STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5857 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE March 20, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, the state finance law and the general municipal law, in relation to establishing a crisis inter- vention team program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding three new 2 sections 7.51, 7.53 and 7.55 to read as follows: 3 § 7.51 Crisis intervention team training program. 4 (a) The commissioner shall establish a crisis intervention team train- 5 ing demonstration program for the purpose of assisting law enforcement 6 officers in responding to crisis situations involving persons with 7 mental illness and/or substance abuse problems. 8 (b) The commissioner shall establish within the office the position of 9 crisis intervention team training program coordinator who will serve at 10 the pleasure of the commissioner and who shall work with the New York 11 police department and any other law enforcement agency in the state that 12 requests assistance to coordinate the provision of crisis intervention 13 team training to its first responders as a part of a specialized 14 response team or as part of the training for first responders. 15 (c) The crisis intervention team training program coordinator shall: 16 (i) work with communities to develop partnerships, coordinate activ- 17 ities and promote cooperation and collaboration between the office, 18 office of addiction services and supports, law enforcement agencies, 19 disability service providers and people with psychiatric or other disa- 20 bilities and their families to provide crisis intervention team train- 21 ing; 22 (ii) provide coordination activities and funding support for crisis 23 intervention team training; EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07396-01-3S. 5857 2 1 (iii) provide support, training and community coordination to ensure 2 that mental health service providers in the community provide alterna- 3 tives to incarceration; 4 (iv) through federal and private grants, gifts or contributions, 5 provide funding to support training and community coordination costs as 6 necessary. All moneys shall be deposited in the crisis intervention team 7 training fund established by section ninety-nine-qq of the state finance 8 law; 9 (v) in consultation with the crisis intervention team training program 10 advisory committee established by this article, distribute crisis inter- 11 vention team training fund moneys as needed for support, training and 12 community coordination costs; and 13 (vi) submit a report to the governor, temporary president of the 14 senate, speaker of the assembly and the crisis intervention team train- 15 ing program advisory committee on or before November fifteenth of each 16 year that contains the following: 17 (A) a review of all law enforcement agencies that have provided crisis 18 intervention team training to their officers and the number of officers 19 that have completed the training; 20 (B) a list of communities in this state that have implemented the 21 crisis intervention team training program through training and coordi- 22 nation, including the length of implementation and current status of the 23 program; 24 (C) recommendations for improvement in the community based partner- 25 ships that support crisis intervention team responses; 26 (D) recommendations for improvement in the law enforcement and public 27 safety agencies that provide crisis intervention team responses; and 28 (E) a review of all funding resources that the crisis intervention 29 team training program coordinator has applied for to increase available 30 funding, including the status of all funding requests and the total of 31 moneys received. 32 (d) The crisis intervention team training program established pursuant 33 to this section shall end five years after the effective date of this 34 section. 35 § 7.53 Crisis intervention team training program advisory committee. 36 (a) There is hereby established a crisis intervention team training 37 program advisory committee. 38 (b) The committee shall consist of: 39 (1) the commissioner, who shall serve as chairperson of the committee 40 and who is a nonvoting member; 41 (2) the crisis intervention team training program coordinator, who is 42 a nonvoting member; 43 (3) one member appointed by the commissioner who is a consumer of 44 mental health services; 45 (4) one member appointed by the commissioner who is an immediate fami- 46 ly member of a consumer of mental health services; 47 (5) one member appointed by the commissioner who represents a state- 48 wide advocacy agency that serves persons with mental disabilities and 49 their families; 50 (6) one member appointed by the commissioner who is a psychiatrist or 51 psychologist licensed in the state; 52 (7) one member appointed by the commissioner of addiction services and 53 supports; 54 (8) one member appointed by the commissioner of addiction services and 55 supports who represents a statewide behavior advocacy group, agency or 56 association;S. 5857 3 1 (9) one member appointed by the commissioner of the office for people 2 with developmental disabilities who is either a family member or guardi- 3 an of a person with a developmental disability; 4 (10) one member appointed by the commissioner of the office for people 5 with developmental disabilities who is a person with a developmental 6 disability; 7 (11) one member recommended by the New York city peace officer benevo- 8 lent association who is a certified peace officer; 9 (12) one member appointed by the commissioner of the division of crim- 10 inal justice services who is a law enforcement officer; and 11 (13) one member appointed by the New York police department who 12 represents law enforcement. 