What's happening
This bill expands the law enforcement misconduct investigative office's jurisdiction to include more agencies, while excluding certain inspector general jurisdictions.
Why it matters
Expands oversight to more local law enforcement agencies. The bill broadens the definition of “covered agency” to include any agency of a political subdivision within the state that maintains a police force, increasing the number of law enforcement bodies subject to independent misconduct investigations.
Clarifies and limits exceptions to oversight. By explicitly excluding agencies, public authorities, or entities already under the jurisdiction of the state inspector general, MTA inspector general, or Port Authority inspector general, the bill avoids overlapping investigations and defines clear lines of accountability.
Could increase investigative scrutiny and transparency. With more local police forces falling under the Law Enforcement Misconduct Investigative Office, complaints or patterns of misconduct in smaller or less visible agencies may receive more consistent and independent review, potentially leading to improved public trust and accountability.
Removes outdated or confusing administrative language. The bill deletes prior references to public authority boards and chairpersons as agency heads, streamlining the law and clarifying which agencies and individuals fall under the office’s jurisdiction.
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Who cares
Local agencies maintaining police forces
The bill would define covered agencies as agencies of political subdivisions that maintain police forces, rather than specifically as police agencies.
State, MTA and Port Authority inspectors general
The bill would expressly exclude public authorities and other entities under their jurisdiction from the law enforcement misconduct investigative office’s jurisdiction.
Chairs of boards, commissions and public authorities
The bill would remove the provision designating the chairperson as the agency head when a covered agency is a board, commission, public authority or public benefit corporation.
Headline styles
Expand Misconduct Office Jurisdiction
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Substituted by S8539
- Rules report cal.151
- Reported
- Reported referred to rules
- Referred to ways and means
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Expand Police Watchdog Coverage
Signed by Governor · Sponsor Kevin S. Parker
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
10614
IN ASSEMBLY
June 9, 2020
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Taylor) -read once and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to the law enforcement misconduct investigative office
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 75 of the executive law, as added by a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the executive law, the public authorities law and chapter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port authority of New York and New Jersey relating to establishing the law enforcement misconduct investigative office, as proposed in legislative bill numbers S.3595-C and A.10002-B, is amended to read as follows:
1. Jurisdiction. This section shall, subject to the limitations contained in this section, confer upon the law enforcement misconduct investigative office jurisdiction over all covered agencies. For the purposes of this section "covered agency" means [a police] an agency of any political subdivision within the state[, including authorities or agencies] maintaining a police force or police forces of individuals defined as police officers in section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law, provided however, covered agency does not include any agency, public authority, or other entity under the jurisdiction of the state inspector general pursuant to article four-A of the executive law, the metropolitan transportation authority inspector general pursuant to section one thousand two hundred seventy-nine of the public authorities law, or the port authority inspector general pursuant to chapter one hundred fifty-four of the laws of nineteen twenty-one. [Wherever a covered agency is a board, commission, a public authority or public benefit corporation, the head of the agency is the chairperson thereof.]
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as a chapter of the laws of 2020 amending the executive law, the public authorities law and chapter 154 of the laws of 1921 relating to the port authority of New York and New Jersey relating to establishing the law enforcement misconduct investigative office, as proposed in legislative bill numbers S.3595-C and A.10002-B, takes effect.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09532-13-0
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.