Governor Kathy Hochul announces increased funding to support Red Flag Law

The State Attorney General’s Office is receiving $4.6 million to support the state’s Red Flag Law use to prevent gun violence.

Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James announced the funding comes on the heels of the number ERPOs doubling since the state’s Red Flag Law went into effect in August.

The Red Flag Law, also known as the Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) law, prevents individuals who show signs of being a threat to themselves or others from purchasing or possessing any kind of firearm.

It also provides procedural safeguards to ensure that no firearm is removed without due process while helping to prevent tragedies, like the racist mass shooting in Buffalo.

The number of total ERPOs issued have gone from 1,552 between August 25, 2019 and June 1, 2022 to 3,460 as of October 1, 2022. That’s an increase of 1,908 ERPOs.

Hochul and James said the new funding supports State Police efforts to implement the law. They said, currently, troopers make applications to the court for an ERPO on their own, but with the drastic increase in applications, there is a need for consistent legal representation to ensure the process to remove firearms from potentially dangerous individuals works effectively.

The additional $4.6 million will allow the Attorney General’s Office to add dozens of staff positions to represent the State Police and bolster their efforts to obtain these orders.