There are many fine national accreditation programs that are also available to Sheriffs' Offices, but those programs are so expensive that many counties are unable to participate. NYSSA's nationally recognized accreditation programs provide a cost-effective means for counties to receive the benefits of accreditation without the huge costs associated with nationwide programs.

Accreditation of Major Functions of Sheriffs' Offices

The New York State Sheriffs' Association has developed accreditation programs for each major function of a Sheriff's Office. Our accreditation programs establish a standard of excellence in a particular area of the Sheriffs' responsibility; provide Sheriffs' Offices with assistance in meeting the standard of excellence; provide a system of peer-review for Sheriffs' Offices seeking accreditation, and provide recognition and certification of those Sheriffs Offices which meet or exceed the established standard of excellence. Participation in accreditation programs promotes efficiency, raises the quality of service, improves morale and, often, reduces insurance costs.

NYSSA's accreditation programs are provided at no cost to the participating counties. NYSSA assumes the costs of preparing and printing the extensive accreditation manuals and other materials; the recruiting and training of peer-review assessors; food and lodging for on-site assessors; and other related expenses. Our accreditation programs are not static and NYSSA staff and volunteer professionals continually review all of the combined 425 major accreditation standards and revise them as needed to meet new developments in case law, technology and best practices.

LAW ENFORCEMENT ACCREDITATION

In the early 1980's, NYSSA developed and implemented a first-in-the-nation state level accreditation program for law enforcement operations. The program for Sheriffs' Offices was so successful and popular that the State of New York was moved to adopt the program and to extend its availability to all law enforcement agencies in the State. NYSSA assisted the State Division of Criminal Justice Services in developing the State's accreditation standards, and NYSSA representatives continue to play an integral role in the NYS Law Enforcement Accreditation Program. Genesee County Sheriff Gary Maha, Onondaga County Sheriff Kevin Walsh, and Chenango County Sheriff Thomas Loughren now serve on the State Accreditation Council and numerous active and retired Sheriffs' employees serve as peer-review assessors. Twenty-five Sheriffs' Offices currently maintain State law enforcement accreditation status under the State operated program, along with ninety-four other state and local police agencies.

JAIL ACCREDITATION

The operation of a safe and secure county jail is one of the most difficult government functions - and one which exposes the Sheriff and county government to great legal and financial liability. In 1998, NYSSA developed and implemented a jail accreditation program designed to enhance county jail operations and reduce exposure to liability. The NYSSA jail accreditation program has established 166 standards of excellence which must be met by a county jail in order for the facility to earn accredited status. Since its inception, twenty county jails have received accreditation. In 2007, county jails in Chemung, Chenango, Columbia and Orange were all approved for accreditation by NYSSA.

CIVIL DIVISION ACCREDITATION

Sheriffs' Civil Divisions serve and execute civil court process, such as summons, evictions, Family Court orders, executions, orders of attachment, orders of seizure, and many more civil process items. Additionally, these divisions must collect and account for millions of dollars received by the Sheriff in enforcing civil judgments. To help Sheriffs assure that these divisions operate efficiently and properly, NYSSA in 1995, developed a civil accreditation program that now contains 121 civil accreditation standards. The standards contain detailed requirements regarding the handling and accounting of money collected for judgments and money collected by Sheriffs on behalf of the county. So far, ten counties have received accreditation, and in 2007 we formally presented civil division awards to Dutchess and Ulster Counties. We just completed a re-accreditation assessment in St. Lawrence, and will soon schedule assessments in Genesee and Yates Counties.

PUBLIC SAFETY ANSWERING POINT/911 CENTER ACCREDITATION

911 Centers are known, within police agencies, as one of the most important but also one of the most difficult and demanding divisions. Officers and employees must daily deal with crisis and emergencies, and are responsible for gathering critical information and making sure that it quickly and accurately is routed to the appropriate police, fire or EMS agency to respond to a caller's request for help. And, now that virtually all wireless 9-1-1 calls are received by county 911 centers, the volume of calls and difficulty in dealing with those calls has increased tremendously. In 2003, NYSSA established a committee to review standards and policies, and developed our Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP)/911 Center Accreditation Program. There are seventy stringent standards, and to date nine counties have achieved accredited status, including 2007 accreditations in Chenango and Warren Counties.

COURT SECURITY ACCREDITATION

Some Sheriffs and their counties participate in contracts with the Office of Court Administration to provide security services to our Supreme and County Courts. As we know from cases around the State and around the country, courts have unexpectedly become targets of violent and sometimes deadly events. NYSSA worked closely with the NYS Office of Court Administration when it reviewed and developed security policies following the recent courtroom incident in Atlanta, Georgia, in which a judge, court reporter and Deputy Sheriff were killed and another Deputy was wounded. NYSSA also created a Court Security Accreditation Program to help Sheriffs better provide courtroom security services. This is NYSSA's newest accreditation program, started in 2005. Livingston and Ontario Counties' court security efforts have already achieved accredited status, and this year we added Wayne and Yates Counties to our accredited list. Several other counties are now also working to achieve accreditation.