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Assembly Bill A2355

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Makes the possession of certain amounts of a controlled substance a violation

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

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2023-A2355 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Codes
Law Section:
Penal Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §220.03, Pen L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2021-2022: A8673
2025-2026: A7720

2023-A2355 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Makes the possession of certain amounts of a controlled substance a violation and no longer a class A misdemeanor.

2023-A2355 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2355
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 25, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. VANEL -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to making the  possession  of
   certain amounts of a controlled substance a violation
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Section 220.03 of the penal law, as amended by section 4 of
 part I of chapter 57 of the laws  of  2015,  the  opening  paragraph  as
 amended  by  chapter  433  of  the  laws  of 2021, is amended to read as
 follows:
 § 220.03 [Criminal] UNLAWFUL possession of a  controlled  substance  [in
            the seventh degree].
   A  person  is guilty of [criminal] UNLAWFUL possession of a controlled
 substance [in the seventh degree] when he or she  knowingly  and  unlaw-
 fully possesses a controlled substance; provided, however, that it shall
 not  be  a  violation of this section when a person possesses a residual
 amount of a controlled substance and that residual amount is in or on  a
 hypodermic  syringe or hypodermic needle; nor shall it be a violation of
 this section  when  a  person's  unlawful  possession  of  a  controlled
 substance  is discovered as a result of seeking immediate health care as
 defined in paragraph (b) of subdivision three of section 220.78 of  this
 article, for either another person or him or herself because such person
 is  experiencing  a  drug  or alcohol overdose or other life threatening
 medical emergency as defined in paragraph (a) of  subdivision  three  of
 section 220.78 of this article.
   [Criminal]  UNLAWFUL  possession  of  a  controlled  substance [in the
 seventh degree] is a [class A misdemeanor] VIOLATION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06259-01-3

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