13 (c) The committee shall: 14 (1) meet at least two times in each full calendar year. The committee 15 shall meet at the request of its chairperson; and 16 (2) review the report required by section 7.51 of this article and 17 based on that report make recommendations to the office of mental 18 health, the office for people with developmental disabilities, the 19 office of addiction services and supports, the division of criminal 20 justice services, the New York police department, the governor, the 21 temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly. 22 (d) Committee members shall not be compensated but are eligible for 23 reimbursement of reasonable expenses. 24 § 7.55 Crisis intervention team training fund grant program. 25 (a) The commissioner shall establish the crisis intervention team 26 training fund grant program which shall include, but not be limited to, 27 providing financial support when necessary and as available for training 28 and community coordination costs for the implementation of the crisis 29 intervention team training program to law enforcement agencies as 30 requested. 31 (b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the fund shall consist of 32 up to one million dollars from the state general fund. 33 § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-qq to 34 read as follows: 35 § 99-qq. Crisis intervention team training fund. 1. There is hereby 36 established in the joint custody of the comptroller and the commissioner 37 of the office of mental health a fund to be known as the crisis inter- 38 vention team training fund. 39 2. The crisis intervention team training fund shall consist of all 40 moneys received from the federal government, private grants, gifts, 41 contributions and devises. 42 3. Any contractors that receive moneys pursuant to this section shall 43 submit quarterly reports to the commissioner of the department of mental 44 health regarding the use and effectiveness of the distributed moneys. 45 The commissioner of the department of mental health shall include a 46 summary of the fund analysis in the annual report required pursuant to 47 section 7.51 of the mental hygiene law. 48 § 3. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section 49 209-h to read as follows: 50 § 209-h. Crisis intervention teams. 1. The commissioner of the New 51 York state division of criminal justice services, in consultation with 52 the commissioners of the office of mental health, office for people with 53 developmental disabilities and office of addiction services and 54 supports, shall, for all local police officers in law enforcement units 55 and any other enforcement agency that chooses to participate:S. 5857 4 1 (a) establish criteria for the development of crisis intervention 2 teams; and 3 (b) establish, and implement on an ongoing basis, a training program 4 for all current and new employees regarding the policies and procedures 5 established pursuant to this section. The curriculum shall include a 6 minimum of forty hours of mandatory training in mental health issues. 7 2. The goals of the crisis intervention team program shall be to: 8 (a) provide immediate response by specifically trained law enforcement 9 officers; 10 (b) reduce the amount of time police officers spend out of service 11 awaiting assessment and disposition; 12 (c) afford persons with mental illness and/or substance abuse problems 13 a sense of dignity in crisis situations; 14 (d) reduce the likelihood of physical confrontation; 15 (e) identify underserved populations with mental illness and/or 16 substance abuse problems and refer them to appropriate care; 17 (f) decrease the use of arrest and detention of persons experiencing 18 mental health and/or substance abuse crises by providing better access 19 to timely treatment; 20 (g) provide therapeutic locations or protocols for officers to bring 21 individuals in crisis for assessment that is not a law enforcement or 22 jail facility; and 23 (h) decrease injuries to law enforcement officers during crisis 24 events. 25 3. Other state agencies shall provide cooperation and assistance to 26 the program to assist in the effective performance of its duties. 27 § 4. Section 19.07 of the mental hygiene law is amended by adding a 28 new subdivision (o) to read as follows: 29 (o) The office of addiction services and supports shall, in collab- 30 oration with law enforcement and the office of mental health establish 31 criteria for the development of crisis intervention teams that shall 32 include assessment of the effectiveness of the plan for community 33 involvement, training and therapeutic response alternatives and a deter- 34 mination of whether law enforcement officers have effective agreements 35 with mental health care providers and all other community stakeholders. 36 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.