Authorizes the county of Clinton to employ retired former members of the division of state police as special patrol officers.
Summary
S04448 would amend the Civil Service Law to create a narrow exception for Clinton County, allowing the county to appoint and employ retired former members of the New York State Division of State Police as special patrol officers. The bill specifies that these appointments could be made without an examination and without complying with other Civil Service Law requirements that would otherwise apply under section 58.
The measure is local in scope and does not create a statewide program; instead, it gives Clinton County special authority to use retired state police personnel in a patrol role. The bill takes effect immediately, meaning the county could begin using this hiring authority as soon as the act becomes law.
Impact
The bill would add a new subdivision to section 58 of the Civil Service Law, carving out an exception for Clinton County to hire retired state troopers as special patrol officers without civil service পরীক্ষা or other section 58 requirements. This would modify how the county may staff certain law-enforcement-related positions and could affect county hiring practices, pension-retiree employment, and the use of experienced former state police officers in local public safety roles.
Sentiment
The available voting record suggests the bill was generally well received. It passed the Senate Civil Service and Pensions Committee unanimously, 6-0, and then passed the Senate floor by a wide margin, 57-1. No committee transcript is available, but the strong vote totals indicate broad support for the county-specific authorization.
Contention
The main point of contention appears to be the bill’s departure from standard civil service rules by allowing appointment without examination or other usual requirements. That kind of exemption can raise fairness, precedent, and civil service integrity concerns, though the near-unanimous committee vote and overwhelming floor passage suggest those concerns were limited or outweighed by support for Clinton County’s staffing needs. The bill’s narrow geographic scope may also have been a point of discussion, since it grants a special rule to one county rather than changing statewide law.
Authorizes the villages of Malone, Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake, in the county of Franklin, to employ retired former members of the division of state police as part-time village police officers.
Authorizes the transfer of memberships for certain members of the New York state and local police and fire retirement system who previously held a membership with the New York state and local employees' retirement system back to such retirement system.
Grants retroactive membership with Tier IV status in the New York state and local employees' retirement system to Christine Fernandez, formerly Christine Lennard, for her September 11, 1986 -- June 1989 employment with SUNY Buffalo.