions not filled and those eliminated, by correc-
    49  tional facility since two thousand one compared to the number of inmates
    50  incarcerated in each such facility; and (d) a breakdown by  correctional
    51  facility  security  classification (minimum, medium, and maximum) of the
    52  staff hours of overtime worked, by year since two thousand one  and  the
    53  annual  aggregate  costs  related  to  this  overtime. In addition, such
    54  report shall be delineated by correctional facility security classifica-
    55  tion, the annual number of security positions eliminated, the number  of
        A. 5780                             3

     1  closed  posts  and  amount of staff hours of overtime accrued as well as
     2  the overall overtime expenditures which resulted.
     3    3. The commissioner may require reports from the superintendent or any
     4  other officer or employee of the department assigned to any correctional
     5  facility  or  to perform community supervision in relation to his or her
     6  conduct as such officer or employee, and shall have the power to inquire
     7  into any improper conduct which may be alleged to have been committed by
     8  any person at any correctional facility or in the course of his  or  her
     9  performance  of  community  supervision,  and  for that purpose to issue
    10  subpoenas to compel the attendance  of  witnesses,  and  the  production
    11  before him or her of books, writings and papers. A subpoena issued under
    12  this section shall be regulated by the civil practice law and rules.
    13    4.  The  commissioner  and  the  chair  of the parole board shall work
    14  jointly to develop and implement, as soon as  practicable,  a  risk  and
    15  needs  assessment  instrument or instruments, which shall be empirically
    16  validated, that would be administered to inmates upon reception  into  a
    17  correctional facility, and throughout their incarceration and release to
    18  community supervision, to facilitate appropriate programming both during
    19  an  inmate's  incarceration  and  community supervision, and designed to
    20  facilitate the successful integration of inmates into the community.
    21    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.    Effective  immediately
    22  the  addition,  amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation neces-
    23  sary for the implementation of  this  act  on  its  effective  date  are
    24  authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.