STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6148--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE March 31, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GALLIVAN, BORRELLO, OBERACKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education -- recommitted to the Committee on Education in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to a school resource officer program and providing school resource officer security protection aid (Part A); to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to peace officers who are retired police officers employed by a school district as a school resource officer (Part B); and to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to annual earnings limitations for retired police officers employed as school resource officers (Part C) The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act enacts into law components of legislation relating 2 to school safety. Each component is wholly contained within a Part iden- 3 tified as Parts A through C. The effective date for each particular 4 provision contained within such Part as set forth in the last section of 5 such Part. Any provision in any section contained within a Part, includ- 6 ing the effective date of the Part, which makes a reference to a section 7 "of this act", when used in connection with that particular component, 8 shall be deemed to mean and refer to the corresponding section of the 9 Part in which it is found. Section three of this act sets forth the 10 general effective date of this act. 11 PART A 12 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 2801-c 13 to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00555-06-4S. 6148--A 2 1 § 2801-c. New York state school resource officer program. 1. For 2 purposes of this section, the term "school resource officer" shall mean 3 a school resource officer, school safety officer, school security offi- 4 cer, or any other substantially similar position or office, that is 5 designed to provide improved public safety and/or security on school 6 grounds. Such school resource officer may be a retired police officer, a 7 retired state trooper, a retired deputy sheriff, a state trooper, a 8 police officer in the active duty service of a town, city or village, or 9 a deputy sheriff from a county sheriff's department. 10 2. Any public, nonpublic or charter school, or a board of cooperative 11 educational services, may employ, in either the classified or unclassi- 12 fied service, any school resource officer for the purpose of providing 13 improved public safety and/or security on school grounds. Any such 14 public, nonpublic or charter school, or a board of cooperative educa- 15 tional services, may also contract with the state of New York, or a 16 county, city, town or village, for the provision of a state trooper, 17 police officer or deputy sheriff, to serve as a school resource officer, 18 for the purpose of providing improved public safety and/or security on 19 school grounds. A school district, nonpublic school, charter school, or 20 a board of cooperative educational services, shall be authorized to 21 employ or contract for as many school resource officers as such district 22 deems necessary. 23 3. It shall be the primary role of the school resource officer to 24 provide improved public safety and/or security on school grounds. In 25 addition, to this primary role, school resource officers also may serve 26 additional roles, including but not limited to: 27 (a) Proposing and enforcing policies and administrative procedures 28 related to school safety; 29 (b) Utilizing technology in the implementation of a comprehensive 30 safety program; 31 (c) Serving as a liaison with other school officials and other commu- 32 nity agencies, including but not limited to, other law enforcement enti- 33 ties, courts, health care entities, and mental health entities; 34 (d) Proposing and implementing strategies concerning prevention, 35 response and recovery efforts for incidents and/or emergency situations 36 occurring on school grounds and/or involving students, faculty, adminis- 37 tration or visitors to the school; 38 (e) Proposing and assisting in the execution of school emergency 39 drills and proposing and assisting in the creation of school safety 40 plans; 41 (f) Providing educational and mentoring services to students; 42 (g) Assisting in the design, explanation and enforcement of school 43 safety and security policies and procedures; and 44 (h) Performing such other and further roles, responsibilities and 45 activities as the school district may deem appropriate and proper for a 46 law enforcement officer to perform, in order to advance the security, 47 safety and well-being of students, faculty, administration and visitors 48 to the school district's schools, transportation vehicles and school 49 grounds. 50 4. Such school resource officer may carry and possess firearms during 51 the course of their duties at such school district, nonpublic school, 52 charter school, or a board of cooperative educational services, but 53 nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such school 54 resource officer to carry, possess, repair or dispose of a firearm 55 unless the appropriate license therefor has been issued pursuant to 56 section 400.00 of the penal law.S. 6148--A 3 1 § 2. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph d of subdivision 4 of section 1950 of 2 the education law, as amended by chapter 474 of the laws of 1996, is 3 amended and a new subparagraph 1-a is added to read as follows: 4 (1) Aidable shared services. At the request of component school 5 districts, and with the approval of the commissioner, provide any of the 6 following services on a cooperative basis: school nurse teacher, attend- 7 ance supervisor, supervisor of teachers, dental hygienist, psychologist, 8 school resource officer, as such term is defined in section twenty-eight 9 hundred one-c of this title, teachers of art, music, physical education, 10 career education subjects, guidance counsellors, operation of special 11 classes for students with disabilities, as such term is defined in arti- 12 cle eighty-nine of this chapter; pupil and financial accounting service 13 by means of mechanical equipment; maintenance and operation of cafeteria 14 or restaurant service for the use of pupils and teachers while at 15 school, and such other services as the commissioner may approve. Such 16 cafeteria or restaurant service may be used by the community for school 17 related functions and activities and to furnish meals to the elderly 18 residents of the district, sixty years of age or older. Utilization by 19 elderly residents or school related groups shall be subject to the 20 approval of the board of education. Charges shall be sufficient to bear 21 the direct cost of preparation and serving of such meals, exclusive of 22 any other available reimbursements. 23 (1-a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule, or regulation 24 to the contrary, school resource officers may be requested by charter 25 schools and school districts for up to six days per week throughout the 26 entire school year. 27 § 3. Paragraph h of subdivision 4 of section 1950 of the education law 28 is amended by adding two new subparagraphs 14 and 15 to read as follows: 29 (14) To enter into contracts with charter schools to provide school 30 resource officers, as such term is defined in section twenty-eight 31 hundred one-c of this title, provided that the costs of such school 32 resource officers shall be aidable pursuant to subdivision five of this 33 section to the same extent and on the same basis as costs allocated to a 34 component school district, and further provided that the aid ratio shall 35 be the aid ratio for the public school district where the charter school 36 is located, and further provided that charter schools shall not be 37 liable for payment of administrative expenses as defined in paragraph b 38 of this subdivision. 