Asm. Robert Smullen

Maddy summaryBill A 5547 authorizes school districts to establish a new type of financial reserve fund. This fund is specifically designated to cover unanticipated costs associated with providing special education services to students throughout the fiscal year. It allows districts to set aside money to manage unexpected expenses related to special education instruction.

Requires that any rules or regulations promulgated by the department of environmental conservation pursuant to the climate action fund are subject to a vote of the legislature and must be approved by a majority vote prior to implementation.

Prohibits certain state and prospective state contractors to contribute to the campaigns and committees of statewide officials, including any candidate for governor, attorney general and comptroller, for a period of time; requires written notice of prohibitions.

Directs the commissioner of the office of children and family services to establish a Consumer Directed Childcare Pilot Program for eligible families, within amounts appropriated therefor, in up to five counties with populations between 160,000 and 300,000.

Requires a New York state driver's license or non-driver ID, a United States passport, an identification card issued by a United States educational institution, a United States military identification card, a government issued medical card, or any identification card issued by the United States or the state of New York to be presented when casting a ballot.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires public high schools to offer hunting, fishing, and outdoor education as a component of physical education courses upon request by 10 or more enrolled students. It mandates that schools provide curriculum covering hunting/fishing seasons, allowable species, license requirements, recreational opportunities, and historical context of these activities. The curriculum must be developed jointly by the education and environmental conservation departments and align with existing licensing course content. This policy directly affects high school students and physical education programs in New York State, adding structured outdoor skills education to existing PE offerings.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends New York's penal law to narrow the legal definition of "assault weapons" by removing specific features from the criteria. It deletes characteristics like bayonet mounts, certain pistol grips, fixed magazine capacity limits, and threaded barrels from the definition for rifles, shotguns, and pistols. As a result, firearms that previously met these deleted criteria would no longer be classified as assault weapons under current law. The change directly affects how state law defines and regulates certain firearms, without creating new restrictions or exemptions.

Establishes the New York state nursing faculty scholarship incentive program for advanced degrees in nursing; provides such incentives shall be awarded annually, on a competitive basis, to registered professional nurses and certified nurse practitioners who are in a masters or doctoral program and agree to teach nursing for one year for each year such incentive is awarded.

Allows persons participating in certain formal ceremonies to possess a firearm, rifle or shotgun, provided that such person has received prior approval from the municipality or other appropriate entity.

Enacts the "state taxpayer oversight and protection (STOP) act"; relates to the payment of attorneys' fees by the state; provides that no attorneys' fees or expenses shall be paid if incurred on behalf of an employee in any action brought by the employee against the state; provides that attorneys' fees shall be presumptively unreasonable where an individual hires or employs multiple law firms on the same matter unless such employee can demonstrate the need for additional attorneys with distinct subject matter expertise.