This bill allows public employees in New York (including state, county, school district, and retirement system workers) to use accrued sick, vacation, or personal time during waiting periods for workers' compensation benefits or when their claim is disputed. Employers cannot force employees to use this time during such periods, and if an employee later qualifies for benefits, they get their used time fully restored. The law does not apply to employees covered by collective bargaining agreements unless their union specifically opts in to these provisions. It preserves existing collective bargaining rights while ensuring employees don't lose accrued time during workers' comp processing delays.
This bill requires New York City emergency medical services personnel to replace their body armor every five years. It directly affects all employees in the city's Bureau of Emergency Medical Services who wear body armor while providing emergency care. The key provision mandates that the armor must meet National Institute of Justice safety standards and be replaced on a fixed five-year schedule, rather than as needed. This creates a clear, mandatory maintenance cycle to ensure consistent protection for these first responders.
This bill (A 8810) extends accidental death benefits to children of qualifying public safety workers who were under age 25 when the worker died. Previously, benefits for children ended at age 18 or 23 (if a student), but this change provides lifetime benefits for those children. It applies to children of police officers, firefighters, EMTs, correction officers, and other emergency service workers covered under New York’s retirement systems. Benefits are calculated as the deceased worker’s salary minus other received death benefits and continue for the child’s lifetime without age restrictions.
Bill S 4612 amends the workers' compensation law to include coverage for treatment provided by licensed massage therapists. It defines "massage therapist" and adds them to the list of authorized healthcare providers within the workers' compensation system. Under this bill, an injured employee can receive massage therapy if prescribed or referred by an authorized physician, physician assistant, podiatrist, or nurse practitioner. Massage therapists rendering such treatment would be required to maintain patient records. However, their reports or opinions would not be considered evidence of the causal link of an injury to a work accident or occupational disease, nor evidence of disability, under this law.
Subtracts from the federal adjusted gross income any income earned by election inspectors, poll clerks, or election coordinators earned while working in relation to a general, primary, run-off primary, or special election to the extent includable in gross income for federal tax purposes; exempts such income from being included in the calculation of the amount of benefits under public assistance programs.
Requires that notice of initial determinations for unemployment benefits be provided to claimants within 30 days of such claimant furnishing all necessary documentation, and if the commissioner is unable to issue a determination within such time frame they shall inform the claimant of the new estimated time frame for the issuance of a determination.
Includes the unaccrued portion of a non-schedule award in the amounts to be payable to and for the benefit of certain persons where a claimant was entitled to death benefits at the time of death.
Enacts into law major components of legislation necessary to implement the state education, labor, housing and family assistance budget for the 2026-2027 state fiscal year; relates to contracts for excellence, foundation aid, the homeless and foster count, renewable energy projects, zero-emissions school buses and to apportioning aid for universal prekindergarten; relates to reimbursement for the 2026-2027 school year and the maximum contract hours, withholding a portion of employment preparation education aid, and the effectiveness thereof; relates to the use of apportionments for the EXCEL program and the effectiveness thereof; relates to maximum class sizes for special classes for certain students with disabilities; provides for special apportionment for salary expenses; provides for special apportionment for public pension accruals; amends provisions relating to the apportionment amount for the Roosevelt union free school district; provides for set-asides from the state funds which certain districts are receiving from the total foundation aid; provides for support of public libraries; repeals certain provisions relating to the statewide universal full-day prekindergarten program (Part A); relates to evidence-based instructional practices in the subject of mathematics for students in kindergarten through grade five (Part B); relates to the eligibility of students enrolled in an approved program leading to a degree in a high demand field for the New York opportunity promise scholarship (Part C); allows for the chancellor of SUNY and CUNY to impose differential tuition rates on non-resident undergraduate and graduate students until the 2028-2029 academic year (Part E); relates to early childhood educator eligibility for the masters-in-education teacher incentive scholarship program (Part F); changes the name of the "New York state musical instrument revolving fund" to the "New York state music grant fund"; includes musical education in school districts and boards of cooperative educational services within not-for-profit musical entities incorporated in the state and organized for the purpose of the presentation of performing arts for the benefit of the public (Part G); extends provisions of law relating to restructuring financing for residential school placements (Part K); increases the standards of monthly need for aged, blind and disabled persons living in the community (Part L); utilizes reserves in the mortgage insurance fund for the neighborhood preservation program, the rural preservation program, the rural rental assistance program, and the New York state supportive housing program, the solutions to end homelessness program or the operational support for AIDS housing program (Part M); increases the number of land banks which can simultaneously exist in the state of New York from 35 to 45 (Part N); authorizes a tax abatement for alterations and improvements to multiple dwellings for purposes of preserving habitability in affordable housing (Part O); relates to establishing the crime of aggravated harassment of a rent regulated tenant (Part P); renumbers the disparate impact standard for housing and employment in the human rights law (Part Q); defines eligible multiple dwelling under the affordable New York housing program; includes a multiple dwelling that is located on a parcel of land which was part of a tract of land for which a special permit for a large scale general development was approved via the uniform land use review procedure on or before June 15, 2022, and such tract contains a multiple dwelling for which the commencement date is after December 31, 2015 and on or before June 15, 2022 and complies with certain affordability options (Part R).
This bill requires licensed cosmetologists and barbers to complete an eight-hour mental health first aid training program. The training teaches participants to recognize symptoms of mental health crises (like anxiety or depression), safely de-escalate situations, and refer clients to appropriate community resources. All current licensees and new applicants must complete this certified training to maintain or obtain their licenses. The law aims to enhance community safety by equipping beauty professionals - who interact closely with the public - with skills to support individuals in mental health distress.
Relates to requiring employers to obtain an acknowledgement of receipt from employees of their sexual harassment prevention policy and sexual harassment prevention training program in writing in English and in employees' primary languages; requires employers to obtain acknowledgements from employees and keep such acknowledgements for six years.
