Less than one month after a brutal attack on a counselor and officer at the Lakeview Correctional Facility in Brocton, state Assembly Republicans this week offered legislation advancing 10 proposals developed by the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement (HALT) Committee to reform the severely flawed act and help address the ongoing staffing crisis in New York’s prisons.

Lawmakers unveiled the bill at the Capitol alongside New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association President Chris Summers and representatives from correctional officers’ unions from around the state.

“After years of policies that have driven correction officers out of the workforce and made our prisons more dangerous for both staff and inmates, it’s no surprise our correctional system is in crisis,” said Assembly Republican Leader Ed Ra, R-Franklin Square. “Instead of addressing one of the root causes — the HALT Act — the state has relied on temporary fixes like lowering hiring standards and spending more than $1 billion dollars to deploy the National Guard. The HALT Committee offered recommendations developed and endorsed by the administration’s own agencies. Everyone deserves to go to work knowing their safety is a priority — not an afterthought.”

The HALT Committee, formed as part of the March 2025 agreement between New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association and New York state, was tasked with evaluating how the HALT Act is functioning in practice and identifying needed changes. The committee was comprised of representatives from the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, NYSCOPBA, the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the Office of Employee Relations and multiple unions representing DOCCS’ employees. Feedback was also received from several independent stakeholders, including the Correctional Association of New York.

In September, the Committee unanimously approved 10 recommendations and submitted them to the governor and Legislature. This legislation mirrors those recommendations with the goal of improving safety and staffing in state correctional facilities.

Key provisions of the legislation include:

— Expanding the list of criminal behavior eligible for segregated confinement to include conduct consistent with violent felony offenses under state Penal Law, acts so heinous or destructive that placement in the general population creates a significant safety risk, lewd conduct or sexual harassment of staff or incarcerated individuals, aggravated harassment of an employee by an incarcerated individual and patterns of extortion by gangs or criminal enterprises.

— Removing language that currently prevents individuals involved in riots, escapes or attempted escapes from being placed in segregated confinement.

— Allowing short-term disciplinary confinement in a Special Housing Unit or Residential Rehabilitation Unit for individuals who repeatedly engage in misconduct not eligible for disciplinary confinement, after other interventions have failed.

— Allowing short-term protective custody in segregated confinement when no safe housing alternative is available.

— Providing DOCCS with greater flexibility in administering out-of-cell programming and managing repeat offenders.

On Feb. 23, a civilian counselor and correction officer were injured at Lakeview in Brocton when an inmate, initially seated in his chair, suddenly sprang up and approached the counselor, striking her repeatedly in the face and head. As the counselor attempted to retreat, the inmate continued to assault her, she fell and struck her head on a metal desk and then she fell to the floor, still under assault. The officer outside the classroom immediately called for a response while the counselor attempted to defend herself, kicking the inmate in the legs and groin to fend him off.

Additional officers responded to the scene, but the inmate refused to comply with commands. One officer managed to subdue the inmate in a body hold but was repeatedly punched in the back of head as the inmate broke free. Despite multiple applications of pepper spray to the inmate’s face, the chemical agent had no effect.

One officer deployed pepper spray, which immediately incapacitated the second inmate, causing him to return to his chair. The first inmate, however, remained combative, and it took four officers to restrain him and force him to the ground. Once under control, the inmate was handcuffed and escorted to a holding cell for decontamination. He was later transferred to Attica Correctional Facility.

“I do not know how many times we can plead with the lawmakers to allow for the use of mechanical restraints in these disciplinary units that were created after HALT was implemented,” said Kenny Gold, state Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association Western Region Vice President. “We are begging to be allowed to restrain inmates for the safety of staff and inmates alike so they can get the programs they need, yet every conversation falls on deaf ears. The legislators are in session, and they need to immediately address not only restraining the convicted, but they also need to make it their priority to address the recommendations of the HALT committee to make it safer for everyone that works and lives inside state prisons. Their inaction will most certainly get an employee killed!”

Last year, thousands of correction officers walked off the job to protest severe staffing shortages, hazardous working conditions and to demand a repeal of the HALT Act. In the aftermath, more than 2,000 correction officers were fired, and the National Guard was deployed to fill staffing gaps. Today, roughly 2,600 members of the National Guard remain stationed in state prisons, and over the past two years, the state has spent more than $1 billion on their deployment.

Despite DOCCS’ efforts to loosen hiring requirements, there are still 4,600 unfilled correction officer positions.