Sen. James Sanders

Relates to securing payment of wages for work already performed; creates a lien remedy for all employees; provides grounds for attachment; relates to procedures where employees may hold shareholders of non-publicly traded corporations personally liable for wage theft; relates to rights for victims of wage theft to hold the ten members with the largest ownership interests in a company personally liable for wage theft.

Requires the state university of New York and the city university of New York to establish courses of study on ethnic studies, women's studies, and social justice; requires students to complete at least one three-credit course on ethnic studies, women's studies, or social justice to graduate with a baccalaureate degree.

Permits a potential lottery winner who lost their ticket to claim the winning amount provided that such person shows the lottery agency documentary proof of purchase of the winning ticket within one year of the winning date.

Makes tuition free for New York state residents at SUNY and CUNY schools and community colleges; requires state residency and employment for a period of five years after completion of academic program.

Establishes a co-navigation services program for persons who are deaf-blind to provide services to a person who is deaf-blind that assist the person to physically access the person's environment and to make informed decisions, including providing visual and environmental information or sighted guide services and assisting with communication accessibility by communicating in the preferred language and communication mode of the person who is deaf-blind.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New York City's district leadership teams to follow the city's Open Meetings Law (Article 7 of the Public Officers Law). It mandates that all meetings of these teams be held publicly, with advance notice and accessible records, to increase transparency. The law directly affects district leadership teams within NYC's administrative structure. This is a procedural change ensuring public access to decision-making processes, not a substantive policy shift. The bill takes effect 90 days after enactment.

Authorizes certain state regulated institutions to offer disaster forbearance agreements to qualified mortgagors whose income has been adversely affected by the outbreak of COVID-19 and is unable to make their mortgage payment.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 3353) exempts sales and installation of geothermal heat pump systems from state sales tax for both residential and commercial properties. It directly affects homeowners and businesses installing ground-source heat pumps that use the ground or groundwater for heating, cooling, or hot water. The key provision removes tax on equipment sales and installation services, excluding recreational facilities or equipment used as storage media. This policy change applies to systems meeting specific technical definitions in the tax law, without altering local tax options for municipalities.

Requires the commissioner of education to make a report on the extent of all existing resources and best practices available for swimming instruction classes in public schools and establish a working group on swimming education.

Enacts the "New York slavery era business and state procurement disclosure act"; requires insurers to report insurance policies issued to slaveholders during the slavery era that provided coverage for damage to or death to such slaveholders' slaves; requires contractors seeking to enter into or renew procurement contracts with state agencies to report slavery era financing, investments and profits of slavery.