STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 A bill that would give New York journalists access to police radio frequencies is officially sitting on Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s desk after passing through the New York State Congress. <\/p>\n
Radio traffic from Staten Island\u2019s four police precincts have been offline since February 2024<\/a>. The move came as a part of a long-term plan by the city to update outdated equipment while encrypting NYPD radio frequencies throughout the five boroughs.<\/p>\n According to media reports, the NYPD says the use of encryption is to keep officers and the public safe from radio interference and prevent listeners with ill intent from using such communications in a way that could harm or endanger them.<\/p>\n Sparking media outcry from across the state, outlets, including the Advance\/SILive.com, lost a key source in reporting local crime to audiences. <\/p>\n The Keep Police Radio Public Act was introduced on Jan. 28, 2025, by six New York elected officials: Karines Reyes, Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, Monique Chandler-Waterman, Brian Cunningham, Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, and MaryJane Shimsky. <\/p>\n The act, according to the New York State Senate<\/a>, \u201censures that, except for sensitive information, all radio communications are accessible to emergency services organizations and professional journalists.\u201d<\/p>\n It passed through the New York State Assembly<\/a> in an 85-61 vote and the New York State Senate<\/a> in a 38-22 vote on June 5.<\/a> <\/p>\n The three Republican assemblymembers on Staten Island \u2014 Mid-Island\u2019s Sam Pirozzolo, South Shore\u2019s Michael Reilly, and East Shore\u2019s Michael Tannousis \u2014 voted against the legislation in conjunction with borough State Sen. Andrew Lanza.<\/p>\n The two Democratic Staten Island representatives serving in the New York state legislative branch, State Sen. Jessica Scarcella-Spanton, who represents the North Shore and parts of Brooklyn, and Assemblymember Charles Fall, who represents the North Shore and parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan, voted in favor of the bill.<\/p>\n