PHOTO: State Sen. Joe Addabbo, Jr. joined some of his Senate colleagues last week in advancing a package of bills designed to fight terrorist activity during the first 2016 meeting of the Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs. File Photo
By Forum Staff
Citing “the need to be ever vigilant in the face of continuing threats to the security of our city, state, nation and international community,” State Sen. Joe Addabbo, Jr. (D-Howard Beach) joined with a number of his Senate colleagues in advancing a package of bills designed to fight terrorist activity during the first 2016 meeting of the Senate Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs.
The package of legislation approved by the committee will now be sent to other appropriate committees for review or may otherwise move closer to a vote by the full Senate.
The seven proposals that garnered Addabbo’s support are aimed at cracking down on terrorism recruitment; addressing cyber security threats; providing greater punishment for those who solicit or provide support for terrorist acts; fighting back against terror threats against police officers, and establishing a New York State Terrorist Registry. Specifically:
- 455 would establish the crime of terrorism recruitment as a Class C felony, which could be imposed on people who attempt to entice others to engage in any sort of criminal terrorism.
- 2942 would create several penalty levels for soliciting or providing support for acts of terrorism, with offenders guilty of Class B, C, or D class felonies depending on the dollar value of support offered.
- 3404, S.3405, and S.3407 would address different aspects of potential cyber terrorism by expanding existing law to more seriously punish people who use computers or other technology to advance terrorist acts; requiring that a comprehensive review of cyber security services performed by and on behalf of New York State government be performed by September, 2016 and then every five years thereafter, and creating a state cyber security board to better address and share information with public and private entities about actual and potential threats.
- 3464, which Addabbo co-sponsors, would create a New York State Terrorist Registry and watch list that would be administered by the State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and coordinate with the State Division of Criminal Justice Services. People who have demonstrated through their past actions that they might commit an act of terrorism, including being convicted of such offenses in the United States or elsewhere, would be required to register and be subject to monitoring.
“The recent and horrendous attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, combined with our fortunate success in stopping some hateful events before they have had a chance to happen, points to the need to provide our law enforcement agencies and other partners in the fight against terrorism with the tools they need to keep us safe,” said Addabbo, who serves as the ranking Democratic member of the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs. “Since September 11, 2001, for example, the New York Police Department reports that there have been 16 foiled terrorist plots to attack our City residents and workers in our subway system, airports, transportation hubs, utility centers and other parts of our infrastructure. We need to make sure that hateful criminals whose only agenda is to bring tragedy and suffering down upon our residents continue to fail in their twisted and despicable campaigns of destruction.”
