S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4498
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 6, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SALAZAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
 
 AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the public  officers  law,
   in  relation  to removing the citizenship requirement for police offi-
   cers and firefighters

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  This  act  shall be known and may be cited as the "we too
 serve NY act".
   § 2.  The general municipal law is amended by  adding  a  new  section
 209-h to read as follows:
   § 209-H. CITIZENSHIP REQUIREMENTS OF POLICE OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS.
 NOTWITHSTANDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL OR LOCAL LAW OR ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
 TO  THE  CONTRARY,  THE  LOCAL  GOVERNING  BODIES OF THE SEVERAL CITIES,
 TOWNS, VILLAGES, POLICE AND FIRE  DISTRICTS  OF  THE  STATE  ARE  HEREBY
 AUTHORIZED  TO  REMOVE, BY LOCAL LAW, RULE OR ORDINANCE, ANY CITIZENSHIP
 REQUIREMENTS FROM THE QUALIFICATIONS OF POLICE OFFICERS  AND  FIREFIGHT-
 ERS.
   § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 3 of the public officers law, as amended
 by chapter 251 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
   1. No person shall be capable of holding a civil office who shall not,
 at  the  time  [he  or  she]  SUCH  PERSON shall be chosen thereto, have
 attained the age of eighteen years, except that in  the  case  of  youth
 boards,  youth  commissions, recreation commissions, or community boards
 in the city of New York only, members of such boards or commissions  may
 be  under  the  age of eighteen years, but must have attained the age of
 sixteen years on or  before  appointment  to  such  youth  board,  youth
 commission, recreation commission, or community board in the city of New
 York, be a citizen of the United States OR LEGALLY AUTHORIZED TO WORK IN
 THE  UNITED STATES UNDER FEDERAL LAW, a resident of the state, and if it
 be a local office, a resident of the political subdivision or  municipal
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01642-01-5
              

 S. 4498                             2
 
 corporation  of  the  state  for  which [he or she] SUCH PERSON shall be
 chosen, or within which the electors electing [him or her]  SUCH  PERSON
 reside,  or  within  which [his or her] SUCH PERSON'S official functions
 are  required  to  be  exercised[,  or  who  shall have been or shall be
 convicted of a violation of  the  selective  draft  act  of  the  United
 States,  enacted May eighteenth, nineteen hundred seventeen, or the acts
 amendatory or supplemental thereto, or of the federal selective training
 and service act of nineteen hundred forty or the acts amendatory thereof
 or supplemental thereto].
   § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 3-b of the public officers law, as sepa-
 rately amended by chapters 263 and 371 of the laws of 2021,  is  amended
 to read as follows:
   1.  No  sheriff  of  a  county, mayor of a city, or official, or other
 persons authorized by law to appoint special  deputy  sheriffs,  special
 constables,  marshals, police officers, or peace officers in this state,
 to preserve the public peace or quell public disturbance, shall hereaft-
 er, at the instance of any agent, society, association  or  corporation,
 or  otherwise,  appoint  as  such  special  deputy,  special  constable,
 marshal, police officer, or peace officer, any person who shall not be a
 citizen of the United States OR LEGALLY AUTHORIZED TO WORK IN THE UNITED
 STATES UNDER FEDERAL LAW and a resident of the state of  New  York,  and
 entitled to vote therein at the time of [his] SUCH PERSON'S appointment,
 and a resident of the same county as the mayor or sheriff or other offi-
 cial making such appointment; provided, however, that when, in the judg-
 ment  of  a sheriff of a county except those counties within the city of
 New York a situation exists which requires temporary additional  assist-
 ance, such sheriff may appoint special deputy sheriffs who are non-resi-
 dents  of  the  county  but residents of the state of New York who shall
 hold office until such time as the appointing  sheriff  determines  that
 the  situation  no longer exists; and no person shall assume or exercise
 the functions, powers, duties or privileges incident  and  belonging  to
 the  office  of  special  deputy  sheriff,  special constables, marshal,
 police officer, or peace officer, without having  first  received  [his]
 appointment in writing from the authority lawfully appointing [him] SUCH
 PERSON.   Nothing herein contained, however, shall apply to the appoint-
 ment of a non-resident, as an emergency special deputy sheriff,  by  the
 sheriff  of  any county to act when such sheriff has declared a state of
 special emergency pursuant to the  provisions  of  section  two  hundred
 nine-f  of  the general municipal law. Provided further, that any person
 otherwise qualified who resides in either the county of  Nassau  or  the
 county of Suffolk may at the instance of a society for the prevention of
 cruelty  to  animals  be appointed as a peace officer by the appropriate
 appointing official of either of such counties notwithstanding that such
 appointee does not reside in the same county as the appointing official.
 Provided, further, that any person qualified who  resides  in  a  county
 adjacent  to  the  county of Allegany may at the instance of the society
 for the prevention of cruelty to animals for the county of  Allegany  be
 appointed  as  a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official of
 the county of Allegany. Provided, further, that any person qualified who
 resides in a county adjacent to the county of Albany may at the instance
 of the society for the prevention of cruelty to animals for  the  county
 of  Albany be appointed as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing
 official of the county of Albany. Provided,  further,  that  any  person
 otherwise  qualified  who resides in the county of Orange or Westchester
 may at the instance of the society for  the  prevention  of  cruelty  to
 animals  for  the  county of Rockland be appointed as a peace officer by
 S. 4498                             3
 
 the appropriate appointing official of the county of Rockland. Provided,
 further, that any person qualified who resides in a county  adjacent  to
 the  county  of  Putnam  may  at  the  instance  of  the society for the
 prevention  of  cruelty to animals for the county of Putnam be appointed
 as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official in the  county
 of Putnam. Provided, further, that any person qualified who resides in a
 county  adjacent  to  the  county  of  Monroe may at the instance of the
 Humane Society of Rochester and Monroe  County  for  the  Prevention  of
 Cruelty  to Animals, Inc., doing business as Lollypop Farm, be appointed
 as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official in the  county
 of Monroe.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.