Sen. Kevin Parker

Maddy summaryThis bill amends New York State law to explicitly include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and non-binary individuals in the definition of "minority" for employee ownership assistance programs. It updates eligibility criteria so that employee-owned businesses with a majority of LGBTQ+-identifying members qualify for loan preferences under existing economic development programs. The change applies to businesses in manufacturing or industrial sectors facing closure or relocation, aiming to help employees form worker-owned cooperatives. This expands access to financial support for LGBTQ+ workers seeking to retain jobs through employee ownership.

Prohibits the state university of New York and the city university of New York from permitting any persons to solicit persons to become holders of credit cards unless credit education courses are provided.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 4088) gives homeowners facing real property disputes who cannot afford a lawyer the right to have a court assign them counsel. It directly affects low-income homeowners involved in property cases like evictions or foreclosure. The key provision requires courts to provide court-appointed lawyers through existing county legal aid systems (under Article 18-B of the County Law), mirroring how representation is handled for criminal defendants or family court cases. The bill updates county law to explicitly include "certain real property actions" in the scope of assigned counsel programs. It does not create new funding but formalizes access to existing representation mechanisms for qualifying property disputes.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends New York's Social Services Law to protect parents or caretakers of eligible children from losing public assistance due to inability to meet work requirements caused by lack of appropriate child care. It adds an exception: recipients who cannot comply with work rules because suitable, reasonably located child care matching their preferences is unavailable cannot be deemed ineligible. The law specifically modifies sections governing work requirements (Section 131), exemptions (Section 332), and self-sufficiency efforts (Section 336-d) to include this child care barrier as a valid reason for non-compliance. This change directly affects low-income parents/caretakers who face child care access challenges while seeking employment or training.

Requires the commissioner of education to develop and adopt instruction in financial and insurance literacy for students in grades nine through twelve.

Maddy summaryThis bill imposes an 8.5% tax on ticket sales for all combative sports events in New York, including boxing, wrestling, and similar matches, with a $50,000 maximum tax per event. It also applies the same 8.5% tax to broadcasting and digital streaming revenue from these events, capped at $50,000 per event. The tax applies to both traditional combative sports (like boxing) and other authorized combative sports events held in the state. Event organizers and venues hosting these events will directly pay this tax on ticket sales and media rights revenue. The law takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Enacts the "uniform emergency volunteer health practitioners act" for declared state disaster emergencies; establishes a system to deploy health service workers from out of state during a state disaster emergency.

Establishes a civil cause of action for employees who are subjected to an abusive work environment; provides employers shall be vicariously liable for such work environment.

Enacts the "local, community and ethnic media commitment act"; requires state agencies to publish certain information in local, community and ethnic media; defines local, community and ethnic media; requires the office of general services to develop and maintain a list of local, community and ethnic media outlets.

Establishes a regional or county-based peer support services program for transgender and non-binary individuals that provides support services including but not limited to, peer counseling for mental illness including alcohol and substance abuse counseling, family support services, domestic violence, mental health and physical health.