Sen. Pete Harckham

Maddy summaryThis is a ceremonial Senate resolution (J 1681) congratulating the Potsdam Central High School Girls Hockey Team for winning the 2026 NYSPHSAA Girls Hockey Championship. It formally recognizes the team's 17-3-2 season record, their 3-2 championship victory over Adirondack United, and their status as the school's first girls hockey champions in over a decade. The resolution specifically names all 25 players and coaches (including Head Coach Joe Stark and Assistant Coaches Lindsay LaSala and Olivia Scott) and directs that engrossed copies be sent to them. As a symbolic gesture with no policy impact, it does not create new laws or affect any regulations.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires coroners, pathologists, medical examiners, and other qualified medical professionals to report cases of Lyme or other tick-borne diseases discovered during post-mortem examinations to the state health department. It directly affects medical examiners and public health officials by mandating timely reporting of such cases. The key provision specifies that reporting must follow methods set by the health commissioner, ensuring standardized data collection. The goal is to improve public health tracking of tick-borne disease fatalities without changing treatment or prevention policies.

Maddy summaryS 4547 establishes a dedicated "diversion part" in every county court to handle judicial diversion cases for eligible defendants. It directly affects individuals charged with specific class B, C, D, or E felonies (excluding certain serious offenses like class A felonies) who have a qualifying mental health or substance use diagnosis. The bill requires a clinical evaluation by licensed professionals to determine if diversion is appropriate, including recommendations for evidence-based treatment (like counseling or medication) instead of incarceration. It repeals outdated provisions about alcohol/substance use evaluations and clarifies eligibility criteria for this program.

Enacts the whale awareness act directing the department of environmental conservation to establish recommendations and educational materials for reduction of marine mammal interactions.

Establishes a tax on video streaming services; provides that the revenue from the tax is to be used to ensure that every resident in the state has access to modern communications networks; establishes the media arts technology and education fund.

Enacts the climate resilient New York act; establishes the office of resilience and a resilience task force to assess and identify climate related threats and develop a statewide resilience plan.

Maddy summaryS 415 establishes minimum cash wage requirements for "miscellaneous industry workers" in New York, including car wash attendants, nail salon staff, dog groomers, tour guides, and valet attendants. It mandates that employers pay these workers a specific hourly cash wage before tips, with rates varying by location: $12.77 in NYC starting 2026, $11.50 in other areas, and phased increases through 2029. The bill also includes a "one fair wage reimbursement credit" to help employers offset costs. The law modifies existing wage orders to ensure total pay (cash wage + tips) meets the state minimum wage, applying only to workers covered under specific state regulations for non-food service industries.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the New York State Thruway Authority to provide public notice and hold a hearing before implementing new fees, surcharges, or significant changes to existing charges. The law defines fees broadly to include administrative charges, assessments, and any new or increased costs related to toll collection and account management. Key provisions mandate public posting of proposed changes, written notice to affected account holders, a minimum 30-day comment period, and at least one public hearing, either in person or virtually. The authority must also publish a written explanation justifying the costs the fee aims to recover and the rationale for the amount set. Any fee or surcharge adopted without following these procedures would be unenforceable until the requirements are met.

Enacts the "affordable clean energy (ACE) act"; exempts renewable energy systems from certain requirements related to energy facilities (Part A); directs the New York power authority to propose a minimum of two priority transmission projects to address the areas of highest need on the bulk transmission system (Part B); exempts payment in lieu of taxes revenue from property tax cap calculations (Part C).

Maddy summaryS 1527 creates a sales tax exemption for commercial energy storage systems equipment and their installation costs. This directly affects businesses installing such systems on non-residential properties to store electricity for later use in heating, cooling, hot water, or power. The bill amends tax law to exempt these systems from state sales tax, covering both the equipment and installation services. Local governments must explicitly adopt this exemption in their tax ordinances to apply it.