BILL NUMBER: S6162

SPONSOR: MAY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the executive law, in relation to ensuring that color
vision requirements for appointment of police officers are tailored to
only eliminate individuals with extreme color vision deficiencies from
eligibility

 
PURPOSE:

The purpose of this bill is to make candidacy in law enforcement acces-
sible to eligible individuals with color vision deficiencies by provid-
ing practical field examinations as an alternative to clinical diagnos-
tic testing in the medical review process.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

The bill amends section 840 of the executive law by adding a new subdi-
vision 2-c, which specifies that the promulgation of rules and/or regu-
lations relating to color vision requirements for individuals eligible
              

for appointment as police officers should be tailored to only eliminate
candidates with debilitating color vision deficiencies. This subdivision
also creates a field testing alternative for applicants that fail the
initial color vision screening. The field test will determine, through
practical exercises, whether an applicant's color vision is adequate
based on the expectations of police officers in their regular duties.

For purposes of the bill, "extreme color vision deficiencies" means
extreme anomalous trichromatism or monochromacy color vision, as deter-
mined through testing approved by the municipal police training council.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Presently, law enforcement organizations in New York are required to
utilize standardized clinical screening tests to identify color vision
deficiencies in applicants. These tests are designed to disqualify any
applicant with color vision abnormalities - not to measure an appli-
cant's ability to perform their duties in real-world situations. Appli-
cants with any type of color vision deficiency may be automatically
deemed ineligible for service despite their vision potentially being
adequate for field duty.

This bill creates an alternative pathway into law enforcement for candi-
dates with color vision , deficiencies who can demonstrate, through
practical field testing, that they can correctly discriminate colors as
necessary for service as a police officer. This bill also specifies that
the regulations concerning color vision requirements for police officer
candidates should be tailored to focus on applicants with extreme color
vision abnormalities that would prevent them from performing regular
police duties.

Both Iowa and Oregon have already implemented more practical color
vision standards for law enforcement candidates, including field testing
alternatives and more focused disqualification criteria.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately