City Council

Minutes of the TROY CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING June 1, 2021 6:00 P.M. Due to the COVID-19 crisis and pursuant to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order No. 202.1, this meeting was remotely via videoconference. The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Committee Chair McDermott. Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call: The roll being called, the following answered to their names: Council Member Ashe- McPherson, Council Member Steele, Council Member Zalewski, Council Member McDermott, Chair. Council Member Cummings was also present. Public Forum Per the Council rules (§ 2-25), because there was no legislation on this agenda, there was no public forum at this meeting. The following individual requested that a letter be entered into the minutes (see attached):  Kristoph DiMaria In attendance were Mayor Patrick Madden and Police Chief Brian Owens. The Mayor and Police Chief discussed the purchase and encryption of police radios. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 9:32 p.m. A video recording of this meeting is on file at the City Clerk's office. 1 This is Kristoph DiMaria at …Troy, NY 12180. I am writing again in regards to obtaining explicit clarification on Ordinance 38 relating to the City of Troy's allocation of funds awarded to the city by the NYS Homeland Security Grant. No one from city government has responded to the questions in my previous email on this issue. Those questions are below and awaiting your response. Council Members, especially (my) District 6 Council Member Eileen McDermott, please bring the questions below as crucial discussion points during tonight's and Thursday's meetings. Please provide answers to the following:  What was Troy PD’s communications policy before encryption?  What revisions will be made to Troy PD’s communications policy prior to / after encryption?  Who decides how and where police officers should communicate now? (We know officers hop on and off channels/talk groups that the public may or may not have access to now. Officers also frequently utilize their cell phones for communication.)  If communication is not on a publicly accessible channel, who has access to the communication?  If communication is not on a publicly accessible channel, how is this currently archived and reviewed by the department, City or other parties?  What kind of communications oversight is Troy PD currently experiencing and by whom?  How are communications recorded?  How are communications archived?  Where are those archives stored?  Who has access to archives?  Who has access to live vs backup servers where those archives exist?  Can those archives be edited or removed? What is the policy for doing so?  How can archives be requested by the media?  How can archives be requested by the public?  Who will manage fulfillment of communications archive requests?  Who will approve and touch those archives before they’re shared with the media and/or public?  What alternatives have been discussed and reviewed to full encryption?  What solutions have been discussed and reviewed for making information publicly available in real to near-real time? ... and the previous questions: 1. What are the current and future known security risks the City is trying to mitigate with this grant? Please point to City specifics based on evidence to date as well as priorities from Homeland Security and the State. 2. Beyond the equipment and training requests, how will the City be using this grant? 3. Will this funding be used to encrypt Troy Police communications? 2 If encryption will occur: 4. …will this be across the entire communications network for the City of Troy? 5. …what specific operations and channels will encryption be used for? 6. …will the fire department and ambulances be included? 7. …will other agencies and neighboring cities have access? 8. …since dispatch is at the County level, will all emergency operations and public safety be encrypted for Rensselaer County? 9. …will the media still have access? If yes, will they be required to pay for their own access? 10. …will the City be granting access to encrypted communications to any additional community members like Sidewinder? 11. …how do you believe this impacts the community’s trust in policing? (Especially in the same week as a lawsuit from the NYCLU over TPD not disclosing the misconduct records of officers.) 12. …what are the risks to the community in encrypting communications? How will this impact mutual aid efforts and public safety? 13. Troy, Schenectady and Albany have been labeled as high-risk urban areas meriting this funding for counterterrorism efforts. Please share specific programs and efforts TPD has implemented and will be implementing to ensure the protection of the community relative to the grant’s required investments in 1) intelligence and information sharing, 2) cyber security, 3) emerging threats, 4) soft targets and crowded places, and 5) domestic violent extremism. 14. How will encrypted communication address the aforementioned 5 areas? 15. Will the City be applying to future Homeland Security Grant Programs? 16. Has the City already applied for additional Homeland Security grants earmarked for the Urban Area Security Initiative or State Homeland Security Program? 17. Why did the City choose to purchase this equipment rather than more urgent needs for emergency response from FEMA's Authorized Equipment List? I appreciate your time and attention to this effort. I look forward to your responses. Please reply to this email address or call (518) 396-7832. Awaiting, Kristoph DiMaria 3