Asm. Jo Anne Simon

Maddy summaryBill 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.

Maddy summaryBill A 54 prohibits the use of adhesive-based rodent traps, including glue traps and glue boards, in all state-owned or state-leased buildings. This means that state entities and those occupying state properties would be unable to use these specific trapping methods for rodent control. The prohibition would become effective one year after the bill is enacted into law.

Relates to employment of persons and veterans with disabilities by the state; provides up to five thousand positions may be filled by persons with a physical or mental disability and up to two thousand positions may be filled by disabled veterans and veterans with disabilities.

Authorizes the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation and the office of mental health to conduct a study pertaining to a proposed expansion of the Long Island Motor Parkway trail.

Provides that the thruway authority shall issue permits for ambulances and fire vehicles exempting such vehicles from paying tolls on the thruway when engaged in an emergency operation.

Creates the state office of the utility consumer advocate to represent interests of residential utility customers including a proposed change of rates, charges, terms and conditions of service, the adoption of rules, regulations, guidelines, orders, standards or final policy decisions.

Requires that health insurance policies shall provide coverage for follow-up screening or diagnostic services for lung cancer; provides that no patient cost sharing shall be imposed for follow-up screening or diagnostic services for lung cancer.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends multiple New York State laws to replace the terms "addict" or "addicts" with "person with substance use disorder" or a similar phrase throughout legal texts. It specifically updates references in the judiciary law (affecting court proceedings), mental hygiene law (governing treatment programs), and public health law (regarding controlled substance dispensing). The change applies to all relevant legal documents, including those describing mental health hearings, treatment eligibility, and medication administration protocols. This terminology shift aims to reduce stigma by using person-centered language consistent with modern healthcare and legal standards. The bill was signed into law as Chapter 511 on November 21, 2025.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires most health insurance plans in New York to cover one rescue inhaler and one maintenance inhaler for asthma treatment at no cost to the patient. It applies to all medical, major medical, and comprehensive health insurance policies that cover prescription drugs, directly affecting asthma patients who rely on these medications. Insurers must provide this coverage without deductibles, copayments, or other cost-sharing, with a narrow exception only for high-deductible plans that would otherwise disqualify patients from health savings accounts. The law takes effect January 1, 2027, for all new or renewed policies.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a scholarship program for New York State residents pursuing master's degrees in education. It directly affects students enrolled full-time in approved New York state education programs who earned their undergraduate degree in New York, maintained residency during that time, and commit to teaching full-time in New York public schools for five years. The program prioritizes applicants attending public colleges (as defined by law), with remaining scholarships available for private college students meeting the same eligibility criteria. Key requirements include academic excellence during undergraduate studies and signing a teaching commitment contract with the state. The scholarship covers costs for qualifying education degree programs leading to teaching careers in New York's public elementary or secondary schools.