New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle A - Governor's Office › Chapter I - Executive Orders › Part 8 - Executive Orders (Andrew M. Cuomo) › Section 8.150 - Executive Order No. 150: Establishing One or More Correctional Facilities Within the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Exclusively for Youth

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
WHEREAS, the State of New York is one of only two states
					 that, by statute, automatically processes all 16 and 17 year old youth in the
					 adult criminal justice system for all offenses; and
WHEREAS, approximately one hundred (100) youth are
					 incarcerated in New York State adult prison facilities and approximately five
					 hundred fifty (550) youth are currently confined in local jails. Youth of color
					 are disproportionately affected and consist of eighty-two (82) percent of those
					 sentenced to adult confinement; and
WHEREAS, it is well-established that incarcerating youth in
					 adult prisons has significant negative impacts on this population, including,
					 but not limited to, higher rates of suicide and recidivism. Research has shown
					 that youth processed as adults have a twenty-six (26) percent higher likelihood
					 of re-incarceration than youth processed as juveniles; and
WHEREAS, despite rigorous efforts made to pass Raise the
					 Age legislation that would have, among other things, ensured that incarcerated
					 youth receive services and have an opportunity to address the collateral
					 consequences of a conviction, the Legislature was unable to come to an
					 agreement, which has necessitated that I pursue an interim measure pending the
					 passage of a bill that either raises the age of criminal responsibility or
					 undertakes the critical reforms outlined by the Commission on Youth, Public
					 Safety and Justice and my proposed bill; and
WHEREAS, in the interest of promoting public safety and
					 justice, the State of New York is committed to implementing policies that
					 promote improved outcomes for court-involved youth, and to taking steps to
					 remove currently incarcerated youth, and divert those who will be convicted
					 under existing law from adult prisons, and to providing the necessary programs
					 and services to assist in reducing the rates of recidivism of youth; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to section 112  of Correction Law, the
					 Commissioner of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community
					 Supervision (DOCCS) is authorized to manage, maintain, and control the State's
					 correctional facilities, the inmates confined therein, and all matters relating
					 to the government, discipline, policing, contracts, and fiscal concerns
					 thereof; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to subdivision 2 of section 70  of the
					 Correction Law, DOCCS may establish or maintain any type of institution or
					 program of treatment, not inconsistent with any other provisions of law;
					 and
WHEREAS, pursuant to subdivision 3 of section 70  of the
					 Correction Law, the Commissioner of DOCCS may establish and maintain new
					 correctional facilities, in accordance with the needs of the Department;
					 and
WHEREAS, pursuant to subdivision 8 of section 70  of the
					 Correction Law, the Commissioner of DOCCS is authorized to enter into
					 contracts, within the amount appropriated therefore, with any university,
					 social agency, or qualified person to render professional services to any
					 correctional facility; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to section 501  of the Executive Law, the
					 New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) is duly authorized
					 to establish, operate and maintain, or contract for the operation and
					 maintenance of programs to advance the moral, physical, mental, and social
					 well-being of the youth of this state; and
WHEREAS, it is the core function of OCFS to provide
					 treatment programs and services to troubled youth, and 16 and 17 year old
					 juvenile offenders, in particular; and
WHEREAS, DOCCS, in collaboration with OCFS, the Office
					 Mental Health (OMH), and the Office of General Services (OGS), were directed to
					 develop a plan to move the 16 and 17 year olds from adult prisons to a facility
					 with necessary program supports and staff. The agencies have developed a plan,
					 which identifies the facility for consideration, the requisite work and
					 timeline required to ready the facility to house females and medium- and
					 minimum-security classified male 16 and 17 year olds, provide the programmatic,
					 staffing, and service needs for the facility, and the agencies are now ready to
					 begin implementation of the plan;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ANDREW M. CUOMO, Governor of the State
					 of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
					 laws of the State of New York, hereby order, as an interim measure pending the
					 passage of Raise the Age legislation and the necessary reforms relating to the
					 legislation, that the plan shall be implemented as follows:
1. The Commissioner of DOCCS has identified a
				  facility for the purpose of confining female and medium- and minimum-security
				  classified male youth separately from adult prisoners who are age 18 or older.
				  The movement of the youth shall be conducted in phases to permit for
				  retrofitting of the facility, with such movement beginning in August 2016;
				  and
2. Such facility shall be
				  administered by DOCCS with programs and services to be provided with
				  consultation and training support from OCFS. The facility should also include
				  specially trained staff to serve youth; and
3. The Commissioner of OCFS shall, in
				  conjunction with the Commissioner of DOCCS and any other state agency with
				  respect to necessary services, facilitate the specialized training of DOCCS
				  staff, review DOCCS policies and procedures for this youth population, and
				  provide consultation on difficult cases. OCFS clinical staff and case managers
				  shall participate in conference calls, video conferences, site visits, shared
				  training sessions and case consultations, to assist DOCCS in addressing the
				  specialized needs of the youth in such facility or facilities. Ultimately,
				  DOCCS and OCFS shall enter into a Memorandum of Understanding regarding those
				  services and programs; and
4. The
				  Commissioner of OMH shall assign staff to such facility on a full time basis
				  sufficient to meet the requirements of a "level one facility" as defined in
				  subdivision 27 of section 2  of the Correction Law; and
5. In accordance with section 504  of the
				  Correction Law, the Commissioner of DOCCS may consider a request from a local
				  correctional facility to house any youth who has received a definite sentence
				  of imprisonment in excess of 90 days in such facility.
FURTHER, this Order shall take effect immediately and shall
					 remain in effect until further notice.