Sen. Rob Rolison

Maddy summaryS 23 expands an existing tax credit for farmers to include the cost of constructing housing for farm workers. This change directly affects farmers who build residential housing for their employees, allowing them to claim the credit for construction materials and labor. The bill amends tax law to explicitly add "construction of residential housing occupied by farm workers" to the list of eligible expenses under the credit, which previously covered farm-related equipment and property. Farmers must still meet other requirements, such as property situs in the state and use in farming operations.

Maddy summaryThis bill expands New York's paid family leave program to include bereavement leave for employees experiencing fetal death, stillbirth, or an infant declared medically not viable to survive. It amends workers' compensation law to explicitly add these circumstances as qualifying reasons for leave under the "bereavement" provision, requiring employees to provide a fetal death certificate, stillbirth certificate, or death certificate as proof. The policy applies to all eligible employees covered under the state's paid family leave system, effective January 1, 2025. It does not create new benefits but extends existing leave protections to these specific pregnancy-related losses.

Directs the commissioner of health to establish a cannabis awareness program for youths age eighteen and younger designed to educate about the effects and risks associated with cannabis use, including that it is illegal for persons under the age of twenty-one.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows children aged 14 or younger to testify in court via closed-circuit television instead of appearing in person during criminal cases involving assault or endangering a child's welfare (specifically offenses under Penal Law articles 120, 130, or sections 255.25-27, 260.10). It directly affects child witnesses in these cases by reducing the trauma of in-person testimony. The key provision permits testimony through TV while making prior statements made by the child admissible in court, though a child cannot be deemed "vulnerable" solely based on those statements. The bill amends existing criminal procedure law to implement this change, applying to cases filed after its effective date.

Maddy summaryS 2206 prohibits hospitals and transplant centers from denying organ transplants or related services solely due to a person's physical or mental disability. It requires covered entities (like hospitals and transplant programs) to make reasonable accommodations - such as involving support networks or using accessible communication methods - to ensure individuals with disabilities can access transplants. The bill explicitly bans discrimination in listing patients on waiting lists, referrals, or insurance coverage for transplant-related care. It aligns with the Americans with Disabilities Act by requiring individualized medical evaluations rather than assumptions about disability. This law directly affects New York residents with disabilities who need organ transplants, ensuring they receive fair consideration based on medical suitability, not disability status.

Maddy summarySenate Bill S 8068 requires the Office of Children and Family Services to develop and publish a postcard containing information about publicly available child care assistance programs and how to apply. The Commissioner of the Department of Health, and the New York City Department of Health, will then mail these informational postcards. They will be sent to the residential addresses listed on new birth certificates registered with their respective departments. This aims to inform new parents about available child care support.

Maddy summaryS 7024 elevates crimes committed on Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) property to a higher felony category. It makes any crime on MTA-owned or operated property (including stations, vehicles, and facilities) count as one category higher than the original offense - for example, a class B felony becomes an A-1 felony. The bill mandates minimum sentencing ranges: at least six years for indeterminate sentences on class B felonies, and a minimum 20-year term for A-1 felony convictions. This directly affects individuals convicted of crimes in MTA spaces, altering their sentencing under New York’s penal law.

Relates to human trafficking offenses and the classification of certain trafficking offenses; includes new offenses in existing provisions of law relating to registration, procedure, affirmative defenses, bail, loss of certain licenses, recovery by victims for trafficking offenses and definitions (Part A); requires the posting of signs at schools and the inclusion of human trafficking education in the driver's education course; requires the posting of signs relating to human trafficking in tattoo and body piercing studios and certain parks; requires education in human trafficking for persons working in nail specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, esthetics and cosmetology (Part B).

Relates to the eligibility for awards for victims of a crime; includes the commission of suicide within two years after being a victim of a crime as a death that is the direct result of a crime.

Relates to aggravated harassment of an employee by an incarcerated individual; eliminates the requirement that an incarcerated individual causes or attempts to cause an employee to come into contact with blood, seminal fluid, urine, feces, saliva, or the contents of a toilet bowl by throwing, tossing or expelling such fluid or material.