Establishes procedures to be followed when the body scan of an incarcerated individual, employee or visitor to a correctional facility displays alleged…

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Julia Salazar says this is needed

The NYS 2024-2025 Executive Budget allocated $13 Million to deploy body scanners in all NYS Correctional Facilities operated by DOCCS. The use of the body scanners, however, was only required for those visiting their incarcerated loved ones and is optional for staff to enter the facility. The DOCCS Commissioner confirmed that as of February 2026, 90% of employees do not go through body scanners. Incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals often report that employees frequently bring contraband into the facilities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, all visits were suspended for months and packages underwent security screening, yet contraband remained rampant. To address this issue, this bill requires all employees at state correc- tional facilities, as well as local correctional facilities that have body scanners, to utilize body scanners and other security measures upon entering the facility. Recognizing that radiation safety is of the utmost importance, this bill requires the department and local facili- ties to establish protocols to randomly rotate the search methods between body scanning, metal detectors, K9 searches, and pat frisks, and that body scanning must be utilized in that rotation. In February 2025, 13,000 correction officers engaged in an unlawful work stoppage, where thousands of incarcerated individuals were left in their cells for weeks with no out-of-cell time, visits, programs, and limited access to medications, food and water. DOCCS gradually started permit- ting visits at certain facilities on the weekends only, and as of March 2026, over a year later, visits are still only occurring on the week- ends, with a few facilities allowing visits on Wednesdays. The limited visits are causing significantly long lines and wait times outside of the facility, sometimes in extreme weather conditions. After weekend visits re-opened, New York State prisons began repeatedly turning away visitors and suspending their visitation rights for reasons like detecting tampons, surgical scars, body piercings, benign tumors, and more in their body scans and claiming these items are contraband, even when contraband is not found nor are charges pressed. This is particularly troubling, not only because visitors do not have any mechanism to prove their innocence in the moment of the denial, but also because many visitors are traveling for hours and waiting outside for hours to see their loved one. If DOCCS accuses them of bringing in contraband, but they are not, it is common that visitors will then get their visits suspended for the next few months or indefinitely, even if they appeal it. Some of these suspensions, including indefinite ones, have been overturned on appeal, signaling the importance of having trained radiologists available to review alleged anomalies. This bill establishes protocols and protections for visitors and employ- ees who, under this bill, will also be required to use the body scan- ners, to ensure that visits for visitors and entry for employees are not arbitrarily denied.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.