119-hres208

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 208 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
H. RES. 208

 Expressing solidarity with the New York State corrections officers 
 striking for better working conditions.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 March 10, 2025

 Ms. Tenney (for herself, Mr. LaLota, Mr. Garbarino, Ms. Malliotakis, 
 Mr. Lawler, Ms. Stefanik, and Mr. Langworthy) submitted the following 
 resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

 RESOLUTION

 Expressing solidarity with the New York State corrections officers 
 striking for better working conditions.

Whereas New York State corrections officers are forced to work in dangerous 
 conditions and are constantly attacked by radical leftwing politicians;
Whereas the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision 
 officially reported 2,070 assaults on corrections officers, nurses, and 
 other staff across New York State in 2024, an 85-percent increase since 
 2019;
Whereas, in 2022, the HALT Act was signed into law severely limiting 
 correctional officers' ability to discipline inmates to keep other 
 inmates safe through the use of solitary confinement;
Whereas, due to the dangerous conditions corrections officers are placed in, the 
 number of facility personnel has significantly decreased from 16,305 
 corrections officers in 2022 to 13,886 corrections officers in 2025;
Whereas, due to these staffing shortages, mandatory overtime for corrections 
 officers has reached record levels;
Whereas, to fix the staff shortage, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul 
 proposed slashing the number of staff each facility is required to 
 maintain to be considered at ``full staffing'', which would be a 30-
 percent decrease in corrections officers at each facility;
Whereas the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent 
 Association

    (NYSCOPBA) has repeatedly communicated to the Governor and 
 the New York State Legislature the dangers that corrections officers are 
 facing, the need to repeal the HALT Act, and the need for better support 
 for our corrections officers;
Whereas, on February 17, 2025, corrections officers at the Collins and Elmira 
 Correctional Facilities began to strike in protest of the conditions 
 that corrections officers are facing, and the strike spread to almost 
 all of the New York State prisons;
Whereas, in response to these strikes, Governor Hochul temporarily suspended 
 portions of the HALT Act, locked corrections officers inside the 
 facilities, and forced inmates into 24-hour lockdowns;
Whereas New York State and NYSCOPBA entered into arbitration, and the final 
 consent award did not sufficiently resolve many of the underlying issues 
 that caused the strike; and
Whereas corrections officers who continue to strike for safe working conditions 
 are now being terminated and losing their health care: Now, therefore, 
 be it
 Resolved, That the House of Representatives--

    (1) expresses solidarity with the New York State 
 corrections officers as they fight for better working 
 conditions;

    (2) condemns Governor Kathy Hochul and New York State for 
 their treatment of corrections officers; and

    (3) urges the New York State Legislature to expeditiously 
 repeal the HALT Act which makes every New York State 
 correctional facility more dangerous.
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