Sen. Tony Palumbo

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 3453) increases penalties for repeat domestic violence offenses by adding a 10-year lookback period for prior convictions. It creates a new "aggravated harassment in the first degree" offense specifically for individuals who commit harassment against someone they live with or are in a domestic relationship with, after a prior harassment conviction within the last decade. The bill also amends related offenses like assault, strangulation, and menacing to include stricter penalties when the perpetrator has a prior conviction for similar crimes and is part of the same household or family as the victim. These changes directly affect repeat offenders in domestic relationships, making certain offenses class E or D felonies instead of lower-level charges. The bill focuses on holding repeat domestic violence perpetrators accountable through enhanced sentencing.

Requires a joint report by the state board of elections and state education department concerning the safety of students and staff at schools used as polling places for elections.

Maddy summaryThis bill reclassifies resisting arrest as a class E felony (a serious criminal charge) instead of a misdemeanor. It directly affects individuals who resist arrest, as they will now face felony charges rather than minor penalties, and police officers, who must now make an arrest instead of issuing a court date (appearance ticket) for this offense. Key provisions include amending the penal law to upgrade the offense level and changing criminal procedure rules to eliminate appearance tickets for resisting arrest cases. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Directs the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation to make sunscreen available at the entrance to all state parks, recreational facilities, historic sites or programs and other appropriate locations at the discretion of such commissioner; defines term as any topical sunscreen product approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for over-the-counter use for the purpose of avoiding overexposure to the sun and not for medical treatment of any injury or illness.

Maddy summaryThis bill removes sales and use taxes on telephone answering services in New York. It specifically eliminates these taxes by amending the tax code to exclude telephone answering services from taxable categories under both sales and use tax provisions. This change directly affects businesses that provide telephone answering services and their customers, reducing their tax burden on this specific service. The policy change is purely procedural, adjusting existing tax definitions without altering broader tax structures.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a religious exemption allowing children to attend school without required vaccinations if their parent, guardian, or legal custodian holds genuine and sincere religious beliefs opposing the vaccines. It directly affects families seeking to exempt their children from vaccination requirements for school attendance. The key provision amends public health law to require schools to accept such religious exemptions without demanding a certificate, while still reporting immunization status for exempt children. The exemption covers vaccines for diseases like measles, polio, and pertussis, as specified in existing law. This changes school vaccination policy by adding a religious exception to the current immunization requirements.

Allows courts to consider the risk of continued substance abuse and likelihood of serious harm to the principal when considering committing such principal to the custody of the sheriff.

Enhances penalties for aggravated cruelty to animals by making such offense a felony, including torture, beating, or killing of any animal; makes animal cruelty, including overdriving or depriving an animal of sustenance a felony when committed while released on recognizance for violating an order of protection; allows aggravated animal abuse to be considered for bail.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 4105) would allow licensed commuter vans in New York City to pick up passengers from the street in specific neighborhoods: Manhattan Community District 2, Queens Community District 12, and several Brooklyn districts (5, 9, 16, 17, and 18). Currently, such vans can only accept prearranged rides, but this bill creates a limited program permitting street hails in those areas while banning pickups at airports. The city commission must report annually on the program's impact and effects by February 1, 2028, and thereafter. It directly affects licensed commuter van operators in those designated zones.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a property tax exemption for police officers who are 100% disabled due to duty-related injuries or illnesses, certified by a physician. Eligible officers must own their primary residence, and local governments must adopt a specific ordinance after a public hearing to implement the exemption. The exemption covers all local property taxes (city, town, county) for qualifying officers' homes. It does not apply to cooperative apartment buildings covered under certain housing laws. The exemption begins for 2027 assessment rolls.