Connecticut 2021 Regular Session Status: Passed Senate 4 D cosponsors

SB 122 — AN ACT ESTABLISHING A UNIT WITHIN THE DIVISION OF STATE POLICE TO INVESTIGATE HATE CRIMES AND CRIMINAL ACTS COMMITTED BY EXTREMIST GROUPS.

Last action — BILL PASSED TEMPORARILY

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2021 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there are no live odds of enactment. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

209 added · 57 removed

209 line(s) added, 57 removed.

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General Assembly Committee Bill No.
Senate General Assembly File No.
122 January Session, 2021 LCO No.
276 January Session, 2021 Substitute Senate Bill No.
2892 Referred to Committee on PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY Introduced by:
122 Senate, April 6, 2021 The Committee on Public Safety and Security reported through SEN.
(PS) AN ACT ESTABLISHING A UNIT WITHIN THE DIVISION OF STATE POLICE TO INVESTIGATE HATE CRIMES AND CRIMINAL ACTS COMMITTED BY EXTREMIST GROUPS.
BRADLEY of the 23rd Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill ought to pass.
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A UNIT WITHIN THE DIVISION OF STATE POLICE TO INVESTIGATE HATE CRIMES AND CRIMINAL ACTS COMMITTED BY EXTREMIST GROUPS.
The head of the state- wide organized crime investigative task force shall be a police officer.
The head of the Hate Crimes and Extremist Group Investigative Unit shall be the rank of sSB122 / File No.
276 1 sSB122 File No.
276 sergeant or above and shall serve, or appoint a designee to serve, as a liaison to the State-Wide Hate Crimes Advisory Council, established under section 51-279f.
The head of the state-wide organized crime investigative task force shall be a police officer.
(NEW) (Effective July 1, 2021) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection shall assign to the Hate Crimes and Extremist Group Investigative Unit, established pursuant to subsection LCO No.
(NEW) (Effective July 1, 2021) (a) For the purposes of this section, (1) "extremist" means an individual encouraging, condoning, justifying or supporting the commission or attempted commission of a violent crime, or a crime that is intended to cause physical harm to another person or property damage, to achieve a political, ideological, religious, social or economic goal, (2) "extremist group" means a group of extremists associated in fact but not a legal entity, and (3) "law enforcement unit" has the same meaning as provided in section 7-294a of the general statutes.
2892 1 of 3 Committee Bill No.122 (d) of section 29-4 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, such personnel as may be required to:
(b) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection shall assign to the Hate Crimes and Extremist Group Investigative Unit, established under subsection (d) of section 29-4 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, such personnel as may be required to fulfill the duties of this section.
(1) Prevent, investigate and detect (A) any activity that may constitute a crime that is a violation of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a- 181l of the general statutes, or any other crime that may be motivated by bigotry or bias, and (B) any criminal activity by an extremist group;
The unit shall:
(2) Analyze data and issue reports on (A) crimes that are violations of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l of the general statutes, reported to theunit pursuant to section29-7m ofthegeneralstatutes, asamended by this act, (B) any other crimes that may be motivated by bigotry or bias, and (C) any criminal activity by extremist groups;
(1) Prevent, investigate, detect and assist any law enforcement unit with the investigation of (A) any alleged crime that is a violation of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l of the general statutes, (B) any other alleged crime that may be motivated by bigotry or bias as a result of the actual or perceived race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression of another person, and (C) any criminal activity or suspected criminal activity by an extremist or extremist group;
and (3) Assist any law enforcement unit, as defined in section 7-294a of the general statutes, with the investigation of (A) any alleged crime that is a violation of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l of the general statutes, or any other crime that may be motivated by bigotry or bias, and (B) any criminal activity by an extremist group.
and (2) Compile, maintain and analyze data regarding (A) crimes that are violations of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l of the general statutes, (B) any other crime that may be motivated by bigotry or bias as a result of the actual or perceived race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression of another person, and (C) any criminal activity by an extremist or extremist group.
sSB122 / File No.
276 2 sSB122 File No.
276 (c) Not later than October 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, the unit shall publish a report on the department's Internet web site regarding thedata compiled pursuant to subparagraphs(A)and(B)ofsubdivision (2) of subsection (b) of this section.
(b) The police department, resident state trooper or constable who performs law enforcement duties for each town shall monitor, record andclassify allcrimescommittedwithinsuch townwhichare violations of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l and report such information to the [Division of State Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection] unit.
[(b) The police department, resident state trooper or constable who performs law enforcement duties for each town shall monitor, record andclassify allcrimescommittedwithinsuch townwhichare violations of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l and report such information to the Division of State Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.] (b) Any law enforcement unit, as defined in section 7-294a, shall submit a report to the Hate Crimes and Extremist Group Investigative Unit, not later than fourteen days after receiving notification, information or a complaint of (1) any alleged crime that is a violation of section 53a-181j, 53a-181k or 53a-181l, (2) any other alleged crime that may bemotivated by bigotry or biasasaresult oftheactualor perceived race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression of another person, and (3) any suspected criminal activity by an extremist or extremist group, as such terms are defined in subsection (a) of section 2 of this act.
(c) Not later than October 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, the unit LCO No.
(c) Not later than January 1, 2022, and biannually thereafter, the Police Officer Standards and Training Council, in consultation with the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection, shall (1) develop and promulgate a standardized form to be used by a law enforcement unit to submit a report pursuant to subsection (b) of this sSB122 / File No.
