NY State Senate Bill S2250

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Introduced
In Committee
On Floor Calendar
- Passed Senate
- Passed Assembly
Delivered to Governor
Signed/Vetoed by Governor

Your Voice

Please enter your contact information

First Name *

Last Name *

Email Address *

A valid email address is required.

Home address search or enter your address manually *

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Leave this field blank

Actions

view actions (2)

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2018	referred to codes
Jan 12, 2017	referred to codes

Co-Sponsors

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6753
Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Penal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§155.30 & 165.45, add §220.67, Pen L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S6743, A10742
2013-2014: S2940, A3744
2015-2016: S3402, A4824

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Includes within the class D felony of grand larceny in the fourth degree, the theft of a blank official New York state prescription form; includes within the class D felony of criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth degree, the possession of a stolen blank official New York state prescription form; establishes the class A misdemeanor of criminal possession of a prescription form, for the unlawful possession of a blank official New York state prescription form.

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 BILL NUMBER:  S2250

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the
theft and unlawful possession of a blank official New York state
prescription form

 PURPOSE :

This bill criminalizes the theft and unlawful possession of a blank
official New York state prescription form.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section one of the bill adds subsection (12) to § 155.30 of the Penal
Law to include a blank official New York state prescription form to
the list of property covered by grand larceny in the fourth degree.

Section two of the bill adds subsection (8) to § 165.45 of the Penal
Law to include a blank official New York state prescription form to
the list of property covered by criminal possession of stolen property
in the fourth degree.

Section three adds a § 220.67 to the Penal Law to create the crime of
criminal possession of a prescription form. A person is guilty of
criminal possession of a prescription form when such person knowingly
possesses a blank official New York State prescription form, unless

such person is legally authorized to possess the form or such person
is an employee of a person legally authorized to posses the form
acting within the scope of his or her employment.

Section four provides an effective date or the first of November
succeeding its enactment.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Prescription drug abuse is a growing crisis in both New York State and
the country at large. In this state, there has been armed violence,
deaths by overdose and suicide, and increasing rates of addiction.
New York State has a preeminent program for combating prescription
theft and forgery. In the mid-1980s, the state instituted triplicate
forms for controlled substances and saw a 54% decrease in forgeries.
Unfortunately, this system and current penal laws are insufficient to
counter the theft, possession, and sale of blank official prescription
forms. Current law forces authorities to wait until someone sells a
prescription form before law enforcement can act.

The Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement estimates that since 2008,
approximately 1.4 million official scripts have been stolen from NYC
hospitals alone. In 2011, the Office of the New York City special
Prosecutor exposed a drug ring on Staten Island and indicted 31
people. The extensive drug trafficking ring sold Oxycodone to
customers out of an ice cream truck. The endeavor injected nearly
43,000 pills into the New York City metropolitan area, worth an
estimated $1 million. Prosecutors also found 300 illegally obtained
prescription forms. The leaders of the drug ring purchased the blank
prescription forms from a medical receptionist who pilfered them from
her employer. Unfortunately, in similar situations, current law
precludes the investigators from acting until the person taking or
holding a blank form sells it to someone else.

This bill creates a criminal penalty for three specific situations.
First, grand larceny, a class E felony, will punish someone who steals
a blank prescription form. Second, criminal possession of stolen
property, which occurs when someone possesses a blank prescription
form, knowing ii is stolen and intending to benefit from it. This is
also a class E felony. Finally, criminal possession of a prescription
form, a class A misdemeanor, punishes someone who knowingly and
unlawfully possesses a blank official New York state prescription
form. These changes are necessary to combat the criminal diversion of
prescription drugs, which feeds addiction, increases overdose and
suicide rates, and fuels profits for drug dealers and other criminals.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2015-2016: S.3402 - Passed Senate, died in Assembly
2013-2014: S.2940 - Passed Senate, died in Assembly (both years)

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the first of November succeeding its
enactment.

