NY State Senate Bill 2021-S4553

Senate Bill S4553

2021-2022 Legislative Session

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Mental Health Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to mental health
Feb 05, 2021	referred to mental health

2021-S4553 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A9676
Current Committee:: Senate Mental Health
Law Section:: Mental Hygiene
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2023-2024: S5148, A2276
2025-2026: A1149

2021-S4553 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the New York State Office of Mental Health to study the effects that awareness of or exposure to police shootings or killings of unarmed African Americans has on the mental health of African Americans in New York state and to deliver a finding of the results of such study to the governor and the legislative leaders.

2021-S4553 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S4553

SPONSOR: PARKER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to require the New York State Office of Mental Health to study
the effects that awareness of or exposure to police shootings or kill-
ings of unarmed African Americans has on the mental health of African
Americans in New York state and to deliver a finding of the results of
such study to the governor and the legislative leaders

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

The purpose of the bill is to study the spillover effects that police
brutality has on the mental health of African Americans in New York.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Provides that the Office of Mental Health shall conduct a
study of the effects that awareness of or exposure to police shootings
or killing of unarmed African Americans has on mental health. The study

shall: (a) identify mental health risks and harm; (b) compare the
differences between the self-reported mental health of African Americans
and other racial groups; (c) use data from the CDC and the Mapping
police violence database; (d) recommend how to increase accessibility
and affordability of mental health profession for racial and ethnic
minorities; (e) recommend how to decrease stigma, if any, of mental
health and mental health treatment.

Section 2. No later than January 1, 2022, the Office of Mental Health
shall prepare a report and submit to the governor, the temporary presi-
dent of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority leader of
the senate and the minority leader of the assembly.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Black Americans are nearly three times more likely than are white Ameri-
cans to be killed by police officers and five time more likely than are
white Americans to be killed unarmed. Studies have shown that Racism,
like trauma, can be experienced vicariously; therefore, police killings
of unarmed Black Americans might comprise the mental health of other
Black Americans. This bill would study the causal link of police killing
to the mental health of African Americans in New York and help to
provide guidance as to how to increase access to mental health provid-
ers.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2021-S4553 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4553
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 5, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health
 
 AN ACT to require the New York State Office of Mental  Health  to  study
   the effects that awareness of or exposure to police shootings or kill-
   ings  of unarmed African Americans has on the mental health of African
   Americans in New York state and to deliver a finding of the results of
   such study to the governor and the legislative leaders
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. The New York State Office of Mental Health shall conduct a
 study of the effects that awareness of or exposure to  police  shootings
 or  killings  of  unarmed  African Americans has on the mental health of
 African Americans in New York state. The study shall:
   (a) identify the mental health risks and harm  that  awareness  of  or
 exposure  to  police  shootings or killings of unarmed African Americans
 has on the self-reported mental health of adults in the state;
   (b) compare the differences between the self-reported mental health of
 African Americans aware of or exposed to such shootings or killings with
 the self-reported mental health of other ethnic or racial  groups  aware
 of  or  exposed to such shootings or killings, including but not limited
 to Hispanic or Latino, Black, White, Asian or Pacific Islander groups;
   (c) in assessing such harm or risks, utilize data from the Centers  of
 Disease  Control,  the  Prevention  Behavioral  Risk Factor Surveillance
 System (PBRFSS), and the Mapping Police Violence (MPV); database
   (d) contain recommendations as to how to  increase  accessibility  and
 affordability  of  mental  health  professionals  for  racial and ethnic
 minorities, including African Americans; and
   (e) contain recommendations as to how to decrease stigma, if  any,  of
 mental health and mental health treatment in racial and ethnic minority,
 including African American, communities.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03560-01-1

 S. 4553                             2
 
   2.  No  later than January 1, 2023 the New York State Office of Mental
 Health shall prepare and submit to the governor, the temporary president
 of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority leader  of  the
 senate  and the minority leader of the assembly, a report containing the
 study's  findings  and  recommendation  for legislative or other actions
 that can be undertaken to address the mental health risks and harm iden-
 tified by the study.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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