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S03595 Summary:

S03595 Actions:

S03595 Committee Votes:

S03595 Floor Votes:

S03595 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         3595--C
 
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    February 11, 2019
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sens. PARKER, BAILEY, BRESLIN, BROOKS, HOYLMAN, JACKSON,
          KAVANAGH, LIU, MAY, SANDERS, SERRANO -- read twice and ordered  print-
          ed,  and  when  printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance --
          recommitted to the Committee on Finance in accordance with Senate Rule
          6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted  as
          amended  and  recommitted  to  said committee -- committee discharged,
          bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended  and  recommitted  to  said
          committee  -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
          amended and recommitted to said committee
 
        AN ACT to amend the executive law, the public authorities law and  chap-
          ter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port authority of New York
          and  New  Jersey,  in  relation  to  establishing  the law enforcement
          misconduct investigative office
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 75 to
     2  read as follows:
     3    § 75. Law enforcement misconduct investigative office.   1.  Jurisdic-
     4  tion.  This  section shall, subject to the limitations contained in this
     5  section, confer upon the law enforcement misconduct investigative office
     6  jurisdiction over all covered agencies. For the purposes of this section
     7  "covered agency" means a police  agency  of  any  political  subdivision
     8  within the state, including authorities or agencies maintaining a police
     9  force  or  police  forces  of  individuals defined as police officers in
    10  section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law,  provided  however,  covered
    11  agency  does  not include any agency under the jurisdiction of the state
    12  inspector general pursuant to article four-A of the executive  law,  the
    13  metropolitan  transportation  authority  inspector  general  pursuant to
    14  section  one thousand two hundred seventy-nine of the public authorities
    15  law, or the port authority inspector general  pursuant  to  chapter  one
    16  hundred  fifty-four  of  the  laws  of nineteen twenty-one.   Wherever a
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09532-10-0
        S. 3595--C                          2
 
     1  covered agency is a board, commission,  a  public  authority  or  public
     2  benefit corporation, the head of the agency is the chairperson thereof.
     3    2. Establishment and organization. (a) There is hereby established the
     4  law  enforcement  misconduct  investigative  office in the department of
     5  law. The head of the office shall be a deputy attorney general who shall
     6  be appointed by the attorney general.
     7    (b) Such deputy attorney general may appoint one or more assistants to
     8  serve at his or her pleasure.
     9    (c) The salary for the head of such office shall be established within
    10  the limit of funds available therefore; provided, however,  such  salary
    11  shall be no less than the salaries of certain state officers holding the
    12  positions  indicated  in paragraph (a) of subdivision one of section one
    13  hundred sixty-nine of this chapter.
    14    (d) The mission of the law enforcement misconduct investigative office
    15  shall be to review, study, audit and make  recommendations  relating  to
    16  the  operations,  policies,  programs  and  practices, including ongoing
    17  partnerships with other law enforcement agencies, of state and local law
    18  enforcement agencies with the goal of enhancing the effectiveness of law
    19  enforcement, increasing public safety, protecting  civil  liberties  and
    20  civil  rights,  ensuring  compliance with constitutional protections and
    21  local, state and federal laws, and increasing the public's confidence in
    22  law enforcement.
    23    3. Functions and duties. The deputy attorney general  shall  have  the
    24  following duties and responsibilities:
    25    (a) receive and investigate complaints from any source, or upon his or
    26  her  own initiative, concerning allegations of corruption, fraud, use of
    27  excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of interest  or  abuse  in
    28  any covered agency;
    29    (b)  inform  the heads of covered agencies of such allegations and the
    30  progress of investigations related thereto, unless special circumstances
    31  require confidentiality;
    32    (c) determine with respect to such  allegations  whether  disciplinary
    33  action,  civil  or  criminal prosecution, or further investigation by an
    34  appropriate federal, state or local agency is warranted, and  to  assist
    35  in  such  investigations,  if requested by such federal, state, or local
    36  agency;
    37    (d) prepare and release to the  public  written  reports  of  investi-
    38  gations,  as  appropriate and to the extent permitted by law, subject to
    39  redaction to protect the confidentiality of witnesses and other informa-
    40  tion that would be exempt from  disclosure  under  article  six  of  the
    41  public  officers law. The release of all or portions of such reports may
    42  be temporarily deferred to protect the confidentiality of ongoing inves-
    43  tigations;
    44    (e) review and examine periodically the  policies  and  procedures  of
    45  covered  agencies  with  regard  to  the  prevention  and  detection  of
    46  corruption, fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity,  conflicts
    47  of interest and abuse;
    48    (f)  recommend  remedial  action  to  prevent or eliminate corruption,
    49  fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of  interest
    50  and abuse in covered agencies; and
    51    (g)  investigate patterns, practices, systemic issues, or trends iden-
    52  tified by analyzing actions,  claims,  complaints,  and  investigations,
    53  including,  but not limited to, any patterns or trends regarding depart-
    54  ments, precincts, and commands; and
    55    (h) on an annual basis, submit to the governor, the attorney  general,
    56  the  temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the
        S. 3595--C                          3
 
