NY State Senate Bill 2023-S4921

Senate Bill S4921

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Creates a temporary state commission relating to local correctional facilities in upstate New York

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Crime Victims, Crime And Correction 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 03, 2024	referred to crime victims, crime and correction
Feb 17, 2023	referred to crime victims, crime and correction

co-Sponsors

2023-S4921 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Crime Victims, Crime And Correction
Law Section:: Correctional Services
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S4842
2021-2022: S2177

2023-S4921 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Creates a temporary state commission relating to local correctional facilities in upstate New York; provides commission study shall place emphasis on medical and mental health care, overcrowding, incarcerated individual deaths, use of force, restraints, and all segregation and confinement practices and solitary confinement.

2023-S4921 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4921

SPONSOR: SEPULVEDA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act creating a temporary state commission relating to local correc-
tional facilities in upstate New York; and providing for the repeal of
such provisions upon expiration thereof

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA:

This bill creates a three-year commission to study local jails outside
of New York City, with particular emphasis on conditions of confinement,
including, but not limited to, medical and mental healthcare, over
crowding, inmate deaths, use of restraints, use of force and segregated
confinement.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1. establishes a temporary state commission on local jails to
study and make recommendations for statewide policy or reforms, specif-
ically focusing on mental health care, medical treatment, overcrowding,

restraints, inmate deaths, the use of force and segregated confinement.

Section 2. prescribes the manner in which eleven commission members will
be appointed.

Section 3. provides that commission members will receive no compen-
sation, but will be reimbursed for their expenses pertaining to the
performance of their duties.

Section 4. grants commission members unrestricted access to all local
correctional facilities across the state. Access includes the ability to
conduct confidential interviews of inmates and employee and unredacted
copies of documents. The commission is instructed to hold public hear-
ings with all the powers of a legislative committee.

Section 5. provides for reports by the commission to the governor and
legislature.

Section 6. establishes an effective date and repeal date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

While the crime rate has fallen across the state in the last several
years, overcrowding in some county jails remains a problem.  Addi-
tionally, county jails often have trouble finding and retaining medical
and mental health staff or contractors. and may lack the resources to
provide mentally ill or drug addicted inmates with effective treatment
or programming. Each county jail has different problems and policies and
must remain responsive to unique local concerns.

Even though the State Commission of Correction, itself underfunded and
understaffed, has oversight authority of the county jails, it only
establishes minimum standards for jails and does not otherwise develop
coordinated policy on conditions of confinement, programming, use of
force and medical and mental health care.


This bill would provide for a temporary commission appointed by the
governor and legislature to review the conditions in local jails outside
of New York City, report on their findings, make recommendations for
statewide policy or reforms that might be needed to provide for humane
and uniform treatment of jail inmates across the various counties, and
identify problems that may require state funding, legislation or other
state action to help sheriffs improve jail conditions. The commission
would have unfettered access to jails a cross the state and would hold
public hearings in a number of regional centers in order to receive
input from all stakeholders in the local county jails prior to issuing
its final report.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S. 2177 of 2021-22, Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction;

S. 4842 of 2019-20, Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction;

A. 4373 of 2019-20, Reported to Ways and Means, Introduced to the Senate
in 2019;

A. 7959A of 2018, Reported to Ways and Means

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be deemed
repealed three years after such date.

2023-S4921 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4921
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 17, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. SEPULVEDA, MYRIE, SALAZAR, SANDERS -- read twice and
   ordered  printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
   Crime Victims, Crime and Correction
 
 AN ACT creating a temporary state commission relating to  local  correc-
   tional facilities in upstate New York; and providing for the repeal of
   such provisions upon expiration thereof
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. A temporary state commission is hereby created to study and
 make recommendations relating to local correctional  facilities  located
 outside  of  the boundaries of a city with a population of more than one
 million people. The commission will place particular emphasis on medical
 and mental health care (including the use of private contractors), over-
 crowding, incarcerated individuals' deaths, use  of  force,  restraints,
 and  all segregation and confinement practices and solitary confinement,
 but will not be restricted to those topics.
   § 2. The commission shall consist of eleven members to be appointed as
 follows:
   a. The chairman of the temporary state commission of correction estab-
 lished pursuant to section one of this act and the executive director of
 the independent agency which conducts and coordinates the protection and
 advocacy and client assistance  programs,  as  established  pursuant  to
 subdivision  (b) of section 558 of the executive law and federal law, or
 their representatives;
   b. Nine members to be appointed as follows: three shall  be  appointed
 by  the  governor;  two shall be appointed by the temporary president of
 the senate and one by the minority leader of the senate; and  two  shall
 be  appointed  by  the  speaker  of the assembly and one by the minority
 leader of the assembly. Of the three members appointed by the  governor,
 none shall be an elected official or current employee of a local correc-
 tional facility or other branch of county government.  Such nine members

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01447-02-3

 S. 4921                             2
 
 of  the  commission  must  reside  in counties under the purview of this
 commission.  Vacancies in the appointed  membership  of  the  commission
 shall be filled in the manner provided for original appointments.
   c.  Membership on the commission shall not constitute a public office.
 The governor shall appoint the chair of the commission.
   § 3. The members of the commission shall receive no  compensation  for
 their services, but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses
 incurred in the performance of their duties pursuant to this act.
   §  4. The members of the commission shall be given unrestricted access
 to all local correctional facilities in the state, including the ability
 to conduct  confidential  interviews  of  incarcerated  individuals  and
 employees  of  such  facilities  and to receive unredacted copies of any
 documents maintained by such facilities,  although  documents  that  are
 confidential under state or federal law may not be disclosed to individ-
 uals or organizations otherwise unauthorized to obtain such documents by
 the  commission  or its members. The commission shall also hold at least
 one public hearing in each of the cities  of  Albany,  Buffalo,  Platts-
 burgh,  Poughkeepsie,  Rochester, Syracuse and Utica, and shall have all
 the powers of a legislative committee pursuant to the legislative law.
   § 5. The commission shall issue periodic reports, no less than annual-
 ly, of its findings and publish a final report of its findings and  make
 any  recommendations it may deem necessary and appropriate to the gover-
 nor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly,
 the chairperson of  the  senate  crime  victims,  crime  and  correction
 committee,  and  the chairperson of the assembly committee on correction
 no later than three years after the effective  date  of  this  act.  The
 report  shall also make recommendations for needed regulatory changes to
 the chairperson of the state commission of correction.
   § 6. This act shall take effect immediately and shall  expire  and  be
 deemed repealed 3 years after such date.

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Senate Bill S4921

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Sponsored By

Luis R. Sepúlveda