Asm. Andrew Hevesi

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a legal framework for safe injection sites in New York, creating a program approved by the Department of Health to provide overdose prevention services. It directly affects people who use drugs (participants), community health organizations operating the sites, and local communities through designated locations. Key provisions require sites to offer sterile equipment, overdose monitoring, naloxone access, referrals to treatment, and language-accessible education, while mandating annual reporting on participant numbers and services. The bill also provides legal immunity from arrest or penalties for participants, staff, and property owners who follow approved protocols, ensuring these sites operate without criminal or civil liability.

Creates a wholesale prescription drug importation program which complies with federal standards and regulations for the purpose of generating substantial savings for consumers.

Maddy summaryThis bill makes intentionally causing extreme pain to companion animals (like dogs, cats, and household pets) a class E felony. It defines "aggravated cruelty" as conduct intended to cause extreme pain or carried out in a depraved/sadistic manner, while excluding lawful activities such as hunting, veterinary care, or dispatching diseased animals. Convicted individuals may lose ownership of the animals involved and forfeit them to humane societies. The law repeals an outdated provision and adds these definitions and penalties to New York’s penal code. It directly affects individuals who commit severe animal cruelty against companion animals, not farm animals.

Maddy summaryThis bill (A 3531) creates a faster process for parents who already agree on child support amounts to formalize their agreement without court hearings. It allows family courts to hold "expedited settlement conferences" for cases where both parents voluntarily consent, excluding situations involving minor parents without lawyers, parentage disputes, protection orders, or spousal support. The process requires exchanging financial documents upfront but allows parties to waive further disclosure, with court staff calculating support using standard guidelines. If parents agree during the conference, they sign a binding agreement reviewed by a magistrate; if not, the case moves to a support magistrate.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New York's health commissioner to update medical assistance payment rates for hospitals and health services at least every four years, ensuring rates reflect current operational costs rather than outdated data. It directly affects hospitals, health service providers, and Medicaid programs by mandating that reimbursement rates align with recent cost information for efficient operations. Key provisions include prohibiting the use of base-year calculations older than four years and requiring annual public disclosure of reimbursement methodologies on the state health department's website. The changes aim to modernize payment structures for Medicaid and related programs without altering eligibility or benefit levels.

Allows an organization included on the federal list of tax-exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of title 26 of the United States code on March first, two thousand twenty-five to automatically maintain their tax-exempt status for New York state purposes; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof.

Prohibits civil arrest in hospital, shelter, food bank, and crisis center settings; except to address an imminent safety situation or if they have an appropriate judicial warrant or judicial order.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires employers in New York to provide new employees with information about student loan repayment options during the hiring process. It directly affects employers hiring for entry-level positions requiring an associate's degree or higher (including post-graduate interns), starting on the bill's effective date. Employers must give newly hired workers written materials covering federal repayment plans, income-based options, consolidation, and public service loan forgiveness programs, plus links to the state's financial services resource center. The materials must be developed by the Labor Commissioner with input from higher education and financial services officials.

Provides for loan forgiveness for social workers who commit to work in counties with less than two hundred thousand population, or towns which have a population of less than one hundred fifty persons per square mile for the duration of the award.

Establishes a five-year window for any entity participating in the New York state supportive housing program (NYSSHP) in good standing with such program to participate in a request for proposal to increase their contract rates up to ESSHI levels.