STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9905
IN SENATE
September 9, 2024
___________
Introduced by Sen. MYRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to establishing the
office of gun violence prevention and the gun violence advisory coun-
cil
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 837-y
2 to read as follows:
3 § 837-y. Office of gun violence prevention and the gun violence advi-
4 sory council. 1. Definitions. For the purposes of this section:
5 (a) "Advisory council" means the gun violence advisory council estab-
6 lished under subdivision three of this section.
7 (b) "Director" means the director of the office.
8 (c) "Gun violence" includes homicide, violent crime, domestic
9 violence, attempted suicide, suicide, and unintentional death or injury
10 involving a firearm.
11 (d) "Office" means the office of gun violence prevention established
12 under subdivision two of this section.
13 2. Office of gun violence prevention. (a) The office of gun violence
14 prevention established under Executive Order 211 of 2021 is hereby
15 established within the division. The office shall:
16 (i) centralize and coordinate grantmaking opportunities and allo-
17 cations to government and community stakeholders regarding gun violence
18 and gun violence prevention.
19 (ii) in conjunction with the advisory council, enhance the current
20 hospital capacity by standardizing hospital violence intervention
21 enhancement functions.
22 (iii) strengthen current data infrastructure and research by focusing
23 on data informed surveillance, prevention, and intervention of gun
24 violence statewide.
25 (iv) increase public awareness through conducting public awareness
26 campaigns in collaboration with government and community stakeholders
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15137-04-4
S. 9905 2
1 and provide resources and training to healthcare professionals regarding
2 gun violence and gun violence prevention.
3 (v) maintain an open channel of communication with the legislature by
4 providing recommendations and legal review functions for best practices
5 and programs regarding gun violence and gun violence prevention.
6 (b) The head of the office of gun violence shall be the director who
7 shall be appointed by the commissioner. The director shall:
8 (i) in consultation with the advisory council, coordinate, integrate,
9 and maximize the efficacy of each responsibility, program, and service
10 relating to gun violence prevention administered by the state, including
11 but not limited to centralizing and coordinating grantmaking opportu-
12 nities.
13 (ii) in consultation with the advisory council, evaluate laws, regu-
14 lations, programs, offices, data sources, data infrastructure, data
15 research, and grant programs relating to gun violence prevention admin-
16 istered by the state to assess how each such law, regulation, program,
17 office, data source, and grant program can be maximized, modernized, and
18 coordinated to reduce gun violence.
19 (iii) in consultation with the advisory council and in collaboration
20 with the department of health, center for environmental health's bureau
21 of occupational health and injury prevention, office of public health's
22 bureau of surveillance and data systems, and office of quality and
23 patient safety's center for health data integration, strengthen data
24 systems to support ongoing data-informed surveillance, prevention, and
25 intervention of gun violence statewide, by:
26 (A) utilizing existing datasets to enhance the data landscape with the
27 longer term goal, sufficient resources permitting, of creating a robust
28 syndromic surveillance system for firearm-related injuries for the
29 state.
30 (B) utilizing syndromic surveillance to identify clusters in non-fatal
31 suicide attempts and drug overdoses resulting in increased outreach
32 efforts and interventions within the identified area.
33 (C) hiring a data analyst to work specifically with center for envi-
34 ronmental health's bureau of occupational health and injury prevention,
35 office of public health's bureau of surveillance and data systems, and
36 office of quality and patient safety's center for health data inte-
37 gration to manage the data, maintain the outputs, and analyze trends to
38 disseminate findings to key stakeholders working to prevent or respond
39 to firearm injuries.
40 (D) assessing ongoing research efforts by the state relating to gun
41 violence to establish a comprehensive research agenda on the causes and
42 solutions of gun violence and providing legislative recommendations.
43 (E) hiring a full research and evaluation unit to support this data
44 infrastructure effort.
45 (F) building a dashboard to make data publicly accessible. Such dash-
46 board shall disseminate public health and public safety gun violence-re-
47 lated data to the public with an emphasis on equity and social determi-
48 nants of health.
49 (iv) coordinate with state agencies and commissions that have juris-
50 diction over gun violence prevention.
51 (v) recommend to the governor, the temporary president of the senate
52 and the speaker of the assembly actions which can be taken to promote
53 evidence-based gun violence prevention strategies, including the imple-
54 mentation or amendment of any laws, regulations, and/or grant programs.
