NYC Gazette

On May 22, 2024, Speaker Carl Heastie and Committee on People with Disabilities Chair Rebecca A. Seawright announced the passage of legislation aimed at improving the lives of people with disabilities in New York. The legislative package was passed in honor of Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day.

“It is our duty as lawmakers to ensure access to a good quality of life is expanded to all New Yorkers,” said Speaker Heastie. “Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day is a good reminder that we need to do more than just honor those with disabilities across our state, as we need to continue fighting to ensure they have equitable access to employment, healthcare and a good quality of life. This package will better the lives of millions of New Yorkers and work to make our state accessible to all.”

Assemblymember Seawright echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the importance of reducing barriers for people with disabilities. “As we work to honor Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day, this package of bills provides the next step in the Assembly Majority’s effort to lower all barriers for people with disabilities across our state,” she said. “As the chair of the Committee on People with Disabilities, I understand how important these provisions are to ensuring all New Yorkers are afforded the dignity and respect they deserve.”

One key bill in this package expands the Developmental Disability Ombudsman Program (A1577A, Buttenschon), which aids individuals with developmental disabilities through a toll-free hotline, an interactive website, and an in-person staff member.

“The Developmental Disability Ombudsman program will provide vital services to people with disabilities across the state,” stated Assemblymember Marianne Buttenschon. “This bill expands its responsibilities to provide new ways that individuals with developmental disabilities can find assistance and ensure they’re receiving all the help they need to better their quality of life.”

The legislative package also includes two bills focused on promoting employment for people with disabilities. One establishes a taskforce aimed at increasing state agency employment for people with disabilities (A6397A, Burdick). Another requires state agencies and contractors to report data on their employment practices concerning people with disabilities (A5815B, Epstein).

“Our state should be a model to others on how to equitably hire people with disabilities,” remarked Assemblymember Chris Burdick. “This bill will work to ensure we’re actively promoting employment for those with disabilities as we work to lower employment barriers and ensure all New Yorkers have access to a good paying job.”

Assemblymember Harvey Epstein highlighted his bill's role in gathering essential data: “I proudly passed my bill A5815B which provides much-needed data on how many of our state agencies have hired people with disabilities and what titles they hold so we can understand where expansion and resources are needed,” he said. “People with disabilities experience significant barriers to employment and we must ensure New York State is leading on this issue."

Another significant piece of legislation waives the state's sovereign immunity concerning violations of several federal acts including the Americans with Disabilities Act (A6541, Kelles).

“As we continue working to lower barriers and provide equal access...we need to ensure our state is a model for others," stated Assemblymember Anna Kelles. "This bill will ensure New York is not immune from claims that our facilities or agencies are not following federal standards."

Additionally included were commissions aimed at streamlining services for people with disabilities (A1200, Epstein) and studying future service delivery systems for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (A9553A, Seawright).

The Assembly also declared May 22, 2024 as New York State Assembly Legislative Disabilities Day.