Hochul Gives Syracuse Airport OK to Establish Its Own Police Force

Syracuse’s Hancock International Airport will be able to establish an airport police force after Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill Thursday giving the airport new authority to handle its own security.

State Sen. John Mannion, D-Geddes, and Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli, D-Syracuse, pushed through a bill authorizing the change in June.

The Syracuse Regional Airport Authority, which manages the airport, will become the third public transportation authority in the state to operate its own police department.

The airport’s new uniformed officers will replace a force from the Syracuse Police Department, which had patrolled the airport for decades.

Jason Terreri, executive director of the Syracuse Regional Airport Authority, said the switch from city cops will likely take place in eight months to a year.

The new airport police will be considered New York police officers with the full authority to use force and arrest people, Terreri said.

Hochul said the change is necessary to because it’s been difficult for the airport to find enough Syracuse police officers to work shifts at the airport due to staffing conflicts.

When the airport was city-owned and operated prior to July 1, 2012, Syracuse police officers were paid up to $48 an hour in overtime for working airport shifts. The overtime made security costs at Hancock Airport higher than other Upstate New York airports.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751

©2022 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit syracuse.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.