Relates to accurate reporting of crime statistics in New York city

4 Co-sponsors

• Martin Malavé Dilan
• Velmanette Montgomery
• Bill Perkins
• John L. Sampson

BILL NUMBER:S6531

Title of bill

An act to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to accurate reporting of crime statistics

Purpose or general idea of the bill

Requires the NYC Police Department to maintain crime statistics compiled from correctional facilities, detentions centers, and inmate transportation facilities separate from crime statistics compiled in neighborhoods delineated by police precincts.

Summary of specific provisions

Section 1. Section 14-150 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new subdivision d to read as follows:

d. 1. The department shall ensure that crime statistics and similar data are reported in a manner that is accurate and not misleading when a precinct includes one or correctional facilities, detention facilities, transportation facilities or other locations that are within the boundaries of the precinct but to which officers of the precinct are not assigned the duty to patrol and respond to incidents.

d. 2. When providing an interactive crime map on the city's website pursuant to subdivision r of section one thousand seventy-two of the New York city charter or when issuing any report involving crime statistics or similar data to the public, either in print or electronic form, which reports such data for an entire precinct, the department shall also report on a disaggregated basis: (i) any such data representing incidents attributable to those locations within the boundaries of a precinct to which officers of the precinct are assigned to patrol and respond to incidents; and (ii) any such data representing incidents attributable to correctional facility, detention facility, transportation facility or other location that is within the boundaries of the precinct, but to which officers of the precinct are not assigned the duty to patrol and respond to incidents.

Section 2. This act shall take effect January 1, 2015

Justification

Currently, crimes occurring at correctional facilities located in the same zip code as communities and neighborhoods are lumped together and present a skewed accounting of crime activity in such neighborhoods. This data is used by home, property and care insurers to determine policy rates.

Since the data is skewed by criminal activity at correctional facilities, insurance rates paid by adjacent resident are higher than they should be. In addition, neighborhood demographics that use this data present art image of for impacted communities that indicate higher rates of crime then is actually the case. This legislation will resolve this problem by maintaining separate crime statistics involving correctional facilities.

Prior legislative history

2014: New bill in Senate/A.7481 - Referred to Cities committee 2013: A.7481 - Referred to Cities committee

Fiscal implications for state and local government

None

Effective date

This act shall take effect January 1, 2015; provided that local law of the city of New York requiring the department of information technology and telecommunications to create and maintain an interactive crime mapping website, as proposed in Int. 0984-2012. Otherwise Section 1 of this act will take effect on the same date and in manner of such a local law.