Section 15. Officers; employees; offices

The authority shall have power to
  appoint any necessary deputies, counsels, assistants, investigators, and
  other  employees  within   the   limits   provided   by   appropriation.
  Investigators  so  employed by the Authority shall be deemed to be peace
  officers for the purpose of enforcing the provisions  of  the  alcoholic
  beverage  control  law  or  judgements  or orders obtained for violation
  thereof, with all the powers set forth in section 2.20 of  the  criminal
  procedure   law.   The  counsel,  secretary,  chief  executive  officer,
  assistant  chief  executive  officers,   confidential   secretaries   to
  commissioners  and  deputies  shall  be in the exempt class of the civil
  service. The  other  assistants,  investigators  and  employees  of  the
  authority  shall  all  be in the competitive class of the civil service.
  The authority shall continue to have its principal office in the city of
  Albany, and may maintain a branch office in the cities of New  York  and
  Buffalo and such other places as it may deem necessary.
    The  authority  shall  establish appropriate procedures to insure that
  hearing officers are shielded from ex parte communications with  alleged
  violators  and their attorneys and from other employees of the authority
  and shall take such other steps as it shall deem necessary and proper to
  shield  its  judicial  processes  from  unwarranted  and   inappropriate
  communications and attempts to influence.