S 4498: Removes the citizenship requirement for police officers and firefighters; extends eligibility to those legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4498 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 6, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SALAZAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the public officers law, in relation to removing the citizenship requirement for police offi- cers and firefighters The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "we too 2 serve NY act". 3 § 2. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section 4 209-h to read as follows: 5 § 209-h. Citizenship requirements of police officers and firefighters. 6 Notwithstanding any general, special or local law or administrative code 7 to the contrary, the local governing bodies of the several cities, 8 towns, villages, police and fire districts of the state are hereby 9 authorized to remove, by local law, rule or ordinance, any citizenship 10 requirements from the qualifications of police officers and firefight- 11 ers. 12 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 3 of the public officers law, as amended 13 by chapter 251 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows: 14 1. No person shall be capable of holding a civil office who shall not, 15 at the time [he or she] such person shall be chosen thereto, have 16 attained the age of eighteen years, except that in the case of youth 17 boards, youth commissions, recreation commissions, or community boards 18 in the city of New York only, members of such boards or commissions may 19 be under the age of eighteen years, but must have attained the age of 20 sixteen years on or before appointment to such youth board, youth 21 commission, recreation commission, or community board in the city of New 22 York, be a citizen of the United States or legally authorized to work in 23 the United States under federal law, a resident of the state, and if it 24 be a local office, a resident of the political subdivision or municipal EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01642-01-5 
 S. 4498 2 1 corporation of the state for which [he or she] such person shall be 2 chosen, or within which the electors electing [him or her] such person 3 reside, or within which [his or her] such person's official functions 4 are required to be exercised[, or who shall have been or shall be 5 convicted of a violation of the selective draft act of the United 6 States, enacted May eighteenth, nineteen hundred seventeen, or the acts 7 amendatory or supplemental thereto, or of the federal selective training 8 and service act of nineteen hundred forty or the acts amendatory thereof 9 or supplemental thereto]. 10 § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 3-b of the public officers law, as sepa- 11 rately amended by chapters 263 and 371 of the laws of 2021, is amended 12 to read as follows: 13 1. No sheriff of a county, mayor of a city, or official, or other 14 persons authorized by law to appoint special deputy sheriffs, special 15 constables, marshals, police officers, or peace officers in this state, 16 to preserve the public peace or quell public disturbance, shall hereaft- 17 er, at the instance of any agent, society, association or corporation, 18 or otherwise, appoint as such special deputy, special constable, 19 marshal, police officer, or peace officer, any person who shall not be a 20 citizen of the United States or legally authorized to work in the United 21 States under federal law and a resident of the state of New York, and 22 entitled to vote therein at the time of [his] such person's appointment, 23 and a resident of the same county as the mayor or sheriff or other offi- 24 cial making such appointment; provided, however, that when, in the judg- 25 ment of a sheriff of a county except those counties within the city of 26 New York a situation exists which requires temporary additional assist- 27 ance, such sheriff may appoint special deputy sheriffs who are non-resi- 28 dents of the county but residents of the state of New York who shall 29 hold office until such time as the appointing sheriff determines that 30 the situation no longer exists; and no person shall assume or exercise 31 the functions, powers, duties or privileges incident and belonging to 32 the office of special deputy sheriff, special constables, marshal, 33 police officer, or peace officer, without having first received [his] 34 appointment in writing from the authority lawfully appointing [him] such 35 person. Nothing herein contained, however, shall apply to the appoint- 36 ment of a non-resident, as an emergency special deputy sheriff, by the 37 sheriff of any county to act when such sheriff has declared a state of 38 special emergency pursuant to the provisions of section two hundred 39 nine-f of the general municipal law. Provided further, that any person 40 otherwise qualified who resides in either the county of Nassau or the 41 county of Suffolk may at the instance of a society for the prevention of 42 cruelty to animals be appointed as a peace officer by the appropriate 43 appointing official of either of such counties notwithstanding that such 44 appointee does not reside in the same county as the appointing official. 45 Provided, further, that any person qualified who resides in a county 46 adjacent to the county of Allegany may at the instance of the society 47 for the prevention of cruelty to animals for the county of Allegany be 48 appointed as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official of 49 the county of Allegany. Provided, further, that any person qualified who 50 resides in a county adjacent to the county of Albany may at the instance 51 of the society for the prevention of cruelty to animals for the county 52 of Albany be appointed as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing 53 official of the county of Albany. Provided, further, that any person 54 otherwise qualified who resides in the county of Orange or Westchester 55 may at the instance of the society for the prevention of cruelty to 56 animals for the county of Rockland be appointed as a peace officer by 
 S. 4498 3 1 the appropriate appointing official of the county of Rockland. Provided, 2 further, that any person qualified who resides in a county adjacent to 3 the county of Putnam may at the instance of the society for the 4 prevention of cruelty to animals for the county of Putnam be appointed 5 as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official in the county 6 of Putnam. Provided, further, that any person qualified who resides in a 7 county adjacent to the county of Monroe may at the instance of the 8 Humane Society of Rochester and Monroe County for the Prevention of 9 Cruelty to Animals, Inc., doing business as Lollypop Farm, be appointed 10 as a peace officer by the appropriate appointing official in the county 11 of Monroe. 12 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.