Asm. Amy Paulin

Establishes the universal child care act to provide for the establishment and funding of universal child care in the state of New York; establishes a universal child care taskforce to help implement universal child care in the state and repeals certain provisions of the social services law relating thereto; establishes the permanent child care workforce pay equity fund; establishes a universal child care public option pilot program to provide universal child care in at least twenty locations throughout the state; makes an appropriation therefor.

Provides voting membership to existing non-voting rider representatives on the MTA Board, provides for enhanced representation of MTA riders with disabilities.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New York's Commissioner of Health to establish regional minimum hourly reimbursement rates for home care providers serving Medicaid patients. It directly affects home care agencies and providers who employ home care aides, mandating rates that cover all necessary costs - including base wages, benefits, payroll taxes, operational expenses, and compliance costs. The rates must be set regionally based on actual service costs, adjusted annually to reflect labor law changes, and published publicly. Providers must justify any contract rates below these minimums, and the comptroller can audit contracts to ensure adequacy. The goal is to ensure reimbursement rates support fair wages and operational needs for home care workers under Medicaid.

Establishes the teachers' fossil fuel divestment act; requires the New York state teachers' retirement system to divest the retirement system of any stocks, securities, equities, assets, or other obligations of corporations or companies included on an exclusion list of coal producers and oil and gas producers.

Provides that restaurants and third-party food delivery services may provide single-use food service items to customers when explicitly requested by the customer; prohibits certain plastic single-use items.

Relates to the creation of a school-based teen dating violence prevention program designed to be incorporated into a school district's existing health curriculum to prevent and reduce the incidence and prevalence of teen dating violence.

Maddy summaryThis bill increases fines for violating public health laws. It raises penalties for nursing home and hospital operators from $3,000 to $5,000 per violation, with repeat offenses or violations causing harm now carrying up to $10,000 or $20,000 fines. Excess fines collected beyond $2,000 per violation go to a patient safety center, while nursing home fines over $10,000 fund quality improvement programs for nursing homes. The changes apply directly to healthcare facilities and their operators under New York's public health and social services laws.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires election commissioners serving on county boards outside New York City to be full-time employees of those boards. It sets a standard of two commissioners per board, with counties having over 120,000 residents allowed to increase this to four via local law. The change applies specifically to election boards in counties outside NYC, altering their commissioner employment structure without affecting NYC-based boards.

Establishes the nutrient inactivant application permit to allow for the use of products used for controlling phosphorus levels in lakes or ponds to prevent and inhibit harmful algal blooms.

Ensures that boards of elections provide adequate notice to each voter before and after a board cancels the voter's registration or places such voter in inactive status.