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf


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

                                  2250

                       2017-2018 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            January 12, 2017
                               ___________

Introduced by Sens. HANNON, YOUNG -- read twice and ordered printed, and
  when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes

AN  ACT  to  amend  the penal law, in relation to the theft and unlawful
  possession of a blank official New York state prescription form

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

  Section  1.  Subdivisions  9, 10 and 11 of section 155.30 of the penal
law, subdivision 9 as amended by chapter 479 of the laws of 2010, subdi-
vision 10 as added by chapter 491 of the laws of 1992 and subdivision 11
as added by chapter 394 of the laws of  2005,  are  amended  and  a  new
subdivision 12 is added to read as follows:
  9. The property consists of a scroll, religious vestment, a vessel, an
item  comprising  a display of religious symbols which forms a represen-
tative expression of faith, or  other  miscellaneous  item  of  property
which:
  (a) has a value of at least one hundred dollars; and
  (b)  is  kept  for or used in connection with religious worship in any
building, structure or upon the curtilage of such building or  structure
used  as  a  place  of  religious worship by a religious corporation, as
incorporated under the  religious  corporations  law  or  the  education
law[.]; OR
  10. The property consists of an access device which the person intends
to use unlawfully to obtain telephone service[.]; OR
  11.  The  property  consists of anhydrous ammonia or liquified ammonia
gas and the actor intends to use, or knows  another  person  intends  to
use,  such  anhydrous  ammonia  or  liquified ammonia gas to manufacture
methamphetamine[.]; OR
  12.  THE  PROPERTY  CONSISTS  OF  A  BLANK  OFFICIAL  NEW  YORK  STATE
PRESCRIPTION FORM, AS SET FORTH IN SECTION TWO HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE OF THE
PUBLIC HEALTH LAW.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD02905-01-7

S. 2250                             2

  § 2. Subdivisions 6 and 7 of section 165.45 of the penal law, subdivi-
sion  6 as added by chapter 450 of the laws of 1990 and subdivision 7 as
added by chapter 394 of the laws of 2005, are amended and a new subdivi-
sion 8 is added to read as follows:
  6.  The  property  consists of a scroll, religious vestment, vessel or
other item of property having a value of at least  one  hundred  dollars
kept for or used in connection with religious worship in any building or
structure  used  as  a  place of religious worship by a religious corpo-
ration, as incorporated under the  religious  corporations  law  or  the
education law[.]; OR
  7. The property consists of anhydrous ammonia or liquified ammonia gas
and  the  actor  intends to use, or knows another person intends to use,
such anhydrous ammonia or liquified ammonia  gas  to  manufacture  meth-
amphetamine[.]; OR
  8.   THE  PROPERTY  CONSISTS  OF  A  BLANK  OFFICIAL  NEW  YORK  STATE
PRESCRIPTION FORM, AS SET FORTH IN SECTION TWO HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE OF THE
PUBLIC HEALTH LAW.
  § 3. The penal law is amended by adding a new section 220.67  to  read
as follows:
§ 220.67 CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF A PRESCRIPTION FORM.
  A  PERSON IS GUILTY OF CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF A PRESCRIPTION FORM WHEN
SUCH  PERSON  KNOWINGLY  POSSESSES  A  BLANK  OFFICIAL  NEW  YORK  STATE
PRESCRIPTION FORM, AS SET FORTH IN SECTION TWO HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE OF THE
PUBLIC HEALTH LAW, UNLESS:
  (A) SUCH PERSON IS LEGALLY AUTHORIZED, ACCORDING TO THE LAWS AND REGU-
LATIONS OF NEW YORK STATE, TO POSSESS SUCH PRESCRIPTION FORM; OR
  (B)  SUCH  PERSON  IS  AN  EMPLOYEE  OF A PERSON LEGALLY AUTHORIZED TO
POSSESS SUCH PRESCRIPTION FORM, ACCORDING TO THE LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF
NEW YORK STATE, AND POSSESSES SUCH PRESCRIPTION FORM DURING  THE  COURSE
AND SCOPE OF SUCH PERSON'S EMPLOYMENT.
  CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF A PRESCRIPTION FORM IS A CLASS A MISDEMEANOR.
  § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
ing the date upon which it shall have become a law.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

The New York State Senate

senate Bill S2250

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Your Voice

Actions

Co-Sponsors

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Details

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S2250

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Kemp Hannon

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Your Voice

Actions

Co-Sponsors

Kathleen A. Marchione

Catharine Young

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Details

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S2250 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments