Requires the New York city department of corrections and the New York city health and hospitals corporation to adopt safety policies to protect health care workers who treat incarcerated individuals.
S 3281 expands eligibility for sealing certain criminal convictions in New York. It allows individuals convicted of up to five eligible offenses (including up to two felonies) to apply for sealing, provided they meet a 10-year waiting period after their sentence or release from incarceration. The bill specifically excludes sex offenses, violent felonies, and other serious crimes from eligibility. Applicants must submit documentation to the court, and prosecutors have 45 days to object; if they don’t, sealing may proceed. This directly affects people with non-violent, non-sex-related convictions who have maintained a clean record for a decade.
Creates a temporary state commission relating to local correctional facilities in upstate New York; provides commission study shall place emphasis on medical and mental health care, overcrowding, incarcerated individual deaths, use of force, restraints, and all segregation and confinement practices and solitary confinement.
This bill requires incarcerated individuals in New York state correctional facilities to be paid for labor performed, setting a minimum standard of at least half the state's minimum wage. It directly affects people held in state and local prisons who work in facility operations, community programs, or nonprofit volunteer roles. Key provisions mandate compensation for all work described in the law, including kitchen duties, maintenance, and specialized facility tasks, with pay calculated based on minimum wage standards. The law updates multiple correction law sections to ensure all such labor is compensated fairly, replacing previous unpaid or low-wage labor practices.
S 1643 establishes a three-year job fair pilot program for incarcerated individuals within six months of their release, specifically targeting those in Wende and New York City correctional facility hubs. These job fairs, held at least three times annually, will assist participants with resume preparation, internet employment searches, and interview advice, connecting them with potential employers. Eligible individuals in Albion, Taconic, or Bedford facilities will receive enhanced job search opportunities instead. The program requires the Department of Corrections to conduct annual evaluations, including recidivism statistics, and report these findings to the public and legislature.
This bill requires New York's Department of Corrections to submit an annual report by March 31 each year (starting in 2026) to state legislative leaders and specific committee chairs. The report must detail every death of an incarcerated individual in state facilities, including cause of death, personal details (age, race, gender), circumstances, and an analysis of mortality trends compared to historical data. For deaths resulting from suicide or other specified causes, the department must also provide a preliminary report within seven days and a final report after the investigation concludes. This establishes a standardized process for transparency and data collection on mortality in correctional facilities.
Relates to the health, safety and human rights of incarcerated pregnant individuals, incarcerated birthing parents and their children; requires the commissioner of corrections and community supervision to establish rules and regulations relating to conditions in institutions and correctional facilities and the treatment and care of birthing parents in such institutions and facilities.
Bill A 2266 requires state agencies operating prisons and youth detention facilities to provide incarcerated individuals with free voice communication services (and optionally video or messaging), effective April 1, 2026. It prohibits facilities from charging inmates for these services or generating revenue from them, and mandates that communication services cannot replace in-person visit programs. The bill repeals the existing correction law section on this topic and adds new requirements for agencies managing correctional facilities. This directly affects all people confined in state correctional facilities by guaranteeing free communication access with external contacts.
Bill S 2240 removes the lifetime ban that prevents individuals with felony convictions from serving on a jury. It amends existing judiciary law to eliminate the automatic disqualification for past felony convictions. However, the bill clarifies that anyone currently serving a term of incarceration for a felony would still be excused from jury service while incarcerated. This change allows eligible citizens who have completed their sentences to participate in jury duty.
This bill, known as "the prison wage act," mandates compensation for incarcerated individuals performing labor in state and local correctional facilities. It requires that these individuals be paid at least one-half of the state's minimum wage for any work performed or for which a wage would typically be due. This compensation applies to various types of labor, including general facility work, tasks for nonprofit organizations, and participation in work release programs. Additionally, hourly incentive allowances for educational and training programs must also meet this minimum wage standard.
