Sen. Steve Rhoads

Maddy summaryS 1753, "Bella's Law," requires New York's Office of Children and Family Services to investigate potential domestic violence when someone is accused of or under investigation for animal abuse. It directly affects individuals accused of animal abuse crimes (such as cruelty, abandonment, or harming service animals) and mandates law enforcement to notify child services during such cases. The law creates a mechanism where police must coordinate with child services to determine if animal abuse is linked to domestic violence, requiring a formal investigation and documentation via domestic incident reports. This applies to all animal abuse accusations in New York starting from the law's effective date.

Prohibits persons convicted of murder or sentenced to life without parole or where the defendant acting either alone or with one or more other persons, commits or attempts to commit robbery, burglary, kidnapping, arson, rape in the first degree, criminal sexual act in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, aggravated sexual abuse, escape in the first degree, or escape in the second degree, and, in the course of and in furtherance of such crime or of immediate flight therefrom, such defendant, or another participant, if there be any, intentionally causes the death of: a police officer; a peace officer; a firefighter; emergency medical technician, ambulance driver, paramedic, physician or registered nurse involved in a first response team, or any other individual who, in the course of official duties, performs emergency response; or an employee of a state correctional institution or was an employee of a local correctional facility, when such person was engaged in the course of performing their official duties, from being eligible for commutation of sentence.

Provides for the rate of employer contributions to the unemployment insurance fund in the 2026 fiscal year; establishes the unemployment insurance solvency reserve fund.

Allows for a new special open enrollment period to choose a new health insurance plan for consumers in certain instances to allow for continuity of care with an existing health care provider.

Requires every franchisor, including its affiliates and subsidiaries to properly fulfill any warranty agreement and/or franchisor's service contract and to compensate each of its franchised motor vehicle dealers for warranty parts and labor, including but not limited to all warranty repairs, extended service contract repairs, extended warranty repairs, campaigns, service bulletins, policy repairs, component part warranties, factory compensated repairs, recalls, diagnostics, parts and other voluntary stop-sell repairs, and any other franchisor compensated repairs; relates to reimbursement to a motor vehicle dealer from a motor vehicle franchisor.

Maddy summaryS 972 creates a new class A-1 felony offense for unlawfully selling or transporting an opiate-controlled substance (defined as any opiate or opium derivative listed in New York's public health law schedules I-V) that causes another person's death. It directly affects individuals who sell or transport such substances, including those involved in the illicit drug trade. The bill includes a specific defense if the defendant jointly used the substance with the deceased for mutual consumption. This law imposes the highest felony penalty for these actions, distinct from standard homicide charges. The bill, nicknamed "Laree's Law," will take effect 90 days after enactment.

Ensures that construction and fabrication done off of a public work site for specific use only in a public work project be compensated at the prevailing wage rate.

Provides a performance of duty presumption for diseases of the heart for members who serve as an ambulance medical technician, ambulance medical coordinator, ambulance medical technician/supervisor or a member who performs ambulance medical technician related services, or a police medic, police medic coordinator, police medic supervisor, bureau director police emergency ambulance services - county, assistant bureau director police emergency ambulance services - county, or a member who performs police medic or police emergency ambulance related services and is employed in the Nassau county police department.

Provides an option for beneficiaries of NYC transit authority members to receive a lump sum equal to the pension reserve where a member who is eligible for a service retirement dies prior to filing for retirement.

Enacts the "New York travel insurance act" regulating the licensing and registration of limited lines travel insurance producers and travel retailers, and the sale and marketing of travel insurance and related products.