Assembly Bill A3557

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  3557

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 27, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. PERRY -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BENJAMIN,
  GOTTFRIED,  GREENE,  JACOBS,  V. LOPEZ,  MAYERSOHN,  ORTIZ, J. RIVERA,
  N. RIVERA, WRIGHT -- read  once  and  referred  to  the  Committee  on
  Governmental Operations

AN  ACT  to  amend the general municipal law, in relation to authorizing
  the removal of citizenship requirements from police  and  firefighters
  by  local  law;  and  to amend the public officers law, in relation to
  citizenship requirements

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  The  general  municipal  law  is  amended by adding a new
section 209-ff to read as follows:
  S  209-FF.  CITIZENSHIP  REQUIREMENTS  OF  POLICE  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.
  S 2. Subdivision 1 of section 3 of the public officers law, as amended
by chapter 44 of the laws of 1982, 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 shall be chosen thereto, have attained the age of
eighteen years, except that in the case of youth boards,  youth  commis-
sions  or recreation commissions only, members of such boards or commis-
sions 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 or recreation commission, be a citizen of the United  States,
EXCEPT  THAT  FOR  APPOINTMENT AS A POLICE OFFICER, FIREFIGHTER OR OTHER
CIVIL OFFICE FOR WHICH ELECTION IS NOT REQUIRED, SUCH PERSON  MAY  BE  A
LEGAL  PERMANENT RESIDENT, a resident of the state, and if it be a local

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD01914-01-9
              

A. 3557                             2

office, a resident of the political subdivision or municipal corporation
of the state for which he OR SHE shall be chosen, or  within  which  the
electors electing him OR HER reside, or within which his OR HER 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.
  S 3. The first undesignated paragraph of section  3-b  of  the  public
officers  law, as amended by chapter 448 of the laws of 1992, is amended
to read as follows:
  No sheriff of a county, mayor of a city, or official, or other persons
authorized by law to appoint special deputy  sheriffs,  special  consta-
bles,  marshals,  police  officers,  or peace officers in this state, to
preserve the public peace or quell public disturbance, shall  hereafter,
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 A LEGAL PERMANENT RESIDENT and a resident of the
state of New York, [and entitled to vote therein  at  the  time  of  his
appointment,]  and a resident of the same county as the mayor or sheriff
or other official making such appointment; provided, however, that when,
in the judgment of a sheriff of a county except  those  counties  within
the  city  of New York a situation exists which requires temporary addi-
tional assistance, such sheriff may appoint special deputy sheriffs  who
are  non-residents  of the county but residents of the state of New York
who shall hold office until such time as the appointing  sheriff  deter-
mines 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 OR HER appointment in writing from the authority lawfully appointing
him  OR  HER.    Nothing  herein  contained, however, shall apply to the
appointment 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. Any person otherwise quali-
fied 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.
  S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.