Sen. James Skoufis

Maddy summaryThis bill lowers the compulsory school age from six to five years old for full-time instruction in New York State. It requires children who turn five on or before December 1st to start school in September of that year, while those turning five after December 1st can begin the following September. Parents may choose to delay kindergarten enrollment until the next September, and the bill maintains exceptions for high school completers and full-time workers. The change affects all school districts and parents of five-year-old children.

Requires every city or county social services district to provide a wearable or mobile phone-based panic button to each employee whose job responsibilities necessitate direct interaction with clients in a client's home.

Relates to the statute of limitations for certain deed theft actions; revives such actions otherwise barred by the existing statute of limitations and states who may bring such actions; grants trial preference to such actions; directs the chief administrator of the courts to promulgate rules for the timely adjudication of certain revived actions.

Maddy summaryThis bill designates a specific segment of State Route 284 in Unionville, Orange County, as part of the Appalachian Trail for ceremonial purposes. It requires the state transportation commissioner to install and maintain signage stating "Highway Dedicated to The Appalachian Trail" along this route. The dedication does not change the highway's official name or affect its use for regular traffic or commerce. The bill is purely symbolic, with no changes to road management or legal designation beyond the signage.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires election boards to extend voting time at affected polling places or districts if voting is disrupted for over 15 consecutive minutes. If disruptions occur, the board must toll the voting clock during the delay and extend voting time proportionally afterward, or schedule additional voting on the next available day if same-day extension is impractical. The board must also publicly notify voters, candidates, media, and community groups about the extended hours through multiple communication channels. This directly affects voters at disrupted locations, election officials managing polling operations, and candidates needing to coordinate with affected districts.

Establishes an "operation SNUG" program within the division of criminal justice services which provides grant awards to reduce, prevent or respond to gun violence.

Requires railroad corporations to inform the division of homeland security and emergency services, department of environmental conservation and department of transportation about freight rail trains transporting hazardous materials prior to traveling on tracks within the state.

Repeals provisions relating to resolutions of disputes in the course of collective negotiations with certain deputy sheriffs to provide such deputy sheriffs with the same interest arbitration scope as municipal police officers.

Maddy summaryS 118 creates a searchable public database of existing dementia and Alzheimer's disease support programs for elderly individuals (60+). The office of aging, working with the health department, will develop criteria to identify successful programs and maintain the database on its website. The database will include program names, descriptions, contact details, and service areas to help elderly individuals, families, and caregivers find local resources. It requires annual updates to ensure the information remains current and accessible. This bill directly affects elderly persons with dementia/Alzheimer's and the service providers offering support in community settings.

Establishes an optional twenty-five year retirement plan for certain public safety dispatchers, public safety telecommunicators, 911 operators, communications officers, police communication technicians, emergency services operators and emergency services dispatchers employed by the state, or a county or municipal emergency services department.