Sen. Rachel May

Establishes an energy project revolving loan program and energy project revolving loan fund to encourage the development of renewable energy generating projects by awarding financial assistance for certain zero-emission energy generation projects.

Enacts the online revenues and expenditures transparency act to provide for the development of a single, searchable budget database website accessible to the public, at no cost.

Expands the total enrollment percentage standard for school districts located in a city with a population of one million or more from applying to initial charter school applications to all charter school applications.

Establishes the New York title guaranty program to provide title insurance for real property within the state; establishes the New York title guaranty corporation to implement the New York title guaranty program.

Establishes the homeless protection act which designates certain offenses against homeless persons as hate crimes; includes the definition of homelessness.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 5249) automatically grants Medicaid eligibility to workers participating in strikes or labor disputes, ensuring they maintain health coverage during the strike period. It directly affects striking employees who would otherwise lose Medicaid due to employment status, without requiring them to reapply. Key provisions include limiting coverage strictly to the duration of the strike, prohibiting the consideration of personal resources (like savings) when determining eligibility, and allowing temporary "presumptive eligibility" through health department processes. The bill requires the Health Commissioner to create implementing regulations for eligibility rules and covered services.

Maddy summarySenate Bill S 7954 amends the requirements for organizations providing fiscal intermediary services in the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program. It expands the definition of "fiscal intermediary" to include more entities, such as certain service centers for independent living, granting them equal status to the statewide fiscal intermediary. These newly defined fiscal intermediaries can contract directly with managed care plans and must provide culturally and linguistically competent services. The bill also removes the specific procurement process for a single statewide fiscal intermediary, aiming to offer consumers more choice in these services.

Establishes the "small water utility transparency act"; requires the public service commission and the department of environmental conservation to conduct audits of certain private water companies; requires certain private water companies which are under certain investigations to file public updates on the status of compliance with such orders.

Permits the designation of low volume roads and minimum maintenance roads by town boards; enacts provisions relating to the maintenance, improvement and repair of such roads; removes the limitation that such provisions only apply to a designated town.

Maddy summaryThis bill limits home care aides to 12-hour shifts without their explicit consent. It prohibits employers from requiring overtime beyond this limit, and any agreement for longer shifts must be voluntarily provided in writing for each specific instance. The law protects aides from retaliation, including dismissal or penalties, for refusing excessive hours or reporting violations. Exceptions only apply during true emergencies after exhausting all staffing options, and even then, overtime cannot exceed four hours without consent.