Deputy Sheriff #63511 Open Competitive

FEE REQUIRED: The State Civil Service Law requires our office to collect a processing fee from each applicant. The amount of the fee is fifteen dollars ($15.00) per applicant for Each examination applied for, payable at the time of filing of the application form, by check (personal or certified) or money order, payable to the "Cattaraugus County Treasurer". Cash Will Not Be Accepted. Applicants whose personal checks are returned for insufficient funds will not be considered as candidates. Applicants must record the Examination Number(s) and Title(s) on their checks. Refunds of fees will not be issued to applicants who are disqualified for not meeting the minimum qualifications for admittance to the examination or who do not appear for testing on the scheduled test date. Therefore, Do Not Apply for an examination if you are not sure that you meet the minimum qualifications.

RESIDENCY: A Deputy Sheriff is a public officer and must be a resident of Cattaraugus County at the time of appointment. Preference in appointment may be given to eligibles who, for at least one month prior to the examination date, have been residents of Cattaraugus County.

DUTIES: The work involves responsibility for the protection of lives and property and the enforcement of laws and ordinances within the County. On an assigned shift an incumbent assists in the investigation of offenses and the apprehension of violators, conducting routine patrol operations in accordance with standard departmental operating procedures. The work is performed under the general supervision of a higher-ranking officer who gives specific instructions and assistance when special problems arise.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

AGE: Candidates must be at least 19 years of age on or before December 2, 2006, to be admitted to the written test. Eligibility for appointment as a Deputy Sheriff begins when the candidate reaches age 20. Candidates who reach their 35th birthday on or before the date of the written examination are not qualified except as follows.* Candidates may have a period of military duty or terminal leave up to six years, as defined in Section 243 (10-a) of the Military Law, deducted from their age for purposes of determining whether they meet the age requirement.

*Section 58.1(a) requires that applicants not be "more than thirty-five years of age as of the date when the applicant takes the written examination..." Candidates who may be impacted by the maximum age requirement and who are requesting an alternate test date (for active military duty, Sabbath observance or for an alternate test date situation which meets the conditions of the agency’s alternate test date policy) are advised to contact the Cattaraugus County Civil Service Commission to discuss their request.

CITZENSHIP: United States Citizenship is required at time of appointment. It is not necessary for admission to the examination.

DRIVER'S LICENSE: Candidates must possess a valid New York State Operator's license at the time of appointment.

NOTE: Conviction of a felony will bar appointment, and conviction of a misdemeanor or other offense may bar appointment.

SUBJECT OF EXAMINATION: There will be a written test which you must pass in order to be considered for appointment. Only your score on the written test will be considered when computing your final score. In addition, candidates must meet the physical fitness and medical standards prescribe by the Municipal Police Training Council. Candidates passing the written portion of the examination will have their names placed on the eligible list but will be required to pass qualifying physical-agility test before they can be certified for permanent appointment. These tests will be given as the needs of the service require. Candidates who pass the qualifying physical fitness test and who are given a conditional officer of employment will be scheduled to take the required medical examination.

Written test will cover knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Applying written information (rules, regulations, policies, procedures, directives, etc.) in police situations These questions test for the ability to apply written rules in given situations similar to those typically experienced by police officers.
2. Memory for facts and information These questions test for the ability to remember facts and information presented in written form. You will be given 5 minutes to read and study the information in the Memory Booklet. After the 5-minute period, the Memory Booklet will be taken away. You will then be required to answer questions about the material that was presented in the Memory Booklet.
3. Reading, understanding, and interpreting written information These questions test for the ability to read, understand, and interpret the kinds of written information that police officers are required to read during their formal training period and on the job.
4. Preparing written material in a police setting These questions test for the ability to prepare the types of reports that police officers write. You will be presented with a page of notes followed by several questions. Each question will consist of four restatements of the information given in the notes. From each set of four, you must choose the version that presents the information most clearly and accurately.

