S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8182
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             October 27, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A. SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the judiciary law, in relation to  excusing  prospective
   jurors from jury service if they are a full-time caregiver responsible
   for  the  care  of  a  person with a mental or physical condition that
   causes such person to be incapable of caring for himself or herself
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  (a)  of section 517 of the judiciary law, as
 amended by chapter 86 of the laws of 1995, paragraphs 1 and 2 as amended
 by chapter 380 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (a) (1) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph two OR THREE of this
 subdivision, the commissioner of jurors may, in his or  her  discretion,
 on  the  application  of  a  prospective  juror who has been summoned to
 attend, excuse such prospective juror from a part or the  whole  of  the
 time of jury service or may postpone the time of jury service to a later
 day  during  the same or any subsequent term of the court, provided that
 if the prospective juror is a breastfeeding mother and submits with  her
 application  a  note  from  a  physician indicating that the prospective
 juror is breastfeeding, the commissioner shall  excuse  the  prospective
 juror  or  postpone  the  time of jury service. The application shall be
 presented to the commissioner at such time and in such manner as  he  or
 she  shall  require,  except that an application for postponement of the
 initial date for jury service may be made by telephone.
   (2) An application for postponement of jury service shall  be  granted
 hereunder  provided:  (i) such service has not already been postponed or
 excused, (ii) the application is made at such time and in such manner as
 the commissioner of jurors requires, and (iii) the postponement is to  a
 date certain when the court is in session not more than six months after
 the date on which such service otherwise is to commence and such date is
 selected  by  the  prospective  juror, provided  that if the prospective
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07487-02-3
              

 A. 8182                             2
 
 juror is a breastfeeding mother, the postponement date  may  be  a  date
 certain  up  to two years after the date on which such service otherwise
 is to commence.
   (3) AN APPLICATION TO BE EXCUSED FROM JURY SERVICE SHALL BE GRANTED IF
 THE  PROSPECTIVE  JUROR  PROVIDES  A  WRITTEN STATEMENT UNDER PENALTY OF
 PERJURY, IN A FORM AND  MANNER  AS  THE  COMMISSIONER  OF  JURORS  SHALL
 REQUIRE,  THAT SUCH PROSPECTIVE JUROR IS A FULL-TIME CAREGIVER RESPONSI-
 BLE FOR THE CARE OF A PERSON WITH A MENTAL OR  PHYSICAL  CONDITION  THAT
 CAUSES SUCH PERSON TO BE INCAPABLE OF CARING FOR HIMSELF OR HERSELF.
   §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.