     1  minority leader of the senate and the minority leader of  the  assembly,
     2  no later than December thirty-first, a report summarizing the activities
     3  of  the office and recommending specific changes to state law to further
     4  the mission of the law enforcement misconduct investigative office.
     5    4. Powers. The deputy attorney general shall have the power to:
     6    (a) subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses;
     7    (b) administer oaths or affirmations and examine witnesses under oath;
     8    (c)  require the production of any books and papers deemed relevant or
     9  material to any investigation, examination or review;
    10    (d) notwithstanding any law to  the  contrary,  examine  and  copy  or
    11  remove  documents or records of any kind prepared, maintained or held by
    12  any covered agency;
    13    (e) require any officer or employee in  a  covered  agency  to  answer
    14  questions concerning any matter related to the performance of his or her
    15  official duties. No statement or other evidence derived therefrom may be
    16  used  against such officer or employee in any subsequent criminal prose-
    17  cution other than for perjury or contempt arising from  such  testimony.
    18  The  refusal  of  any  officer  or employee to answer questions shall be
    19  cause for removal from office or employment or other appropriate  penal-
    20  ty;
    21    (f)  monitor the implementation by covered agencies of any recommenda-
    22  tions made by the law enforcement misconduct investigative office; and
    23    (g) perform any other functions that are necessary or  appropriate  to
    24  fulfill the duties and responsibilities of office.
    25    5.  Responsibilities  of covered agencies, officers and employees. (a)
    26  Every officer or employee in a covered agency shall report  promptly  to
    27  the  law  enforcement  misconduct  investigative  office any information
    28  concerning corruption, fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity,
    29  conflicts of interest or abuse by another officer or  employee  relating
    30  to his or her office or employment, or by a person having business deal-
    31  ings with a covered agency relating to those dealings. The knowing fail-
    32  ure  of  any officer or employee to so report shall be cause for removal
    33  from office or employment or other appropriate penalty. Any  officer  or
    34  employee  who  acts pursuant to this subdivision by reporting to the law
    35  enforcement misconduct investigative office  shall  not  be  subject  to
    36  dismissal, discipline or other adverse personnel action.
    37    (b) Upon receiving at least five complaints from five or more individ-
    38  uals  relating  to  at least five separate incidents involving a certain
    39  officer or employee within two years, the head  of  any  covered  agency
    40  shall  refer  such complaints to the law enforcement misconduct investi-
    41  gative office for review. The law enforcement  misconduct  investigative
    42  office  shall  investigate  such  complaints  to  determine  whether the
    43  subject officer or employee has engaged in  a  pattern  or  practice  of
    44  misconduct,  use of excessive force, or acts of dishonesty. The referral
    45  and investigation pursuant to this subdivision shall be in  addition  to
    46  and  shall  not  supersede  any civil, criminal, administrative or other
    47  action or proceeding relating to such complaints or the subject  officer
    48  or employee.
    49    (c)  The  head  of  any  covered agency shall advise the governor, the
    50  temporary president of the senate, the  speaker  of  the  assembly,  the
    51  minority  leader  of  the senate and the minority leader of the assembly
    52  within ninety days of the issuance of a report by  the  law  enforcement
    53  misconduct investigative office as to the remedial action that the agen-
    54  cy has taken in response to any recommendation for such action contained
    55  in such report.
        S. 3595--C                          4
 
     1    (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impede, infringe, or
     2  diminish the rights, privileges, benefits or remedies that accrue to any
     3  employee  pursuant  to  any  agreement  entered into pursuant to article
     4  fourteen of the civil service law.
     5    § 2. Section 53 of the executive law is amended by adding a new subdi-
     6  vision 1-a to read as follows:
     7    1-a.  receive  and investigate complaints from any source, or upon his
     8  or her own initiative, concerning allegations of corruption, fraud,  use
     9  of excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of interest or abuse by
    10  any police officer in a covered agency.
    11    §  3.  Subdivision  4 of section 1279 of the public authorities law is
    12  amended by adding a new paragraph (a-1) to read as follows:
    13    (a-1) to receive and investigate complaints from any source,  or  upon
    14  his  or her own initiative, concerning allegations of corruption, fraud,
    15  use of excessive force, criminal  activity,  conflicts  of  interest  or
    16  abuse  by any police officer under the jurisdiction of the office of the
    17  metropolitan transportation authority.
    18    § 4. Paragraph a of subdivision 6 of article 4 of section 1 of chapter
    19  154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port authority of New  York  and
    20  New Jersey, as amended by chapter 559 of the laws of 2015, is amended to
    21  read as follows:
    22    a. The inspector general shall be responsible for receiving and inves-
    23  tigating,  where appropriate, all complaints regarding fraud, waste, and
    24  abuse by commissioners, officers, and employees of the port authority or
    25  third-parties doing business with  the  port  authority.  The  inspector
    26  general  shall  also receive and investigate complaints from any source,
    27  or upon his or her own initiative, concerning allegations of corruption,
    28  fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of  interest
    29  or  abuse  by  any  police  officer  under  the jurisdiction of the Port
    30  Authority. The inspector general shall also be responsible for  conduct-
    31  ing  investigations  upon the inspector general's own initiative, as the
    32  inspector general shall deem appropriate.
    33    § 5. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
    34  sion, section or part of this act shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of
    35  competent  jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
    36  impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
    37  its  operation  to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
    38  or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
    39  ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
    40  the legislature that this act would  have  been  enacted  even  if  such
    41  invalid provisions had not been included herein.
    42    §  6. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding
    43  the date on which it shall have become a  law,  provided  however,  that
    44  section  four  of this act shall take effect upon the enactment into law
    45  by the state of New Jersey of legislation  having  an  identical  effect
    46  with this act, but if the state of New Jersey shall have already enacted
    47  such  legislation, this act shall take effect immediately; provided that
    48  the attorney general shall notify the legislative bill drafting  commis-
    49  sion  upon  the  occurrence of the enactment of the legislation provided
    50  for in section four of this act in order that the commission  may  main-
    51  tain  an accurate and timely effective data base of the official text of
    52  the laws of the state of New York in  furtherance  of  effectuating  the
    53  provisions  of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the
    54  public officers law.