ALBANY, NY (Feb. 15, 2021) – A bill introduced in the New York Assembly would ban state and local law enforcement agencies from acquiring certain military equipment from federal programs.
Asm. Ron Kim and four fellow Democrats introduced Assembly Bill 3115 (A3115) on Jan. 22. The legislation would prohibit local law enforcement from receiving or purchasing the following property from a military equipment surplus program operated by the federal government.
Drones that are armored, weaponized, or both
Aircraft that are combat configured or combat coded
Grenades or similar explosives and grenade launchers
Silencers
Militarized armored vehicles
The proposed law would also require law enforcement agencies to publish a notice on their publicly accessible website within 14 days of requesting allowable military equipment from a federal program.
The legislation would not only prohibit the use of impact projectiles; rubber bullets, etc., and noxious chemical agents, such as tear gas, from being used at protests or demonstrations, it would also prohibit police departments from acquiring the following items (through purchase or otherwise):
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Many state and local governments still operate official websites with .us, .com or .org domains, but that may soon start to shift as they move to more secure and trusted .gov domains.
That’s thanks to the DOTGOV Online Trust in Government Act, a piece of legislation tucked into an omnibus spending and coronavirus pandemic relief bill Congress passed in December.
The law provides support services, security enhancements and outreach from the federal government to state and local agencies to get them to shift their domains to .gov. The law would reduce or wipe away the costs of making the shift, which security experts agree is an essential element of improving internet security for government agencies.
By Arturo Castañares
Editor-at-Large
A secret committee of local fire and police chiefs postponed its December meeting just minutes before it was to start after La Prensa San Diego filed a lawsuit claiming the group’s meetings violate state open meeting laws.
The group, called the Urban Area Working Group (UAWG), is the “Approving Authority” recognized by the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to distribute funding to local law enforcement and fire agencies to prepare for and respond to terrorist threats.
UAWG is a permanent subcommittee of the Unified San Diego County Emergency Services Organization (USDCESO), a local Joint Powers Authority (JPA) agency comprised of the County Office of Emergency Services (OES) and representatives from each of the 18 cities in the region, including local fire and police chiefs.
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (Feb. 2, 2021) – A bill introduced in the Minnesota House would ban state and local law enforcement agencies from acquiring military equipment from one major federal program.
A coalition of 11 Democrats introduced House Bill 487 (HF487) on Jan. 28. The legislation would prohibit state and local law enforcement agencies in Minnesota from acquiring “military-grade weapons” from the federal 1033 program. HF487 defines military-grade weapons as “militarily equipped vehicles and aircraft, weapons and other objects designed to primarily have a military purpose or offensive capability, and ammunition.”
This would not prohibit police departments from acquiring other equipment from the 1033 program, such as generators and medical equipment.