New York Laws
Article 5 - Powers, Limitations and Liabilities
91-A - Arson Investigation.

§ 91-a. Arson investigation. 1. Every municipal corporation, the
office of fire prevention and control, and any two or more municipal
corporations jointly, are hereby authorized and empowered to investigate
and to take such action as may be required to formulate task forces,
teams, fire and/or police investigative units to investigate any case of
a burn injury or wound sustained as reported pursuant to section 265.26
of the penal law, and to ascertain the cause of fires or explosions of
suspicious origin within the municipality or participating
municipalities, pursue necessary investigation thereof and assist in the
preparation and prosecution of cases stemming from any alleged criminal
activity attendant to such fires or explosions. In the case of a joint
endeavor by two or more municipal corporations, the share of the costs
to be borne by each such municipal corporation shall be fixed by
contract. The expenditure of moneys for such purpose by a municipal
corporation shall be deemed a lawful municipal purpose and the moneys
appropriated for the purpose shall be raised by tax upon the taxable
real property within the municipal corporation in the same manner as
moneys for other lawful municipal purposes. Each municipal corporation
is hereby authorized to accept and disburse grants of public or private
money or other aid paid or made available by the state or federal
government for such purpose or purposes.

2. Where an investigative unit formed by this section has investigated
a fire and such fire is suspected to have been ignited by a cigarette
and not caused by arson, the investigative unit shall forward to the
office of fire prevention and control within fourteen days of completing
the investigation into such fire information detailing, to the extent
possible: (a) the specific brand and style of the cigarette suspected of
having ignited such fire; (b) whether the cigarette package was marked
as required by subdivision six of section one hundred fifty-six-c of the
executive law; and (c) the location and manner in which such cigarette
was purchased.

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