2023 New York Laws › EXC - Executive › Article 2-B - State and Local Natural and Man-Made Disaster Preparedness › 29-B - Use of Disaster Emergency Response Personnel in Disasters.

§ 29-b. Use  of disaster emergency response personnel in disasters. 1.
  The governor may, in his or her discretion, direct  the  state  disaster
  preparedness commission to conduct an emergency exercise or drill, under
  its direction, in which all or any of the personnel and resources of the
  agencies  of  the commission of the state may be utilized to perform the
  duties assigned to them in a disaster, for the purpose of protecting and
  preserving human life or property in a disaster. During  a  disaster  or
  such  drill  or  exercise,  disaster emergency response personnel in the
  state shall operate under the direction and command of the chair of such
  commission,  and  shall  possess  the  same  powers,   duties,   rights,
  privileges  and  immunities  as  are applicable in a civil defense drill
  held at the direction of the state civil defense  commission  under  the
  provisions of the New York state defense emergency act.
2.  Local  use  of  disaster emergency response personnel. a. Upon the
  threat or occurrence of a disaster, and during and immediately following
  the same, and except as  otherwise  provided  in  paragraph  d  of  this
  subdivision,  the  county  chief  executive  may  direct  the  emergency
  management director  of  a  county  to  assist  in  the  protection  and
  preservation  of  human  life  or  property  by  calling  upon  disaster
  emergency response personnel employed by or supporting that  county,  as
  specified  in  the  county  comprehensive  emergency management plan, to
  perform the emergency response duties assigned to them.
b. The disaster emergency response personnel of the  county  shall  be
  regarded  as  a  reserve  disaster force to be activated, in whole or in
  part, by the county emergency management director upon the direction  of
  the  county  chief  executive when the county chief executive, in his or
  her discretion, is convinced that the personnel and resources  of  local
  municipal   and   private   agencies  normally  available  for  disaster
  assistance are insufficient adequately to cope with the disaster.
c. Except as provided in paragraph d of this subdivision,  the  county
  chief executive may exercise the power conferred upon him in paragraph a
  of  this  subdivision, or may deactivate the disaster emergency response
  personnel of the county in whole or in part, on his own motion  or  upon
  the  request  of  the chief executive officer of a village, town or city
  located within the county of which he is an officer.
d. Where the local office of public safety or emergency management  in
  a city is independent of the county office of public safety or emergency
  management and is not consolidated therewith, the county chief executive
  may  direct  the  emergency  management director of the county to render
  assistance within such city only when the  chief  executive  officer  of
  such  city  has  certified  to  him that the disaster emergency response
  personnel of the city have been activated pursuant to the provisions  of
  subdivision  three  of  this  section  and  that all resources available
  locally are insufficient adequately to cope with the disaster.
e. When performing  disaster  assistance  pursuant  to  this  section,
  county  disaster  emergency  response  personnel shall operate under the
  direction and command of the county emergency  management  director  and
  his  or her duly authorized deputies, and shall possess the same powers,
  duties, rights,  privileges  and  immunities  they  would  possess  when
  performing  their  duties  in a locally sponsored civil defense drill or
  training exercise in the civil or political subdivision  in  which  they
  are enrolled, employed or assigned emergency response responsibilities.
f.  The chief executive officer of a city shall be responsible for the
  conduct of disaster operations within the city, including the operations
  directed by the county  emergency  management  director  when  rendering
  disaster assistance within a city pursuant to this section.
g.  Outside of a city, the sheriff of the county, and in Nassau county
  the commissioner of police of the county of Nassau, shall supervise  the

  operations  of  the  emergency  management director when rendering peace
  officer duties incident to disaster assistance.  The  sheriff  and  such
  commissioner  may  delegate  such  supervisory  power  to  an elected or
  appointed town or village official in the area affected.
h. Neither the chief executive officer of a city, nor the county chief
  executive, nor any elected or appointed town or village official to whom
  the  county chief executive has delegated supervisory power as aforesaid
  shall be held responsible for acts or omissions  of  disaster  emergency
  response personnel when performing disaster assistance.
3.  City  use  of  disaster  emergency response personnel. a. Upon the
  threat or occurrence of a disaster, and during and immediately following
  the same, and except as  otherwise  provided  in  paragraph  d  of  this
  subdivision,  the  chief  executive  of  a city may direct the emergency
  management director  of  the  city  to  assist  in  the  protection  and
  preservation  of  human  life  or property by calling upon city disaster
  emergency response personnel to perform the  emergency  response  duties
  assigned to them.
b.  The  disaster  emergency  response  personnel of the city shall be
  regarded as a reserve disaster force to be activated,  in  whole  or  in
  part,  by  the  city emergency management director upon the direction of
  the chief executive officer of the city when the latter, in his  or  her
  discretion,  is  convinced  that  the  personnel  and resources of local
  municipal  and  private  agencies  normally   available   for   disaster
  assistance are insufficient adequately to cope with the disaster.
c.  Except  as  provided in paragraph d of this subdivision, the chief
  executive officer of a city may exercise the power conferred upon him in
  paragraph  a  of  this  subdivision,  or  may  deactivate  the  disaster
  emergency response personnel of the city in whole or in part, on his own
  motion or upon the request of the head of the city police force.
d.  Where  the local office of emergency management in a city is under
  the jurisdiction of a consolidated county office  of  civil  defense  as
  provided  in  the  New  York  state  defense  emergency  act,  the chief
  executive officer of  such  city  seeking  the  assistance  of  disaster
  emergency response personnel in the protection and preservation of human
  life or property within such city because of such disaster, must request
  the  same from the county chief executive in which such city is located,
  in the same manner as provided for assistance to towns and  villages  in
  subdivision two of this section.
e.  When  performing disaster assistance pursuant to this subdivision,
  disaster emergency response personnel shall operate under the  direction
  and  command  of  the  city emergency management director and his or her
  duly authorized deputies, and shall possess  the  same  powers,  duties,
  rights,  privileges,  and  immunities they would possess when performing
  their duties in a locally sponsored  civil  defense  drill  or  training
  exercise  in  the  city in which they are enrolled, employed or assigned
  emergency response responsibilities.
f. Where the city disaster  emergency  response  personnel  have  been
  directed  to assist in local disaster operations pursuant to paragraph a
  of this subdivision, and the chief executive  officer  of  the  city  is
  convinced  that  the  personnel  and  resources  of  local municipal and
  private agencies normally available for disaster  assistance,  including
  local disaster emergency response personnel, are insufficient adequately
  to  cope with the disaster, he or she may certify the fact to the county
  chief executive and request the county chief  executive  to  direct  the
  county  emergency  management director to render assistance in the city,
  as provided in subdivision two of this section.
g. The chief executive officer of a city shall be responsible for  the
  conduct of disaster operations within the city, including the operations

  directed  by  the  county  emergency management director, when rendering
  disaster assistance within a city pursuant to this subdivision.
h. Neither the chief executive officer of a city, nor the county chief
  executive,  shall  be held responsible for acts or omissions of disaster
  emergency response personnel when performing disaster assistance.