2892 2 of 3 Committee Bill No.
276 3 sSB122 File No.
122 shall publish a report on the department's Internet web site of (1) the information compiled under subsections (a) and (b) of this section, and (2) data and reports on the unit's activities under section 2 of this act.
276 section, (2) develop best practices to facilitate the sharing of information amongandbetweentheHateCrimesandExtremistGroupInvestigative Unit and law enforcements units, and (3) take such actions, as the council and commissioner deem appropriate, to inform the public of its right to report any alleged crime or suspected criminal activity as described in subdivisions (1) to (3), inclusive, of subsection (b) of this section and how to make such reports.
2 July 1, 2021 New section Sec.
2 July 1, 2021 New section July 1, 2021 Sec.
3 July 1, 2021 29-7m Statement of Purpose:
3 29-7m Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
To establish a unit within the State Police to investigate hate crimes and criminal acts committed by extremist groups.
In Section 2(b), "fulfill the duties of this section.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets.
The unit shall" was added for clarity.
Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.] SEN.
PS Joint Favorable Subst.
ANWAR, 3rd Dist.
sSB122 / File No.
Co-Sponsors:
276 4 sSB122 File No.
S.B.
276 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.
122 LCO No.
In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.
2892 3 of 3
Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:
None Municipal Impact:
None Explanation The bill establishesa Hate CrimesandExtremist Unit within theState Police resulting in no fiscal impact because it's anticipated the unit will be staffed by existing officers.
The Out Years State Impact:
None Municipal Impact:
None sSB122 / File No.
276 5 sSB122 File No.
276 OLR Bill Analysis sSB 122 AN ACT ESTABLISHING A UNIT WITHIN THE DIVISION OF STATE POLICE TO INVESTIGATE HATE CRIMES AND CRIMINAL ACTS COMMITTED BY EXTREMIST GROUPS.
SUMMARY This bill requires the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) commissioner to establish, within the State Police, a Hate CrimesandExtremist GroupInvestigative Unit(hereinafter,“Hate Crimes and Extremist Unit”).
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Under the bill, the head of this unit must (1) have the rank of sergeant or above and (2) serve, or appoint a designee to serve, as a liaison to the State-Wide Hate Crimes Advisory Council (see BACKGROUND).
The bill transfers the responsibility for monitoring, recording, and classifying all crimes committed in the state that are motivated by bigotry or bias from the State Police to the Hate Crimes and Extremist Unit.
The bill also modifies related reporting requirements by other law enforcement.
Under current law, town police departments, resident state troopers, and constables performing law enforcement duties must monitor, record, and classify certain specific crimes involving intimidation based on bigotry or bias (see BACKGROUND) that are committed in their towns and report them to the State Police.
The bill eliminates these requirements and instead requires all law enforcement units (see BACKGROUND) to submit a report to the Hate Crimes and Extremist Unit within 14 days after receiving notification, information, or a complaint of any:
1.
alleged crime that is a violation of the specific crimes involving intimidation based on bigotry or bias;
sSB122 / File No.
276 6 sSB122 File No.
276 2.
other alleged crime that may be motivated by bigotry or bias because of someone’s actual or perceivedrace, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression;
and 3.
suspected criminal activity by an extremist or extremist group (see below).
Relatedly, the Hate Crimes and Extremist Unit must (1) prevent, investigate, and detect those crimes and criminal activities, (2) assist law enforcement units with the investigation of the same, and (3) compile, maintain, and analyze data regarding the same that were, presumably, charged as crimes.
Starting by October 1, 2021, the unit must annually publish a report on DESPP’s website regarding the data it compiles on the charged crimes relating to bigotry or bias.
The bill requires the DESPP commissioner to assign enough personnel to the unit to fulfill these duties.
Lastly, the bill requires the Police Officer Standards and Training Council, in consultation with the DESPP commissioner, to:
1.
develop and promulgate a standardized form for law enforcement units for reporting on the notifications, information, and complaints they receive on the above crimes and criminal activities;
2.
develop best practices to facilitate information sharing between the Hate Crimes and Extremist Unit and law enforcement units;
and 3.
take actions they deem appropriate to inform the public on how to make reports of those crimes and criminal activities.
Under the bill, these actions must be done by January 1, 2022, and twice a year after that.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
July 1, 2021 EXTREMIST AND EXTREMIST GROUP DEFINITIONS sSB122 / File No.
276 7 sSB122 File No.
276 Under the bill, an “extremist” is an individual encouraging, condoning, justifying, or supporting the actual or attempted commission of certain crimes to achieve a political, ideological, religious, social, or economic goal.
Specifically, this applies to violent crimes or crimes intended to cause (1) another person physical harm or (2) property damage.
Additionally, an “extremist group” is a group of extremists associated in fact but not a legal entity.
BACKGROUND State-Wide Hate Crimes Advisory Council By law, this council is responsible for making annual recommendations for legislation concerning hate crimes to the Judiciary and Public Safety committees.
Additionally, the council must meet at least twice a year to encourage and coordinate programs to increase community awareness, reporting, and combating of hate crimes.
The council is within the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney for administrative purposes only (CGS § 51-279f).
Intimidation Based on Bigotry or Bias Crimes By law, it is a crime to commit certain actions or make certain threats with the intent to intimidate or harass another person because of his or her actual or perceived race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.
The law provides three degrees of penalties for this crime that vary depending on the actions of the intimidator or harasser (CGS §§ 53a-181j, -181k & -181l).
Law Enforcement Units By law, “law enforcement unit” is any state or municipal agency or department (or tribal agency or department created and governed under a memorandum of agreement) whose primary functions include enforcing criminal or traffic laws;
preserving public order;
protecting life and property;
or preventing, detecting, or investigating crime (CGS § 7-294a).
COMMITTEE ACTION Public Safety and Security Committee sSB122 / File No.
276 8 sSB122 File No.
276 Joint Favorable Substitute Yea 22 Nay 3 (03/18/2021) sSB122 / File No.
276 9
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Action History

