Rep. Phil Ramos

Increases the distribution of revenue from extending the authorization for the hotel and motel taxes in Suffolk county; provides for the support of a not-for-profit organization that manages and owns the first lighthouse built in New York, a national register of historic places site in Suffolk county that has been named a national historic landmark and is a New York state historic site.

Establishes the false reporting survivors act which establishes the crimes of aggravated falsely reporting an incident in the first, second, and third degrees when a person commits the crime of falsely reporting an incident in the first, second, or third degree and such person intended to harass, annoy, threaten, or alarm another person because of a belief or perception regarding a person's race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or ethnicity; authorizes officers to arrest persons believed to have committed falsely reporting an incident without first obtaining a warrant and provides exceptions to such authority to arrest; includes such falsely reporting as a hate crime; authorizes the law enforcement misconduct investigative office to receive and investigate complaints alleging falsely reporting an incident; establishes databases of law enforcement officers and persons convicted of falsely reporting; requires notifying persons of the termination of certain criminal actions or proceedings; relates to the statute of limitations for filing an action relating to falsely reporting.

Maddy summaryThis bill designates a specific bridge on the Southern State Parkway in Islip, Suffolk County, as a tribute to Sergeant Gregory L. Wahl. It requires the state transportation commissioner to install signs identifying the bridge as dedicated to Sergeant Wahl while keeping its official name unchanged. The legislation ensures the dedication is ceremonial and does not disrupt commerce or alter the bridge's legal designation. The bill takes effect immediately upon passage.

Prohibits the use of electronic shelving labels, digital shelf display technology, and surveillance pricing in food retail establishments and drug retail establishments; provides injunctive relief and civil penalties.

Makes conforming changes reflecting the previously authorized scope of practice of nurse practitioners; adds nurse practitioners as persons who can authorize or make certain determinations authorized to be made or determined by physicians.

Provides parity to durable medical equipment providers by requiring Medicaid managed care organizations to reimburse such providers at no less than one hundred percent of the medical assistance durable medical equipment fee schedule for the same service or item.

Provides for the protection of health information; establishes requirements for communications to individuals about their health information; requires either written consent or a designated necessary purpose for the processing of an individual's health information.

Requires covered businesses to annually report to the department of labor regarding the impact of artificial intelligence on hiring and the nature of artificial intelligence use for the previous year; requires the department of labor to file an annual report on the impact of artificial intelligence on hiring and the nature of artificial intelligence use in the state; establishes penalties for covered business that fail to submit such reports.

Prohibits insurance carriers and employers from withholding certain benefits from injured workers based on a claim that such workers have voluntarily withdrawn from the labor market by not seeking alternate employment that their injury or illness does not preclude them from performing.

Clarifies that the statutory damages available for certain wage violations are not punitive in nature and are designed to be liquidated damages rather than penalties or to compensate workers for the employer's failure to prevent wage theft and for the harm to employees that results from such failure.