Sen. Cordell Cleare

Maddy summaryBill S 1062 directs the Council on the Arts to develop specific criteria and guidelines for establishing state-designated arts and cultural districts. These districts are defined as geographic areas within cities, towns, or villages with a concentration of arts or cultural facilities. Local governments, or multiple governments jointly, can apply for this designation based on criteria that may include attracting artists, encouraging job development, fostering tourism, and enhancing local cultural development. Once designated, these districts would receive state-supported assistance from the Department of Economic Development, such as technical support for grants and marketing expertise.

Maddy summarySenate Bill S 7641 designates where revenue from the existing opioid excise tax in New York State will be allocated. It specifies that all taxes, interest, and penalties collected from this tax, after accounting for any refunds, will be deposited into the New York State Drug Treatment and Public Education Fund. This mechanism ensures that funds generated by the opioid excise tax are directly used to support drug treatment and public education initiatives throughout the state.

Expands health care services provided by telehealth to include services delivered through a facility licensed under article twenty-eight of the public health law that is eligible to be designated or has received a designation as a federally qualified health center, including those facilities that are also licensed under article thirty-one or article thirty-two of the mental hygiene law.

Requires training for teachers and administrators in the area of mental health response; requires office of mental health to assist in development of curriculum for training.

Establishes a right of action for the deprivation of constitutional rights; provides for compensatory damages, punitive damages, injunctive and declaratory relief, and reasonable attorney's fees.

Prohibits and regulates the discovery and disclosure of immigration status; prohibits police officers, peace officers, school resource officers, probation agencies, state entities, state employees, and municipal corporations from questioning individuals regarding their citizenship or immigration status; regulates the disclosure of information relating to immigration status; prohibits an educational agency, higher education agency, school employee, school safety personnel, or third-party contractor from collecting information about a person's citizenship, immigration status, nationality, or country of origin, unless required by law or necessary to administer a public program or benefit sought by such person.

Relates to the reporting requirements of the statewide fiscal intermediary; requires the reporting of utilization data and financial data to protect medical assistance recipients in using the program and ensure the effective use of medical assistance funds; requires the statewide fiscal intermediary to provide consumer directed personal assistant data to ensure the availability of a workforce to meet the needs of consumers utilizing the program; requires the statewide fiscal intermediary to provide data regarding customer service requests, complaints, and accessibility.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends constitutional provisions governing how the governor submits state budget bills. It requires the governor to submit separate bills for each specific purpose (not multiple purposes in one bill), with clear descriptions of each appropriation's purpose that cannot include program rules or modify existing laws. The governor must also submit any proposed non-budget legislation separately from appropriation bills. This affects the governor, legislature, and state departments during budget discussions, as departments must testify on budget items upon request. The changes aim to clarify budget structure and prevent bundling unrelated provisions.

Maddy summaryBill S 6794 proposes a constitutional amendment to change the term length for members of the state legislature. This bill directly affects state senators and assembly members. If enacted, it would increase their term of office from the current two years to four years. This change would apply to all senators and assembly members elected in the year 2026 and for all subsequent elections.

Maddy summaryThis Senate Resolution (J 1535) requests Governor Kathy Hochul to officially proclaim February 2026 as Black History Month in New York State. It does not create new law but asks the Governor to issue a formal state recognition. The resolution cites historical contributions of Black Americans across civil rights, culture, science, and innovation as context for the observance. The Senate adopted the resolution on February 4, 2026, sending it to the Governor for action.