Update Peace Officer Designations

Section 1. Sections 2.10 and 2.16 of the criminal procedure law are REPEALED and a new section 2.10 is added to read as follows: § 2.10 Persons designated as peace officers.

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local law or charter to the contrary, the following persons shall have the powers of, and shall be peace officers and shall have the authority to carry, possess, repair, or dispose of a firearm without an appropriate license therefor issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law:

(a) Parole officers and warrant officers.

(a-1) Parole revocation specialists.

(b) Probation officers.

(c) Officials of the department of corrections and community supervision and correction officers of any state correctional facility, appointed and designated by the commissioner as a peace officer; correction officers of any penal correctional institution appointed and designated by the sheriff of a county as a peace officer; and cell block attendants employed by a police department appointed and designated by the head of a police department as a peace officer.

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD04958-03-9

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(d) Uniformed court officers, court clerks, marshalls, and deputy marshalls of the unified court system; court security officers, marshalls or court attendants appointed and designated as peace officers by a city, town, village or sheriff.

(e) Bridge and tunnel officers, sergeants and lieutenants of the Triborough bridge and tunnel authority.

(f) The sheriff, undersheriff, and deputy sheriffs of the city of New York and sworn officers of the Westchester county department of public safety services appointed after January thirty-first, nineteen hundred eighty-three to the title of public safety officer and who performs the functions previously performed by a Westchester county deputy sheriff on or prior to such date.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local law or charter to the contrary, the following persons shall have the powers of, and shall be peace officers, provided however that nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such officers to carry, possess, repair or dispose of a firearm unless the appropriate license therefor has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law unless such person was appointed prior to the effective date of this act:

(a) Constables or police constables of a town or village, provided such designation is not inconsistent with local law and appointed and designated by the town or village as peace officers.

(b) Bay constables of the village of Mamaroneck and the towns of Hempstead, Oyster Bay, South Hampton, North Hempstead and Islip who prior to April third, nineteen hundred ninety-eight served as harbormaster for such town and whose position was reclassified as bay constable for such town prior to such date, appointed and designated by the town as peace officers.

(c) Harbor masters appointed and designated by a county, city, town or village as peace officers.

(d) Officers or agents of a duly incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty to animals.

(e) Persons employed by a state or county or political subdivision of the state or county assigned to the investigation and enforcement of any criminal or tax law and designated by the state or county subdivision as a peace officer.

(f) Uniformed housing guards of the Buffalo municipal housing authority.

(g) Persons appointed and designated as peace officers by the Niagara frontier transportation authority, pursuant to subdivision thirteen of section twelve hundred ninety-nine-e of the public authorities law.

3. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local law or charter to the contrary, the following persons shall have the powers of, and shall be peace officers provided however that nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such officers to carry, possess, repair or dispose of a firearm unless the appropriate license therefor has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law and the employer has authorized such officer to possess a firearm during any phase of the officer's on-duty employment:

(a) Supervising fire inspectors, fire inspectors, fire marshalls, chief fire marshalls, and assistant fire marshalls, fire prevention employees, fire investigators employed by and appointed and designated as a peace officer by the state, a county, city, or a political subdivision of the state, county or city or a fire department when acting

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pursuant to their special duties in matters arising under the laws relating to fires, the extinguishment thereof and fire perils.

(b) Persons employed by a college, university, sheriff or police department as members of the security force of such college or university for the protection of grounds, buildings, and property, the prevention of crime and enforcement of law and order and the enforcement of such rules and regulations of such college or university when designated by the college or university as a peace officer. The geographic area of employment for peace officers employed by the University of Rochester shall include any public street and sidewalk that abuts the grounds, buildings or property of such university. Special deputy sheriffs appointed by the sheriff of Tompkins county for the protection of the grounds, buildings and property of Ithaca college may, when requested by the sheriff, provide assistance on any public highway which crosses or adjoins such property. Syracuse University peace officers appointed by the chief law enforcement officer of the city of Syracuse for the protection of the grounds, buildings and property of Syracuse University may, when requested by the chief law enforcement officer of the city of Syracuse or his or her designee, including by means of written protocols agreed to by the chief law enforcement officer of the city of Syracuse and Syracuse University, provide assistance on any public highway which crosses or adjoins such grounds or premises. Nothing in this paragraph shall be deemed to limit any of the specific training requirements set forth in the education law.

(c) Parole revocation specialists in the department of corrections and community notification.

(d) The welfare inspector general and investigators designated by the welfare inspector general.

(e) The workers' compensation fraud inspector general and investigators designated by the workers' compensation fraud inspector general.

(f) Parks, recreation, or forest rangers employed by and appointed and designated as peace officers by the state, a county or a political subdivision of the state or county.

