Asm. Anna Kelles

Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits insurance companies from refusing to issue or renew homeowners' or renters' insurance policies, canceling policies, charging higher premiums, or limiting coverage solely because a policyholder owns a specific dog breed or mix of breeds. It directly affects homeowners and renters who might have faced discrimination based on their dog's breed. The key provision requires insurers to base coverage decisions on standard risk factors, not breed alone, for policies defined under New York's insurance law. The law applies to all policies issued or renewed after its effective date.

Requires public notice and public engagement when a general hospital seeks to close entirely or a unit that provides maternity, mental health or substance use care.

Maddy summaryThis bill clarifies the types of damages that can be recovered in wrongful death lawsuits in New York. It specifically allows survivors to seek compensation for funeral expenses, medical costs related to the injury causing death, grief, loss of financial support/services, and loss of nurture/education. The bill also defines who qualifies as "beneficiaries" (including spouses, domestic partners, and those acting as parents) and specifies how damages must be distributed based on each person's financial losses. These changes update existing law to provide clearer standards for compensation without creating new legal rights.

Relates to providing information to patients and the public on hospital rule-based exclusions; requires the commissioner of health to collect from each hospital a list of its hospital rule-based exclusions and publish such information on the department's website.

Directs the commissioner of agriculture and markets, acting by and through the department of economic development, in cooperation with the department of environmental conservation, to establish a New York native plants designation, and offer seals or logos identifying native plants as grown in New York state and certified for their quality, for product labeling, advertising, and displays.

Requires the department of health to publish a report on the incidence of tick-borne illnesses annually on the department's website; requires the department to submit an annual report to the governor and the leaders of the legislature; requires the superintendent of financial services to review the status of health insurance coverage for the treatment of Lyme disease and other tick-borne related diseases and to submit a report to the governor and the leaders of the legislature.

Protects individuals who provide or receive legally protected health activity, including reproductive health care and gender-affirming care, from criminal or civil liability or professional sanctions imposed by jurisdictions outside the state.

Maddy summaryThis bill defines "consumer debt" as any obligation for personal, family, or household expenses (including medical debt), excluding real estate-secured debt and rent arrears. It updates court procedures to use "consumer debt" instead of "consumer credit transaction," requiring summons to display this term in both Spanish and English and setting a 3-year filing limit for such cases. The bill also clarifies venue rules for lawsuits and adjusts filing fees for consumer debt actions. These changes standardize legal terminology and processes across New York courts for debt-related cases involving individuals.

Maddy summaryBill A 3858 increases the maximum financial penalties that courts can impose on corporations convicted of various offenses defined in the penal law. It raises the top fine for a felony conviction from $10,000 to $80,000 and for a Class A misdemeanor from $5,000 to $40,000. The bill also increases maximum fines for Class B misdemeanors and violations. Additionally, it allows fines to be set at up to three times a corporation's financial gain from an offense, up from the previous limit of double the gain.

Establishes the youth justice innovation fund to make funds available to community-based organizations for services and programs with the purpose of youth development and preventing youth arrest and incarceration.