Sen. James Sanders

Maddy summaryS 6960 creates a new state commission to coordinate public safety, emergency response, and mental health efforts. The commission, composed of agency heads (including police, emergency services, education, health, and mental health officials), must meet quarterly to work with three divisions focused on school safety, emergency preparedness, and mental health services. Key provisions require the commission to provide schools with safety resources and mental health support, improve community disaster response, reduce mental health stigma, and hold public hearings twice yearly. The commission must report annually to the governor and legislature. This bill establishes new coordination structures for state agencies but does not directly change laws affecting residents.

Prohibits governmental entities from entering into agreements to house individuals in immigration detention facilities; requires governmental entities to terminate existing contracts for the detention of individuals in immigration detention facilities.

Relates to requiring the joint commission on public ethics to develop and maintain a campaign finance training course; requires all members of the legislature, their staff treasurer and all individuals running for elected office to complete the campaign finance training course.

Establishes an unemployment bridge program and an unemployment bridge program fund to provide wage replacement to workers that do not qualify for unemployment insurance or other worker wage assistance programs and who have lost a major source of income due to lost work (Part A); establishes the "Digital Ad Tax Act (DATA)" creating a tax on digital advertising services (Part B).

Maddy summaryThis bill requires employers to restore previous salary, seniority, and benefits to employees who were laid off during New York's official COVID-19 disaster emergency period (starting March 7, 2020) and later rehired by the same employer. It applies to employees terminated for reasons other than misconduct, voluntary departure, or retirement during the emergency. The law ensures these workers regain all accrued employment rights upon rehiring, preventing loss of pay or benefits tied to their prior service. The policy takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Establishes a COVID-19 essential workers scholarship program to award annual scholarships to essential employees who worked during the outbreak of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and children of essential employees who have died as a result of contracting COVID-19.

Provides for the issuance of summonses to each parent, including a non-custodial parent, of any juvenile who is the subject of a juvenile delinquency petition.

Relates to returnable bottles; adds noncarbonated soft drinks, certain noncarbonated fruit or vegetable juices, coffee and tea beverages, carbonated fruit beverages and cider to the definition of "beverage"; provides that beginning April 1, 2027, the handling fee will be six cents for each beverage container accepted by a deposit initiator from a dealer or operator of a redemption center; directs the multi-agency bottle bill fraud investigation team to submit a report on findings of pervasive bottle redemption fraud in New York state.

Relates to the retention of state records; repeals provisions relating to rules and regulations governing access to state legislative records; repeals provisions relating to executive records; repeals provisions relating to information confidentially disclosed by applicants.

Provides for remedies for trademark dilution; allows the court, in its discretion, to enter judgment for an amount of three times such profits and damages and/or reasonable attorneys' fees of the prevailing party.