S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4733
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 6, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. RAJKUMAR -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Labor
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  administrative code of the city of New York, in
   relation to prevailing wage for certain city service contracts
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Short title.  This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "Close the Gap Act."
   § 2. Paragraphs 18, 19, 20 and 21 of subdivision a and  subdivision  b
 of  section 6-109 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as
 added by local law number 38 of the city of New York for the year  2002,
 are amended to read as follows:
   (18)  "Prevailing  Wage  and  Supplements"  means the rate of wage and
 supplemental benefits per hour paid in the locality to  workers  in  the
 same  trade  or occupation and annually determined by the comptroller in
 accordance with the provisions of section 234  of  the  New  York  state
 labor  law  or,  for titles not specifically enumerated in or covered by
 that law, determined by the comptroller at the request of a  contracting
 agency  or  a  covered  employer  in  accordance  with the procedures of
 section 234 of the New York state labor law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT FOR
 ANY TRADE OR OCCUPATION IN WHICH 75 PER CENTUM OR MORE EMPLOYEES  ARE  A
 MEMBER  OF  THE  SAME  PROTECTED CLASS AND SUCH RATE OF WAGE AND SUPPLE-
 MENTAL BENEFITS WOULD BE LESS THAN THE LOWEST RATE OF A COVERED BUILDING
 SERVICES EMPLOYEE, THE PREVAILING WAGE AND SUPPLEMENTS  MAY  BE  GREATER
 THAN  THAT  PAID IN THE LOCALITY TO WORKERS IN THE SAME TRADE OR OCCUPA-
 TION.  As provided under section 231 of the New York  state  labor  law,
 the  obligation  of  an  employer  to  pay prevailing supplements may be
 discharged by furnishing any equivalent combinations of fringe  benefits
 or by making equivalent or differential payments in cash under rules and
 regulations established by the comptroller.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08621-01-5
 A. 4733                             2
              

 
   (19)  ["Living Wage" has the meaning provided in paragraph 2 of subdi-
 vision b of this section.
   (20)] "Health Benefits" has the meaning provided in paragraph [3] 2 of
 subdivision b of this section.
   [(21)  "Health  Benefits  Supplement Rate" has the meaning provided in
 subparagraph b of paragraph 3 of subdivision b of this section.]
   b. [Living Wage,] Prevailing Wage and Health Benefits.  (1)  Coverage.
 (a)  A  city  service  contractor  or  city  service  subcontractor that
 provides homecare services, day care services, head  start  services  or
 services  to  persons with cerebral palsy must pay its covered employees
 that directly render such services in performance of  the  city  service
 contract  or  subcontract  no less than the [living] PREVAILING wage and
 must either provide its employees health  benefits  or  must  supplement
 their  hourly  wage rate by an amount no less than the [health benefits]
 PREVAILING supplement rate. This requirement applies for each hour  that
 the employee works performing the city service contract or subcontract.
   (b)  A  city  service  contractor  or  city service subcontractor that
 provides building services, food services or temporary services must pay
 its employees that are engaged in performing the city  service  contract
 or  subcontract  no less than the [living wage or the] prevailing wage[,
 whichever is greater. Where the living wage is greater than the prevail-
 ing wage, the city service contractor or city service subcontractor must
 either provide its employees health benefits or  must  supplement  their
 hourly  wage  rate by an amount no less than the health benefits supple-
 ment rate. Where the prevailing wage is greater than  the  living  wage,
 the  city  service contractor or city service subcontractor must provide
 its employees the prevailing wage and supplements as provided  in  para-
 graph  18 of subdivision a of this section. These requirements apply for
 each hour that the employee works performing the city  service  contract
 or subcontract].
   (2)  [The Living Wage. The living wage shall be an hourly wage rate of
 ten dollars per hour and will be phased in as provided below.  Provided,
 however,  that  for  homecare  services under the Personal Care Services
 program, the wage and health rates below shall only apply as long as the
 state and federal government maintain their combined  aggregate  propor-
 tionate  share  of  funding  and approved rates for homecare services in
 effect as of the date of the enactment of this section:
   (a) As of the effective date of this section, $8.10 per hour;
   (b) As of July 1, 2003, $8.60 per hour;
   (c) As of July 1, 2004, $9.10 per hour;
   (d) As of July 1, 2005, $9.60 per hour;
   (e) As of July 1, 2006, $10.00 per hour.
   (3)] Health Benefits. (a) Health Benefits means receipt by  a  covered
 employee  of  a  health  care  benefits package for the covered employee
 and/or a health care benefits package for the covered employee and  such
 employee's family and/or dependents.
   (b) [The Health Benefits Supplement Rate shall be $1.50 per hour.
   (c)]  For  homecare services provided under the Personal Care Services
 program, the wage and health rates above shall only apply as long as the
 state and federal government maintain their combined  aggregate  propor-
 tionate  share  of  funding  and approved rates for homecare services in
 effect as of the date of the enactment of this section.
   [(d)] (C) In the case of city service  contractors  or  subcontractors
 providing  homecare  services,  the health benefits requirements of this
 section may be waived by the terms of a bona fide collective  bargaining
 agreement  with  respect to employees who have never worked a minimum of
 A. 4733                             3
 
