Senate Bill S6928B

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S6928

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the education law, in relation to directing the state
university trustees to appoint a commissioner of state university
police


 PURPOSE :
The bill improves the administration and professionalism of the public
safety agencies that serve and protect the campuses and facilities of
the State university of New York, ensures standard training and
equipment for each such agency and effects significant cost savings
for system wide public safety services.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :
Section 1 of the bill amends Education Law section 355 (2)(1) by
adding new language directing the Trustees of the State University of
New York to appoint a Commissioner of State University Police who
shall have full administrative authority over the campus police
agencies on all SUNY campuses.

Section 2 of the bill provides that it shall take effect on the first
day of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become
a law.

              

 JUSTIFICATION :
The men and women of the State University Police serve and protect a
community of half a million students, faculty, administration and
other employees and a statewide infrastructure of research and
technological facilities worth many billions of dollars.  This system
is crucial to the global competitiveness and future prosperity of the
state and people of New York. It is imperative and much in the public
interest that members of those campus police forces be given
leadership and direction commensurate with their responsibility to
provide the level of service this world class university system
requires.

As currently administered, police services to the campuses of the SUNY
system are operated under a decentralized structure. Each of the
twenty-eight campuses currently maintaining a police force operate
under its own policies, procedures, practices, budgets, resources and
levels of efficiency and preparedness. Some are, as a result,
inadequately equipped and trained and unable to put the number of
boots- on- the-ground that is required to police a large and populous
campus community. Certainly, capability to respond to instances of
violent situations and disasters is unacceptably uneven among
campuses.

SUNY Systems Administration currently maintains the position of
Assistant Vice Chancellor of University Police and Director of Public
Safety. This position is of an advisory nature and cannot mandate
specific or standard policy or procedure applicable to all campus
police departments including such balance and critical matters as
staffing, arming, equipping, training, allocation of resources and
critical incident response preparedness. This structure is inefficient
both in carrying out the State University's obligation to provide for
public safety and to do so in this most administratively efficient and
fiscally responsible manner possible.

This legislation will centralize and streamline the administration of
the currently existing twenty-eight campus police agencies and save
the state an initial $3 million a year. The reorganization would place
responsibility for administering a system-wide force of 500 Police
Officers, Police Investigators and police Supervisors with a SUNY
Police Commissioner; qualified by background, training and experience
and appointed by the Trustees.  This will provide for a State
University Police to be operated in a centralized, paramilitary format
with designated rank structures and a centralized chain of command.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
This is new legislation.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
Centralizing the administration of twenty-eight SUNY Campus police
Force will reduce costs and realize savings through standardization
affecting many expenses for equipment, training and so forth. It is
estimated that the bill will realize a savings of $3 million a year.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
The first day of January next succeeding the date on which it shall
have become law.

                                BILL NUMBER:S6928A

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the education law, in relation to directing the state
university trustees to appoint a commissioner of state university police

PURPOSE:
The bill improves the administration and
professionalism of
the public safety agencies that serve and protect the campuses and
facilities of the State university of New York, ensures standard
training and equipment for each such agency and effects significant
cost savings for system wide public safety services.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill lays out the legislative intent to create a more
rational and effective system of administration for campus police
forces at the state university of New York.

Section 2 of the bill amends Education Law section 355(2) (1) by
adding new language directing the Trustees of the State University of
New York to appoint a Commissioner of State University Police who
shall have full administrative authority over the campus police
agencies on all SUNY campuses.

              

Section 2 of the bill provides that it shall take effect on the first
day of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become
a law.

JUSTIFICATION:
The men and women of the State
University police serve
and protect a community of half a million students, faculty,
administration and other employees and a statewide infrastructure of
research and technological facilities worth many billions of dollars.
This system is crucial to the global competitiveness and future
prosperity of the state and people of New York. It is imperative and
much in the public interest that members of those campus police
forces be given leadership and direction commensurate with their
responsibility to provide the level of service this world class
university system requires.

As currently administered, police services to the campuses of the SUNY
system are operated under a decentralized structure. Each of the
twenty-eight campuses currently maintaining a police force operate
under its own policies, procedures, practices, budgets, resources and
levels of efficiency and preparedness. Some are, as a result,
;inadequately equipped and trained and unable to put the number of
boots-on-the-ground that is required to police a large and populous

campus community. certainly, capability to respond to instances of
violent situations and disasters is unacceptably uneven among campuses.

SUNY Systems Administration currently maintains the position of
Assistant Vice Chancellor of University police and Director of Public
safety. This
position is of an advisory nature and cannot mandate specific or
standard policy or procedure applicable to all campus police
departments including such basic and critical matters as staffing,
arming, equipping, training, allocation of resources and critical
incident response preparedness. This structure is inefficient both in
carrying out the State University's obligation to provide for public
safety and to do so in the most administratively efficient and
fiscally responsible manner possible.

This legislation will centralize and streamline the administration of
the currently existing twenty-eight campus police agencies and save
the state an initial $3 million a year. The reorganization would
place responsibility for administering a system-wide force of 500
Police Officers, Police Investigators and Police Supervisors with a
SUNY Police Commissioner qualified by background, training and
experience and appointed by the Trustees. This will provide for a
State university Police to be operated in a centralized, paramilitary
format with designated rank structures and a centralized chain of
command.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is new legislation.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Centralizing the administration
of twenty-eight
SUNY Campus Police Forces will reduce costs and realize savings
through standardization affecting many expenses for equipment,
training and so forth. It is estimated that the bill will realize a
savings of $3 million a year.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
The first day of January next succeeding the date on
which it shall have become law.