(g) Officers or agents of a duly incorporated society for the prevention of cruelty to children in Rockland county.

(h) Special policemen designated by the commissioner and the directors of in-patient facilities in the office of mental health pursuant to section 7.25 of the mental hygiene law, and special policemen designated by the commissioner and the directors of facilities under his jurisdiction in the office for people with developmental disabilities pursuant to section 13.25 of the mental hygiene law.

(i) Persons designated as special policemen by the director of a hospital in the department of health pursuant to section four hundred fifty-five of the public health law.

(j) Uniformed enforcement forces of the New York state thruway authority, when acting pursuant to subdivision two of section three hundred sixty-one of the public authorities law.

(k) Employees of the department of health designated pursuant to section thirty-three hundred eighty-five of the public health law.

(l) Bay constables of the city of Rye, the village of South Nyack and bay constables of the towns of East Hampton, Riverhead, Southold, Islip, Shelter Island, Brookhaven, Babylon, Smithtown and Huntington appointed and designated by the town, city or village as peace officers.

(m) Patrolmen appointed and designated by the Lake George park commission as peace officers.

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(n) Peace officers appointed and designated pursuant to the provisions of the New York state defense emergency act, as set forth in chapter seven hundred eighty-four of the laws of nineteen hundred fifty-one, as amended, when acting pursuant to their special duties during a period of attack or imminent attack by enemy forces, or during official drills called to combat natural or man-made disasters, or during official drills in preparation for an attack by enemy forces or in preparation for a natural or man-made disaster; provided that such officer shall have the powers set forth in section 2.20 of this article only during a period of imminent or actual attack by enemy forces and during drills authorized under section twenty-nine-b of the executive law, providing for the use of civil defense forces in disasters. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, such officers shall have the power to direct and control traffic during official drills in preparation for an attack by enemy forces or in preparation for combating natural or man-made disasters; however, this grant does not include any of the other powers set forth in section 2.20 of this article.

(o) New York city special patrolmen appointed by the police commissioner provided, however, that nothing in this paragraph shall be deemed to authorize such officer to carry a firearm for which the appropriate license therefor has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law unless the employer has authorized such officer to possess a firearm during any phase of the officers on-duty employment. Special patrolmen shall have the powers set forth in section 2.20 of this article only when they are acting pursuant to their special duties; provided, however, that the following categories of New York city special patrolmen shall have such powers whether or not they are acting pursuant to their special duties: school safety officers employed by the board of education of the city of New York; parking control specialists, taxi and limousine inspectors, urban park rangers and evidence and property control specialists employed by the city of New York; and further provided that, with respect to the aforementioned categories of New York city special patrolmen, where such a special patrolman has been appointed by the police commissioner and, upon the expiration of such appointment the police commissioner has neither renewed such appointment nor explicitly determined that such appointment shall not be renewed, such appointment shall remain in full force and effect indefinitely, until such time as the police commissioner expressly determines to either renew or terminate such appointment.

(p) All officers and members of the uniformed force of the New York city fire department as set forth and subject to any limitations contained in the administrative code of the city of New York.

(q) Special policemen for horse racing, appointed and designated pursuant to sections two hundred twenty-three, three hundred twelve and four hundred twelve of the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law.

(r) Waterfront and airport investigators, pursuant to subdivision four of section 5-b of part II of the waterfront and airport commission act.

(s) Special patrolmen of a political subdivision, appointed pursuant to section two hundred nine-v of the general municipal law.

(t) Special officers employed by the city of New York or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation. The New York city health and hospitals corporation shall employ peace officers appointed pursuant to this subdivision to perform the patrol, investigation, and maintenance of the peace duties of special officer, senior special officer and hospital security officer, provided however that nothing in this para-

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graph shall prohibit managerial, supervisory, or state licensed or certified professional employees of the corporation from performing such duties where they are incidental to their usual duties, or shall prohibit police officers employed by the city of New York from performing these duties.

(u) Fire police squads organized pursuant to section two hundred nine-c of the general municipal law, at such times as the fire department, fire company or an emergency rescue and first aid squad of the fire department or fire company are on duty, or when, on orders of the chief of the fire department or fire company of which they are members, they are separately engaged in response to a call for assistance pursuant to the provisions of section two hundred nine of the general municipal law.

(v) Housing patrolmen of the Mount Vernon housing authority, appointed and designated as peace officers and acting pursuant to rules of the Mount Vernon housing authority.

(w) Persons appointed and designated as peace officers by the Sea Gate Association pursuant to the provisions of chapter three hundred ninetyone of the laws of nineteen hundred forty.

(x) New York state air base security guards when they are appointed and designated as peace officers under military regulations promulgated by the chief of staff to the governor and when performing their duties as air base security guards pursuant to orders issued by appropriate military authority.