39 (15) To enter into contracts with non-component school districts 40 including city school districts of cities with one hundred twenty-five 41 thousand inhabitants or more, to provide school resource officers, as 42 such term is defined in section twenty-eight hundred one-c of this 43 title, provided that the costs of such school resource officers shall be 44 aidable pursuant to subdivision five of this section to the same extent 45 and on the same basis as costs allocated to a component school district, 46 and further provided that non-component school districts shall not be 47 liable for payment of administrative expenses as defined in paragraph b 48 of this subdivision. 49 § 4. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3039 to read 50 as follows: 51 § 3039. Grants for school resource officers. 1. For purposes of this 52 section, school resource officers shall have the same meaning as defined 53 in section twenty-eight hundred one-c of this chapter. 54 2. Nonpublic schools shall, upon application, be reimbursed by the 55 department for the salaries of school resource officers. Each school 56 which seeks a reimbursement pursuant to this section shall submit to theS. 6148--A 4 1 office of religious and independent schools an application therefor, 2 together with such additional documents as the commissioner may reason- 3 ably require, at such times, in such form and containing such informa- 4 tion as the commissioner may prescribe by regulation. Applications for 5 reimbursement pursuant to this section must be received by August first 6 of each year for schools to be reimbursed for the salaries of eligible 7 school resource officers in the prior year. 8 3. The commissioner may promulgate any rules or regulations necessary 9 to carry out the provisions of this section. 10 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately. 11 PART B 12 Section 1. Section 2.10 of the criminal procedure law is amended by 13 adding a new subdivision 87 to read as follows: 14 87. Retired police officers employed by a school district, nonpublic 15 school, charter school, or a board of cooperative educational services, 16 as a school resource officer; provided, however, that nothing in this 17 subdivision shall be deemed to authorize such officer to carry, possess, 18 repair or dispose of a firearm unless the appropriate license therefor 19 has been issued pursuant to section 400.00 of the penal law. 20 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. 21 PART C 22 Section 1. Section 212 of the retirement and social security law is 23 amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows: 24 4. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions one and two of this 25 section, such annual earnings limitations for a retired police officer 26 employed by a school district or a board of cooperative educational 27 services, in either the classified or unclassified service as a school 28 resource officer, school safety officer, school security officer or any 29 other substantially similar position or office that is designed to 30 provide safety and/or security on school grounds, provided that such 31 retired police officer is duly qualified, competent and physically fit 32 for performance of the duties of the position in which he or she is to 33 be employed as determined by the school district or board of cooperative 34 educational services and is properly certified where such certification 35 is required, shall be fifty thousand dollars for the year two thousand 36 twenty-five and thereafter. 37 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. 38 § 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi- 39 sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of 40 competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, 41 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in 42 its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section 43 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg- 44 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of 45 the legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such 46 invalid provisions had not been included herein. 47 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 48 the applicable effective date of Parts A through C of this act shall be 49 as specifically set forth in the last section of such Parts. FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: Insofar as it would affect the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS), this bill would allow retired police officers who areS. 6148--A 5 employed by a school district as a school resource officer, school safe- ty officer, school security officer, or any other substantially similar position with an annual salary of $50,000 or less to continue to receive their full retirement benefit beginning with calendar year 2025. Currently, the salary limit is $35,000. Pursuant to Section 25 of the Retirement and Social Security Law, the increased costs would be borne entirely by the State of New York and would require an itemized appropriation sufficient to pay the cost of the provision. Insofar as this bill affects the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System (NYSLERS), if enacted during the 2024 Legislative Session, the direct cost incurred would be the retiree's post-retirement earnings more than $35,000 each calendar year, not to exceed the full pension benefit paid by the NYSLERS during that period. In the NYSLERS, this benefit improvement will be funded by including a separate itemized charge on the New York State annual invoice, equal to the cost quoted above, plus interest. The number of members and retirees who could be affected by this legislation cannot be readily determined. For each retiree hired pursu- ant to this proposal, an annual cost of $15,000 is expected. Summary of relevant resources: Membership data as of March 31, 2023 was used in measuring the impact of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2023 actuari- al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2023 Report of the Actuary and the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2023 Annual Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial Assumptions, and the Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York: Audit and Control. The Market Assets and GASB Disclosures are found in the March 31, 2023 New York State and Local Retirement System Financial Statements and Supplementary Information. I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali- fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein. This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the viability of the proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for the professional judgment of an attorney. This estimate, dated February 26, 2024, and intended for use only during the 2024 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2024-55, prepared by the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.