New York state lawmakers gave final passage this week to a bill aimed at greatly expanding the ability for charitable bail organizations to help more defendants avoid pretrial incarceration.

The measure—which would allow charitable bail organizations to post up to $10,000 in bail for a defendant, a major increase from the $2,000 they're allowed to offer now—builds on a series of major pretrial reforms enacted earlier this year.

The bill was approved by the Assembly this week largely along party lines after passing the State Senate in early May. It will now be sent to Gov. Andrew Cuomo for approval. Cuomo hasn't taken a position on the bill, but has been a major supporter of ending cash bail altogether in New York.

The concept of charitable bail organizations is a relatively new one in New York. Legislation to allow them wasn't enacted until 2012, and even then there were financial and geographic boundaries to those funds. The new bill is intended to ease those restrictions.

The legislation will allow more charitable bail organizations to be formed outside New York City, which has been tough given current statutory restrictions. The current statute is written to only allow those organizations in New York City. The bill would repeal that part of the law.

Each charitable bail organization, as is current law, would have to seek a certificate to operate from the state Department of Financial Services. The bill would cut the application fee from $1,000 to $500, according to the legislation.

State Sen. Gustavo Rivera, D-Bronx, was the original sponsor of the bill in 2012 that formally legalized charitable bail organizations. He also sponsored the bill passed this week to expand them. He said that, since his original bill passed seven years ago, he's always wanted to build on the measure to help more low-income defendants.

“That's precisely why we created this,” Rivera said. “The reality is that ultimately bail is about the criminalization of poverty, and we want to move away from that.”

Lawmakers first enacted major reforms to the state's laws on bail earlier this year as part of the state budget in March. The changes, which take effect next year, will eliminate the option for bail for most low-level criminal charges, with a few carve-outs. Cuomo and leaders in the Legislature wanted to eliminate cash bail completely, but couldn't win support for the proposal.

Assemblyman Michael Blake, D-Bronx, sponsored the charitable bail bill with Rivera. He said the agreement on bail reform in the state budget added momentum for their legislation to pass in the final weeks of this year's legislative session.

“It absolutely helped, immensely,” Blake said. “We all understood that when we didn't eliminate bail completely, there was still the need for this to happen and the continual reality is clear of tens of thousands of people … that are incarcerated, and too often and for too long, because they can't afford it.”

Charitable bail organizations are not mandated to post bail for defendants who ask for their help. Each individual goes through a deliberative review, Rivera said, to protect the financial stability of those organizations. They're funded entirely by either charitable donations or public dollars, so each dime they doll out has to be carefully reviewed.

“The way that the organizations function, the people who run it are incredibly judicious about who they actually post bail on behalf for,” Rivera said.

The legislation also allows organizations to post bail for more charges than the previous law, according to the bill. The current statute allows them to post bail for misdemeanors, but the new bill would expand that to offenses overall. It's unlikely, though, that the $10,000 cap would cover bail for many of the state's most serious crimes.

The New York Defenders Association hailed the legislation in a statement, calling it the second leg of this year's criminal justice reforms surrounding bail.

“The Charitable Bail Fund Reform Act will transform the state's bail fund system by enabling the creation of regional nonprofit charitable bail funds that can provide up to $10,000 bail to poor people facing felony charges,” said Anne Rabe, the group's organizing coordinator. “By assisting with cash bail for New Yorkers who cannot afford it, bail funds keep people out of jail, protect the presumption of innocence, and keep families intact.”

The District Attorneys Association of the State of New York, a group representing the state's prosecutors, slammed the bill in a statement from its president, Albany County District Attorney David Soares. The group was also opposed to the bail reform law approved by lawmakers earlier this year, arguing, in part, that it would threaten public safety.

Soares said the same of the new bill, calling it “reckless.”

“After January 1, 2020, presumably the only people who will be in jail will be people who have been charged with the most heinous crimes in our communities and people who have already demonstrated that they are a flight risk. Now our lawmakers are looking to expand 'charitable' bail opportunities to make it easier for these individuals to remain on our streets or flee our State or country,” Soares said. “The reforms passed this legislative session were reckless, but until this moment I did not realize there was a place beyond reckless.”

Criminal justice advocates were at the forefront of pretrial reform earlier this year, often showing up at the state Capitol to push for an end to cash bail. Marvin Mayfield, leader of the FREEnewyork Campaign, cheered the bill's passage but urged lawmakers to continue negotiations on ending monetary bail altogether.

“I honor any change in the law that provides people access to pretrial freedom. However, as advocates and legislators know, this bill does not address the continued injustice of the money bail system in New York State,” Mayfield said. “Charitable bail funds are—and always will be—a stopgap measure, and the true goal must be the end of money bail and protection of pretrial liberty for all people.”

The New York State Bail Bondsman Association does not have a position on the bill, according to its executive director.

The bill will now head to Cuomo for a signature. Cuomo has previously said he would support an end to cash bail in New York, but hasn't taken a position on expanding charitable bail funds. A spokesman for his office said they'll review the bill when it comes to his desk.

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