S 46: Includes falsely reporting incidents in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of a large number of police officers to a particular address or location as a felony offense under the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the second degree.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 46 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. WALCZYK, MURRAY, ORTT, TEDISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to falsely reporting inci- dents in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of a large number of police officers to a particular address or location The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 240.55 of the penal law, as amended by chapter 477 2 of the laws of 1989, subdivisions 1 and 2 as amended by chapter 561 of 3 the laws of 1999, subdivision 3 as renumbered by chapter 302 of the laws 4 of 2001, and subdivision 3 as added and the closing paragraph as amended 5 by chapter 301 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows: 6 § 240.55 Falsely reporting an incident in the second degree. 7 A person is guilty of falsely reporting an incident in the second 8 degree when, knowing the information reported, conveyed or circulated to 9 be false or baseless, [he or she] such person: 10 1. Initiates or circulates a false report or warning of an alleged 11 occurrence or impending occurrence of a fire, explosion, or the release 12 of a hazardous substance or in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of 13 a large number of police officers to a particular address or location 14 under circumstances in which it is not unlikely that public alarm or 15 inconvenience will result; 16 2. Reports, by word or action, to any official or quasi-official agen- 17 cy or organization having the function of dealing with emergencies 18 involving danger to life or property, an alleged occurrence or impending 19 occurrence of a fire, explosion, or the release of a hazardous substance 20 which did not in fact occur or does not in fact exist or an alleged 21 occurrence or impending occurrence of an incident which did not in fact EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00124-01-5 
 S. 46 2 1 exist in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of a large number of 2 police officers to a particular address or location; or 3 3. Knowing the information reported, conveyed or circulated to be 4 false or baseless and under circumstances in which it is likely public 5 alarm or inconvenience will result, [he or she] such person initiates or 6 circulates a report or warning of an alleged occurrence or an impending 7 occurrence of a fire, an explosion, or the release of a hazardous 8 substance upon any private premises or such person initiates or circu- 9 lates a report or warning of an alleged occurrence or an impending 10 occurrence of an incident in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of a 11 large number of police officers to a particular address or location. 12 Falsely reporting an incident in the second degree is a class E felo- 13 ny. 14 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 15 have become a law.