S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5285
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
February 15, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. HOOPER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CLARK,
CYMBROWITZ, P. RIVERA, ROBINSON, SCHIMEL, SWEENEY, TOWNS -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
AN ACT to establish a street level narcotics enforcement program; and
making appropriations therefor
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature finds that despite
the efforts of law enforcement agencies to control illegal trafficking
in narcotics in this state, the prevalence of narcotics sales and use,
and the incidence of violent and property crimes directly related to the
narcotics trade remains a serious public safety problem. The legislature
further finds that state and federal resources devoted to this problem
have primarily been concentrated on efforts to arrest and prosecute
large-scale narcotics sellers and manufacturers, and to interdict
narcotics entering the state. This concentration of effort has left few
resources available to assist a certain class of communities which
continue to experience severe problems with narcotics sales and use on
street corners and in buildings, often abandoned ones, where illegal
activities can take place out of the view of the police and public. The
legislature concludes that the establishment of a street level narcotics
enforcement program is necessary to provide additional resources to
certain communities of this state whose quality of life is seriously
marred by street level narcotics, but whose local fiscal resources are
insufficient to support a suitable law enforcement response to this
threat.
S 2. a. The division of criminal justice services shall provide aid,
within the amounts appropriated therefor, to counties not wholly
contained within a city and having a population in excess of one million
and to villages within such counties having populations less than fifty
thousand for the purposes of combating street level narcotics traffick-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06870-01-1
A. 5285 2
ing or other offenses related to the sale and use of narcotics. Each
county shall be eligible for an amount of aid which is allocated in
proportion to such county's population in relation to the total popu-
lation of all eligible counties as established by the nineteen hundred
eighty federal census. Each incorporated village shall be eligible for
an amount of aid which is allocated in proportion to such incorporated
village's population in relation to the total population of all eligible
incorporated villages as established by the nineteen hundred eighty
federal census.
b. Each eligible county and incorporated village shall file with the
commissioner of the division of criminal justice services an expenditure
plan detailing the uses of its allocation and shall receive approval of
such plan prior to receiving any funds pursuant to this act.
c. Approved uses for funds distributed pursuant to this section shall
include, but shall not be limited to, employment of police officers for
the primary purpose of enforcing narcotics laws; payment of fringe bene-
fits accompanying the employment of such officers; the purchase or lease
of equipment, including automobiles, to be used in narcotics enforce-
ment; and discretionary payments, including the purchase of controlled
substances deemed necessary in the investigation of narcotics crimes.
d. Any county or incorporated village receiving funds pursuant to this
section which does not maintain its own police department or which wish-
es to augment the resources of its police department may contract with
one or more municipal or county law enforcement agencies which have
jurisdiction within the boundaries of such county or incorporated
village to carry out the provisions of the expenditure plan. The
provisions of such contracts shall be disclosed in the expenditure plan.
e. The division of state police shall provide centralized narcotics
enforcement training for police officers employed by or under contract
with eligible counties or incorporated villages pursuant to this
section.
S 3. a. The division of criminal justice services shall provide grants
to counties and incorporated villages eligible for aid pursuant to
section two of this act for the purpose of creating demonstration
projects in counties and incorporated villages which display a compre-
hensive approach to combating street level narcotics trafficking.
b. Applications for grants pursuant to subdivision a of this section
must describe a particular portion or portions of the community in which
street level narcotics trafficking is a serious problem, and must
propose an approach to solving the problem which contains elements such
as more frequent uniformed police patrols, the use of police foot
patrols, the interdiction of movement in stolen goods, the securing or
demolition of abandoned buildings, enforcement of housing codes and
organizing of neighborhood crime prevention groups.
c. The commissioner of the division of criminal justice services shall
design and conduct evaluations of any programs funded with demonstration
grants, with an emphasis on determining if the programs are suitable to
be designated as street level narcotics trafficking enforcement models
for all law enforcement agencies of the state.
S 4. The sum of forty-one million dollars ($41,000,000), or so much
thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the division of
criminal justice services out of any moneys in the state treasury in the
general fund to the credit of the local assistance account, not other-
wise appropriated, and made immediately available, for the purposes of
providing aid to eligible counties and incorporated villages to combat
street level narcotics trafficking pursuant to subdivision a of section
A. 5285 3
two of this act. Such moneys shall be payable on the audit and warrant
of the comptroller on vouchers certified or approved by the commissioner
of the division of criminal justice services in the manner prescribed by
law.
S 5. The sum of three million dollars ($3,000,000), or so much thereof
as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the division of criminal
justice services out of any moneys in the state treasury in the general
fund to the credit of the local assistance account, not otherwise appro-
priated, and made immediately available, for the purposes of carrying
out the provisions of section three of this act. Such moneys shall be
payable on the audit and warrant of the comptroller on vouchers certi-
fied or approved by the commissioner of the division of criminal justice
services in the manner prescribed by law.
S 6. The sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000), or so much
thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the division of
state police out of any moneys in the state treasury in the general fund
to the credit of the state purposes account, not otherwise appropriated,
and made immediately available, for the purpose of carrying out the
provisions of subdivision e of section two of this act. Such moneys
shall be payable on the audit and warrant of the comptroller on vouchers
certified or approved by the superintendent of the division of state
police in the manner prescribed by law.
S 7. This act shall take effect immediately.