 eighty (80) hours per month for two consecutive months for that  covered
 employer,  but  such  provision may not be waived for any employees once
 they have achieved a minimum of eighty (80) hours  for  two  consecutive
 months and no other provisions of this section may be so waived.
   [(4)] (3) Exemption for Employment Programs for the Disadvantaged. The
 following  categories  of employees shall not be subject to the require-
 ments of this section:
   (a) Any employee who is:
   (i) Under the age of eighteen who is claimed as a dependent for feder-
 al income tax purposes and is employed  as  an  after-school  or  summer
 employee; or
   (ii)  Employed as a trainee in a bona fide training program consistent
 with federal and state law where the training program has the goal  that
 the employee advances into a permanent position; provided, however, that
 this  exemption  shall  apply  only  when  the trainee does not replace,
 displace or lower the wages or benefits of any covered employee, and the
 training does not exceed two years; and
   (b) Any disabled employee, where such disabled employee:
   (i) Is covered by a current sub-minimum wage certificate issued to the
 employer by the United States department of labor; or
   (ii) Would be covered by such a certificate but for the fact that  the
 employer  is  paying  a wage equal to or higher than the federal minimum
 wage.
   [(5)] (4) Retaliation and Discrimination Barred. It shall be  unlawful
 for  any covered employer to retaliate, discharge, demote, suspend, take
 adverse employment action in the terms and conditions of  employment  or
 otherwise  discriminate  against  any  covered employee for reporting or
 asserting a violation of this  section,  for  seeking  or  communicating
 information  regarding  rights conferred by this section, for exercising
 any other rights protected under this section, or for  participating  in
 any  investigatory  or  court  proceeding relating to this section. This
 protection shall also apply to any covered  employee  or  [his  or  her]
 THEIR  representative  who  in  good  faith  alleges a violation of this
 section, or who  seeks  or  communicates  information  regarding  rights
 conferred by this section in circumstances where [he or she] SUCH PERSON
 in  good  faith believes this section applies. Taking adverse employment
 action against a covered employee(s) or [his  or  her]  THEIR  represen-
 tative  within sixty days of the covered employee engaging in any of the
 aforementioned activities shall raise a rebuttable presumption of having
 done so in  retaliation  for  those  activities.  Any  covered  employee
 subjected  to any action that violates this subsection may pursue admin-
 istrative remedies or bring a civil action pursuant to subsection  e  of
 this section in a court of competent jurisdiction.
   [(6)]  (5)  Nothing  in this section shall be construed to establish a
 wage or benefit pattern or otherwise affect the establishment  of  wages
 or benefits for city employees.
   § 3. Subparagraph (a) of paragraph 1 of subdivision d of section 6-109
 of  the  administrative  code of the city of New York, as added by local
 law number 38 of the city of New York for the year 2002, is  amended  to
 read as follows:
   (a)  The  mayor or [his or her] THEIR designee shall promulgate imple-
 menting rules and regulations as appropriate and  consistent  with  this
 section  and  may  delegate such authority to the comptroller. The comp-
 troller shall be responsible for [publishing the living  wage  and  for]
 calculating  and  publishing  all applicable prevailing wage and [health
 benefits] PREVAILING supplement rates. The  comptroller  shall  annually
 A. 4733                             4

 publish  the  adjusted rates. The [adjusted living wage and health bene-
 fits supplement rate shall take effect on July 1 of each year, and  the]
 adjusted  prevailing  wage  rates  shall  take  effect  on whatever date
 revised  prevailing wage rates determined under section 230 of the state
 labor law are made effective.  At least 30 days prior to their effective
 date, the relevant contracting agencies, shall  provide  notice  of  the
 adjusted  rates to city service contractors, which shall in turn provide
 written notification of the rate adjustments to each  of  their  covered
 employees,  and  to any city service subcontractors, which shall in turn
 provide written notification to each of their covered employees. Covered
 employers shall make necessary wage and health benefits  adjustments  by
 the effective date of the adjusted rates.
   §  4.  Subparagraph  (b)  of  paragraph 2 of subdivision d  of section
 6-109 of the administrative code of the city of New York,  as  added  by
 local  law  number  38  of  the  city  of New York for the year 2002, is
 amended to read as follows:
   (b) Every city service contract shall have annexed to it the following
 materials which shall form a part of the specifications for and terms of
 the city service contract:
   (i) A provision obligating the city service contractor to comply  with
 all applicable requirements under this section;
   (ii)  The certification required under paragraph 2 of subdivision c of
 this section;
   (iii) A schedule of the current [living] PREVAILING wage  [and  health
 benefits]  supplement rates, a schedule of job classifications for which
 payment of the prevailing wage is required under this  section  together
 with  the  applicable prevailing wage rates for each job classification,
 as determined by the comptroller and notice that such rates are adjusted
 annually; and
   (iv) A provision providing  that:  (a)  Failure  to  comply  with  the
 requirements  of  this  section  may constitute a material breach by the
 city service contractor of the terms of the city service  contract;  (b)
 Such  failure shall be determined by the contracting agency; and (c) If,
 within thirty days after or pursuant to the terms of  the  city  service
 contract,  whichever  is  longer,  the  city  service  contractor and/or
 subcontractor receives written notice of such a breach, the city service
 contractor fails to cure such breach, the city shall have the  right  to
 pursue  any  rights  or  remedies  available under the terms of the city
 service contract or under applicable law, including termination  of  the
 contract.
   §  5. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
 law.