S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8545
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              January 8, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. REYES -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Governmental Operations
 
 AN ACT to amend a chapter of the laws of 2023 establishing a task  force
   on  missing  women  and  girls who are black, indigenous and people of
   color, as proposed in legislative  bills  numbers  S.  4266-A  and  A.
   5088-A,  in  relation  to  directing  the division of criminal justice
   services to establish a task force on missing women and girls who  are
   black,   indigenous  and  people  of  color;  and  to  repeal  certain
   provisions of such law related thereto
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section 1 of a chapter of the laws of 2023 establishing a
 task force on missing women and girls  who  are  black,  indigenous  and
 people  of color, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4266-A and
 A. 5088-A, is REPEALED.
   § 2. Sections 2 and 3 of a chapter of the laws of 2023 establishing  a
 task  force  on  missing  women  and girls who are black, indigenous and
 people of color, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4266-A  and
 A.  5088-A,  are renumbered sections 1 and 2 and section 1 is amended to
 read as follows:
   Section 1. a. [There is hereby established] THE DIVISION  OF  CRIMINAL
 JUSTICE  SERVICES,  IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE OFFICE FOR THE PREVENTION OF
 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, SHALL CONVENE a task force on missing women and girls
 who are black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC). Such  task  force
 shall  be composed of the commissioner of the office of family and chil-
 dren's services, the commissioner of the division  of  criminal  justice
 services,  THE  EXECUTIVE  DIRECTOR  OF THE OFFICE FOR THE PREVENTION OF
 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, the superintendent of state police, THE  COMMISSIONER
 OF  THE  OFFICE OF TEMPORARY AND DISABILITY ASSISTANCE, THE COMMISSIONER
 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,  THE  DIRECTOR  OF  THE  OFFICE  OF  VICTIM
 SERVICES,  THE  COMMISSIONER OF THE OFFICE OF MENTAL HEALTH, THE COMMIS-
 SIONER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, AND THE COMMISSIONER OF  THE  DEPART-
 MENT  OF  TRANSPORTATION or [the] THEIR designees [of such commissioners
 and superintendent]. Additional members shall be appointed  as  follows,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD05565-04-4
 A. 8545                             2
 
 TWO  SHALL  BE  APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR, two shall be appointed by the
 temporary president of the senate, two shall be appointed by the speaker
 of the assembly, one shall be appointed by the minority  leader  of  the
 senate,  and one shall be appointed by the minority leader of the assem-
 bly. Members shall be representative  of  the  communities  experiencing
 this crisis, including directly impacted individuals, reflect the diver-
 sity of New York state, and have experience in cultural competency.
   b. Task force members shall receive no compensation for their services
 but  shall  be  reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in
 the performance of their duties.
   c. [The task force shall:
   (i) develop policy changes that will work to address the lack of  care
 and concern for missing and murdered BIPOC women and girls with New York
 state  governmental  agencies,  including identifying policies to ensure
 first responders are culturally competent;
   (ii) advance the knowledge of communities on  the  severity  of  BIPOC
 women and girls who are missing and murdered;
   (iii)  ensure  BIPOC  communities  are  educated  and  trained  on the
 prevention, protection, and protocols relating to  missing  BIPOC  women
 and girls as it relates to social media;
   (iv)  develop a strategy to collect statistics, demographics, surveys,
 oral histories, and data analysis;
   (v) recommend preventive programming and ideas to advance  the  safety
 of  women  and  girls,  including  policies that address the overlapping
 forms of oppression faced by BIPOC women and girls;
   (vi) identify major traffic hubs, highways,  and  resource  extraction
 sites that lead to or are responsible for the facilitation of the abduc-
 tion of BIPOC women and girls; and
   (vii) create a state-wide awareness campaign.
   d. In carrying out the duties of the task force, such task force shall
 seek public input by holding public hearings in each region of the state
 and  accepting public input in writing.] THE TASK FORCE SHALL COMMISSION
 A STUDY ON WAYS TO REDUCE  DISPARITIES  IN  ATTENTION,    RESOURCES  AND
 COMMITMENT  TO FINDING MISSING GIRLS AND WOMEN WHO ARE BLACK, INDIGENOUS
 AND PEOPLE OF COLOR (BIPOC). THE STUDY, WHICH SHALL INCLUDE  CONCLUSIONS
 AND RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON STAKEHOLDER INPUT, SHALL BE PROVIDED TO THE
 TASK FORCE UPON COMPLETION.
   D.  BASED  UPON THE STUDY, THE TASK FORCE SHALL PREPARE A FINAL REPORT
 OUTLINING ITS FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS PROVIDING WAYS FOR  NEW  YORK
 STATE TO:
   (I)  IMPROVE  CULTURAL RESPONSIVENESS AND ALLEVIATE A LACK OF CARE AND
 CONCERN FOR MISSING AND MURDERED BIPOC WOMEN AND GIRLS WITHIN  NEW  YORK
 STATE;
   (II)  ENHANCE  COMMUNITY  AWARENESS  OF  THE SEVERITY OF THE NUMBER OF
 BIPOC WOMEN AND GIRLS  WHO  ARE  MISSING  AND  MURDERED,  INCLUDING  THE
 CREATION OF A STATEWIDE PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGN;
   (III)  PROVIDE  COMMUNITIES  OF  BLACK, INDIGENOUS AND PEOPLE OF COLOR
 WITH EDUCATION AND TRAINING ON THE PREVENTION, PROTECTION, AND PROTOCOLS
 RELATING TO  MISSING  BIPOC WOMEN AND GIRLS, INCLUDING AS IT RELATES  TO
 SOCIAL MEDIA;
   (IV)    DEVELOPING  STRATEGIES  TO  COLLECT  STATISTICS, DEMOGRAPHICS,
 SURVEYS, ORAL HISTORIES, AND DATA ANALYSIS;
   (V) RECOMMEND PREVENTATIVE PROGRAMMING  AND  IDEAS  TO  ADVANCE    THE
 SAFETY OF BIPOC WOMEN  AND  GIRLS,  INCLUDING  POLICIES THAT ADDRESS THE
 OVERLAPPING  FORMS OF OPPRESSION FACED BY WOMEN AND GIRLS WHO ARE BIPOC;
 AND
 A. 8545                             3
 
   (VI) IDENTIFY MAJOR TRAFFIC HUBS, HIGHWAYS,  AND  RESOURCE  EXTRACTION
 SITES THAT LEAD TO OR ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE FACILITATION OF THE ABDUC-
 TION OF WOMEN AND GIRLS WHO ARE BIPOC.
   e.  On  or  before two years after the effective date of this act, the
 task force shall submit to the temporary president of  the  senate,  the
 speaker  of  the  assembly,  the  minority  leader of the senate and the
 minority leader of the assembly a report  containing  its  findings  and
 recommendations.  [Such  reports]  THE REPORT shall be made available to
 the public.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same
 manner  as  a  chapter  of the laws of 2023 establishing a task force on
 missing women and girls who are black, indigenous and people  of  color,
 as  proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4266-A and A. 5088-A, takes
 effect, provided, however, that the amendments to section 1 of a chapter
 of the laws of 2023 establishing a task force on missing women and girls
 who are black, indigenous and people of color, as proposed  in  legisla-
 tive  bills numbers S. 4266-A and A. 5088-A, made by section two of this
 act shall be subject to the expiration of such section and shall  expire
 and be deemed repealed therewith.