BILL NUMBER: S2656
SPONSOR: STEC
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the correction law, in relation to confinement; and to
repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto
 
PURPOSE:
To repeal the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement
(HALT) Act enacted in Chapter 93 of the Laws of 2021 and subsequent
amendments.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 23 of section 2 of the correction law to
reflect the original language prior to the enactment of the HALT Act.
Section 2 repeals subdivisions 33 and 34 of the correction law.
Section 3 amends paragraph (a) of subdivision 6 of section 137 of the
correction law to reflect the original language prior to the enactment
of the HALT Act.
Section 4 amends paragraph (d) of subdivision 6 of section 137 of the
correction law to reflect the original language prior to the enactment
of the HALT Act.
Section 5 repeals paragraphs (h) through (o) of subdivision 6 of
section 137 of the correction law.
Section 6 repeals subdivision 7 of section 138 of the correction law.
Section 7 amends subdivision 1 of section 401 of the correction law to
reflect the original language prior to the enactment of the HALT Act.
Section 8 amends subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of
section 401 of the correction law to reflect the original language prior
to the enactment of the HALT Act.
Section 9 amends subdivision 5 of section 401 of the correction law to
reflect the original language prior to the enactment of the HALT Act.
Section 10 amends subdivision 6 of section 401 of the correction law
to reflect the original language prior to the enactment of the HALT Act.
Section 11 repeals subdivision 4 of section 401-a of the correction
law. Section 12 repeals subdivision 18 of section 45 of the correction
law.
Section 13 amends section 500-k of the correction law to reflect the
original language prior to the enactment of the HALT Act.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York prisons are experiencing an unprecedented level of violence
threatening the well-being and safety of staff and incarcerated individ-
uals. From 2011 to 2021, assaults on incarcerated individuals increased
by 66 percent, while assaults on staff increased by 109 percent. In
response to the out-of-control violence among the prison population,
Acting Commissioner of the Department of Corrections and Community
Supervision (DOCCS), Anthony Annucci sent a memorandum to all inmates
within the state prison system addressing the "sheer savagery of the
assault, the randomness of the assault, and the lack of precipitating
event before the assault."
As violence within our jails and prisons continue to rise, and our
incarcerated population and the dedicated staff that work in our jails
in prisons are at constantly increasing risk of attack and injury, the
HALT Act, which went into effect on March 31, 2022, has severely
restricted the ability to use segregated confinement for prisoners that
break the rules and engage in violent behavior. This is one of the most
crucial tools that correctional facilities have to keep people safe, and
in a time when our correctional facilities have never been more danger-
ous, hindering the ability to remove violent inmates from the prison
population is reckless and will only increase this crisis.
This bill would repeal the HALT Act and restore the tools necessary to
keep our incarcerated population and the staff safe and finally put an
end to the epidemic of violence within our correctional facilities.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-2024: S3035 referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction; A3196
referred to Correction
2022/2021: 59378 referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction; A10593
referred to Correction
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S2656: 2 correction law, 2(23) correction law, 137 correction law, 137(6) correction law, 401 correction law, 401(1) correction law, 401(2) correction law, 401(5) correction law, 401-a correction law, 401-a(4) correction law, 45 correction law, 45(18) correction law