Sen. Andrew Gounardes

Requires mobile applications on cell phones, smart phones and tablets that offer a subscription service provide an option to cancel the subscription on its application and have the option posted in a clear and conspicuous format.

Requires child protective services to orally and in writing disclose certain information to parents and caretakers who are the subject of a child protective services investigation; requires such oral and written disclosure to contain certain information regarding the rights of the person under investigation.

Relates to requiring the establishment of utility customer arrears reporting; requires utilities to report to the public service commission on customers who are in arrears.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates state transportation laws to ensure that buses serving people with disabilities are available within a three-mile radius of any fixed bus route. It mandates that new buses added to transit fleets must be accessible to individuals using wheelchairs or other mobility aids, with specific exceptions for temporary shortages and vehicles with a useful life of six years or less. The legislation applies to both the state transportation authority and its subsidiaries, as well as other transportation providers operating local fixed-route services. By requiring accessible vehicles in this expanded service area, the bill aims to improve mobility options for disabled passengers across a wider geographic range.

Amends procedures required for the custodial interrogation of children to provide additional protections and for taking juveniles and sixteen and seventeen year olds into custody.

Maddy summaryThis bill removes the previous limit on how long a licensed physical therapist can treat a patient without a doctor's referral. It allows therapists to provide care directly to patients who do not have a referral from a physician, dentist, podiatrist, nurse practitioner, or midwife. Under the new rules, therapists must refer patients if symptoms suggest conditions outside their scope, maintain communication with the patient's primary care provider if one exists, and inform patients in writing that insurance may not cover the treatment without a referral. The law also requires therapists to keep a signed record of this notice in the patient's file.

Provides for the award of reasonable attorneys' fees in FOIL proceedings if the person is successful and in open meeting proceedings to the successful petitioner and against the public body.

Relates to disability retirement benefits for the presumption of post-traumatic stress disorder for communications technicians, communications specialists, communications operators, radio dispatchers, or emergency dispatchers by any state agency, department, or division, county 911 dispatchers, county 911 dispatcher supervisors, New York city fire alarm dispatchers, supervising fire alarm dispatchers level one and supervising fire alarm dispatchers level two.

Expands the ethical duties of public officers and employees to include compliance with the state human rights law and any policies or procedures implemented by their employer related thereto.

Establishes the Terry Cooper autopsy accountability act requiring autopsy reports to include all photographs of the body, microscopic slides, and post-mortem x-rays taken by, at the direction of, or reviewed by the person performing the autopsy.