Requires the New York city police department to release certain information to research institutions regarding incidence of cancer in World Trade Center police responders; requires the New York city police department to produce its own analysis of such incidence and to publish the results thereof.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6509
IN SENATE
February 17, 2012
___________
Introduced by Sen. SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities
AN ACT to require the New York city police department to release certain
information regarding incidence of cancer in World Trade Center police
responders
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. As used in this act the following terms shall have the
2 following meanings:
3 (a) "Police officers who participated in World Trade Center rescue,
4 recovery or cleanup operations" shall mean any police officer, as
5 defined by subdivision 34 of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law,
6 who: (i) participated in the rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations at
7 the World Trade Center site; (ii) worked at the Fresh Kills Land Fill in
8 New York; (iii) worked at the New York city morgue or the temporary
9 morgue on pier locations on the west side of Manhattan; or (iv) manned
10 the barges between the west side of Manhattan and the Fresh Kills Land
11 Fill in New York. For purposes of this section, "World Trade Center
12 site" shall mean anywhere below a line starting from the Hudson River
13 and Canal Street; east on Canal Street to Pike Street; south on Pike
14 Street to the East River; and extending to the lower tip of Manhattan.
15 (b) "Contracted as a result of the police officer's participation in
16 World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations" shall mean
17 that: (i) the police officer successfully passed a physical examination
18 prior to such rescue, recovery or cleanup operation, which examination
19 failed to reveal any evidence of a condition of cancer; and (ii) such
20 condition of cancer was diagnosed after participation in such rescue,
21 recovery or cleanup operation.
22 § 2. (a) Notwithstanding articles 6 and 6-A of the public officers
23 law, the New York city police department shall be required to transmit
24 to the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York city within thirty days of
25 the effective date of this act, and thereafter, upon request therefor
26 from an institution of higher education or another research institution
27 engaged in study relating to the incidence of cancer in police officers
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14569-02-2
S. 6509 2
1 who participated in the World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup
2 operations, to such institution within thirty days of such a request,
3 information in its possession concerning every police officer who: (i)
4 participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup oper-
5 ations; (ii) was employed by such department at the time of such rescue,
6 recovery or cleanup operations; and (iii) who, within the best knowledge
7 of such department, has contracted any condition of cancer as a result
8 of the police officer's participation in World Trade Center rescue,
9 recovery or cleanup operations.
10 (b) Upon the failure or refusal to comply with the requirements of
11 this subdivision, Mount Sinai Medical Center, the requesting institu-
12 tion, the patrolmen's benevolent association or an individual police
13 officer who participated in the World Trade Center rescue, recovery or
14 cleanup operations may apply to the supreme court for an order directed
15 to the person responsible requiring compliance. Upon such application
16 the court may issue such order as may be just, and a failure to comply
17 with the order of the court shall be a contempt of court and punishable
18 as such.
19 § 3. Notwithstanding articles 6 and 6-A of the public officers law,
20 the New York city police department shall be required to prepare and
21 publish an analysis of the incidence of cancer in police officers who
22 participated in the World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup oper-
23 ations, based upon information in its possession concerning every police
24 officer who: (i) participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery or
25 cleanup operations; (ii) was employed by such department at the time of
26 such rescue, recovery or cleanup operations; and (iii) who, within the
27 best knowledge of such department, has contracted any condition of
28 cancer as a result of the police officer's participation in World Trade
29 Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations.
30 § 4. Any such data or information released pursuant to section two or
31 three of this act shall contain the minimum amount of personally iden-
32 tifiable and demographic information necessary to conduct the research
33 project or analysis, provided, however, that no such data or information
34 shall be released or published that contains the names or social securi-
35 ty numbers of the subject police officers or other information that
36 directly identifies the subject police officers, unless appropriate
37 waivers are obtained from the individual police officers prior to such
38 release or publication.
39 § 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
40 have become a law.