  1. BILL PASSED TEMPORARILY

  2. HOUSE CALENDAR NUMBER 484

  3. FAV. RPT., TABLED FOR HOUSE CALENDAR

  4. SEN. PASSED, SEN. AMEND. SCH. A

  5. SEN. ADOPTED SEN. AMEND. SCH. A

  6. FILE NO. 276

  7. SENATE CALENDAR NUMBER 198

  8. FAV. RPT., TAB. FOR CAL., SEN.

  9. RPTD. OUT OF LCO

  10. REFERRED TO Office of Legislative Research AND Office of Fiscal Analysis 04/06/21

  11. FILED WITH LCO

  12. Joint Favorable Substitute

  13. PUBLIC HEARING 0309

  14. REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Public Safety and Security

  15. DRAFTED BY COMMITTEE

  16. Vote to Raise

  17. REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Public Safety and Security

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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7 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 180 not signed on

Sponsors (7)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (180)

180 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

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Subjects

public-safety civil-rights
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Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors SB 122?
SB 122 is sponsored by Bobby G. Gibson (Democratic), Saud Anwar (Democratic), Gucker, Kenneth M, Goupil, Christine, Geoff Luxenberg (Democratic), Anthony L. Nolan (Democratic), and Michel, David.
What is the current status of SB 122?
This bill died with 2021 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 122?
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