The rating key for this examination will be established by the New York State Civil Service Commission prior to the date of the test, upon recommendation of a committee of police experts who will review all the questions for appropriateness and the key answers for correctness. There will be no review of the questions by candidates. This committee was selected with the assistance and endorsement of the Police Conference of New York, Inc., the New York State Association of PBA's, Inc., and the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police, Inc.

Use of a calculator is prohibited for this examination.

QUALIFYING PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST

The three elements measured in the qualifying physical fitness test are muscular endurance, absolute strength and cardiovascular capacity. The following is a brief description of the physical fitness test.

Muscular Endurance The requirement is for a number of bent-leg sit-ups to be performed in one minute.

Push Up This test measures muscular endurance of the upper body (anterior deltoid, pectoralis major and triceps). The requirement is for a number of full body repetitions that a candidate must complete without breaks.

Cardiovascular Activity 1.5 mile run; the requirement is for the attainment of a score calculated in minutes and seconds.

The Municipal Police Training Council adopted the physical fitness-screening test based on the model formulated by the Cooper Institute of Aerobics Research. The minimum passing scores, depending on age and sex, represent the fortieth (40th) percentile of physical fitness as established by the Cooper Institute. Failure on a part of qualifying test will remove your name from further consideration for appointment.

Copies of the physical fitness and medical standards are available upon request from the Cattaraugus County Civil Service Commission.

NOTE: A Guide to Taking the Examination for Deputy Sheriff will be sent to all approved candidates no later than two weeks before the test date. If you have not received a copy by November 22, 2006, please call the Cattaraugus County Civil Service Commission to request a copy.

PARTICIPATION IN MULTIPLE EXAMINATIONS: If you have applied for any other civil service examination to be given on the same test date for employment with New York State or any other local government jurisdiction excluding New York City, you must make arrangements to take all the examination at one test site.

If you have applied for both State and local government examinations, you must make arrangements to take all your examinations at the State examination center by calling (518) 474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-8777-697-5627 (press 2, then press 1), no later than two weeks before the test date.

If you have applied for another local government examination with another local civil service agency, call or write each civil service agency to make arrangements. You must make your request for test arrangements no later than two weeks before the date of the examinations. You must notify all government civil service agencies with whom you have filed an application of the test site at which you wish to take your examination.

SATURDAY SABBATH OBSERVERS - HANDICAPPED PERSONS: If special arrangements for testing are required, please indicate this on your application(s).

CANDIDATES PLEASE NOTE: Your application for this test is part of the examination process. Applications must be completely filled out with all pertinent information stated. The Commission does not refer to other applications on file for additional information. Applications which do not show training and/or experience to meet the minimum qualifications will be disapproved. Vagueness and ambiguity will not be resolved in your favor.

VETERANS: Disabled and non-disabled war veterans who are eligible for additional credits must submit an application for veterans' credits. Candidates who wish to claim veterans' credits on an examination should request an application and information sheet from the Cattaraugus County Civil Service Commission. Veterans' application forms will also be available upon request at the examination center. The completed forms must be received before the eligible list for the examination is established in order to utilize additional credits.

Effective January 1, 1998, the State Constitution was amended to permit a candidate currently in the armed forces to apply for and be conditionally granted veteran's credit in examinations. Any candidate who applies for such credit must provide proof of military status to receive the conditional credit. No credit may be granted after the establishment of the list. It is the responsibility of the candidate to provide appropriate documentary proof indicating that the service was in time of war, as defined in Section 85 of Civil Service Law, and that the candidate received an honorable discharge or was released under honorable conditions in order to be certified at a score including veteran's credits.

In conformance with Section 85-a of the Civil Service Law, children of firefighters and police officers killed in the line of duty shall be entitled to receive an additional ten points in a competitive examination for original appointment in the same municipality in which his or her parent has served. If you are qualified to participate in this examination and are a child of a firefighter or police officer killed in the line of duty in this municipality, please inform this office of this matter when you submit your application for examination. A candidate claiming such credit has a minimum of two months from the application deadline to provide the necessary documentation to verify additional credit eligibility. However, no credit may be added after the eligible list has been established.