55 (vi) centralize coordination and communication regarding government
56 grantmaking opportunities and allocations to community and government
S. 9905 3
1 stakeholders including, but not limited to, once per quarter, publicize
2 on the division's website all state and federal grant opportunities,
3 allocations and awards for gun violence prevention.
4 (vii) enhance hospital capacity for victims of gun violence by:
5 (A) standardizing hospital violence intervention programs;
6 (B) providing capacity building and technical assistance to communi-
7 ty-based organizations, hospitals, and violence prevention professionals
8 providing hospital violence intervention program services to align with
9 the current law;
10 (C) providing funding for technical assistance and capacity building
11 to meet training and certification requirements; and
12 (D) expanding the integration of individual-level firearm risk assess-
13 ment screening into existing clinical encounters in health care settings
14 to provide clinicians the tools to promote various prevention strategies
15 and provide tailored interventions including, but not limited to, safe
16 storage of firearms education materials, distribution of gun locks,
17 extreme risk protection order training and educational materials, lethal
18 means counseling and safety planning training, and referrals to mental
19 health resources, interpersonal violence resources, community-based
20 organizations, and community violence prevention programs.
21 (viii) in consultation with the advisory council, educate the general
22 public about gun violence by conducting and prioritizing outreach and
23 public awareness campaigns regarding:
24 (A) state and federal laws and regulations relating to gun violence
25 prevention. Such outreach and public awareness campaigns shall include,
26 but not be limited to, conducting trainings and awareness campaigns on
27 secure storage of firearms and suicide prevention; extreme risk orders
28 of protection; violence is a public health issue; and gun violence
29 awareness month.
30 (B) state and federal grant opportunities to non-profits, hospitals
31 and health care institutions, school districts, and victim service
32 providers located in communities disproportionately impacted by gun
33 violence.
34 (c) The director shall issue a report including, but not limited to,
35 information on the state of gun violence in the state, recommendations
36 for policy initiatives and legislation to reduce gun violence in the
37 state, and a description of the efforts of the director to carry out the
38 duties under this subdivision. Such report shall be delivered to the
39 governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the
40 assembly no later than one year after the effective date of this
41 section, and annually thereafter. Such report shall be published on the
42 division's website.
43 3. Gun violence advisory council. (a) Within one hundred eighty days
44 of the effective date of this section, the commissioner shall convene
45 the gun violence advisory council to share information and resources to
46 support and collaborate with communities, health systems, law enforce-
47 ment, and government stakeholders. Such advisory council shall be
48 chaired by the director and shall include no less than twelve additional
49 members selected by the director, including:
50 (i) a survivor of gun violence.
51 (ii) a community violence intervention service provider.
52 (iii) a local public health official.
53 (iv) a medical professional who provides trauma care.
54 (v) a mental health clinician.
55 (vi) a district attorney.
56 (vii) a teacher.
S. 9905 4
1 (viii) a member of a student group.
2 (ix) a veteran.
3 (x) any state legislative representatives and any representative from
4 a political subdivision of the state who wishes to participate in the
5 operations of the advisory council.
6 (b) The advisory council shall:
7 (i) coordinate with the office and local communities on:
8 (A) grant opportunities and allocations;
9 (B) hospital enhancement functions;
10 (C) data infrastructure and research; and
11 (D) public awareness campaigns, resources, and trainings.
12 (ii) visit communities impacted by gun violence and provide an inte-
13 grated, multidisciplinary overview of the public safety, health, employ-
14 ment, and educational resources that are available to reduce violence
15 and increase opportunities for youth and families.
16 (iii) share information on available programs and resources with
17 communities impacted by gun violence.
18 (iv) coordinate with communities to identify and remove barriers to
19 programs and resources.
20 (v) collaborate with community based organizations to align and maxi-
21 mize resources toward serving persons while maximizing the impact on
22 children and young adults.
23 (vi) create opportunities through the use of new and established
24 investments and programs that will have real, tangible results in commu-
25 nities that have been historically underserved.
26 (vii) expand programs to meet the needs of children and young adults.
27 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
28 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment
29 and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
30 of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
31 completed on or before such effective date.