Active 1891–present Type Naval militia | Allegiance State of New York Size 2,900 (approximately) | |
Country United States of America Part of New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs | ||
The New York Naval Militia is the federally recognized naval militia of New York State and is under the authority of the Governor of New York as Commander-In-Chief of the state's military forces. With the New York Guard, the Army National Guard and Air National Guard, it is under the control of the New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs and New York's Adjutant General. As of July 2015, the New York Naval Militia has over 2,900 members, more than 95% of whom are also members of the U.S. Naval Reserve, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, or U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.
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History
The New York Naval Militia was first created in 1889 and named the New Provisional Naval Battalion. The battalion was officially entered into state service on 23 June 1891, and was named the First Battalion, Naval Reserve Artillery. In 1892, the naval militia was called out to protect steam ship passengers during the cholera quarantine at Fire Island.
After the sinking of the USS Maine, the New York Naval Militia sent five divisions of its 1st Battalion to fight in the Spanish–American War. New York Naval Militiamen manned two auxiliary cruisers that fought in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba, and also conducted patrols of New York Harbor.
The New York Naval Militia was activated during both World War I and World War II, as well as the Korean War.
In 1996, the New York Naval Militia was called up after the crash of TWA Flight 800 off Long Island.
In 1997, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the New York Naval Militia and the United States Coast Guard which allowed Coast Guard reservists to join the New York Naval Militia. This was formalized by a change in New York law in 1998 which also allowed up to five percent of the New York Naval Militia to be qualified volunteers who were not reservists.
In 2001, the U.S. state of New York created the New York State Military Emergency Boat Service (MEBS) in an attempt to strengthen homeland security efforts, and a fleet of high-speed, all-aluminum patrol boats was built for this unit.
After the September 11 attacks, the New York Naval Militia was called up to aid in recovery efforts.
In recent years, the New York Naval Militia has mobilized in response to Hurricanes Irene (2011) and Sandy (2012), and the significant Buffalo snowstorm of December 2014.
Mission
The mission of the New York Naval Militia is to provide a trained and equipped naval force to augment New York National Guard forces during Civil Support operations. The New York Naval Militia has three elements of its official mission. The purpose of the New York Naval Militia is to:
The Military Emergency Boat Service (MEBS) created in 2001 has additional responsibilities, including:
Organization
The New York Naval Militia is organized into three regional commands: Southern Command, encompassing Long Island, New York City, Rockland and Westchester Counties; Northern Command, encompassing the Hudson Valley, Catskill and Adirondack Mountains region; and Western Command, encompassing the vast area of the state from Jamestown to the Saint Lawrence River.
Educational benefits
Since January 1, 1997, any active member of the New York National Guard or Naval Militia, in good standing, has been eligible to apply to receive tuition assistance, up to the cost of the State University of New York's (SUNY) maximum in-state undergraduate tuition, at any college, university, or community-technical college in the State of New York recognized and approved by the New York State Board of Regents or State University of New York.