S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6538
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               March 5, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  SCHIAVONI  --  read once and referred to the
   Committee on Veterans' Affairs
 
 AN ACT to amend the county law, the labor law, the mental  hygiene  law,
   the military law, the public health law and the real property tax law,
   in  relation  to  changing  references  to the name of the division of
   veterans' services to the department of veterans' services
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 10 of section 677 of the coun-
 ty  law,  as added by chapter 95 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read
 as follows:
   (a) The coroner, coroner's physician or medical examiner shall  report
 to  the [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans' services, in a form, and time
 frame developed by the department of health in a manner that is  protec-
 tive  of  privacy and contains aggregate, rather than individual data to
 the extent practicable, any death which appears to be caused by  suicide
 by a person who, to the knowledge of the coroner, coroner's physician or
 medical examiner, is a veteran.
   §  2.  Section  201-h of the labor law, as added by chapter 584 of the
 laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
   § 201-h. Posting of veterans' benefits and services. 1. The department
 shall consult with the [division] DEPARTMENT of  veterans'  services  to
 create and distribute a veterans' benefits and services poster.
   2.  Such poster shall, at a minimum, include information regarding the
 following services available to veterans:
   a. contact and website information for the  [division]  DEPARTMENT  of
 veterans'  services  and the [department's] DEPARTMENT OF LABOR'S veter-
 ans' program;
   b. substance abuse and mental health treatment;
   c. educational, workforce, and training resources;
   d. tax benefits;

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10556-01-5
              

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   e. New York state veteran drivers' licenses and non-driver identifica-
 tion cards;
   f.  eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits under state and/or
 federal law;
   g. legal services; and
   h. contact information for the U.S.  Department  of  Veterans  Affairs
 Veterans Crisis Line.
   3.  Every  employer in the state with more than fifty full-time equiv-
 alent employees shall  display  the  poster  created  pursuant  to  this
 section in a conspicuous place accessible to employees in the workplace.
   §  3.  Subdivision  (a)  of section 33.27 of the mental hygiene law as
 separately amended by chapters 517 and 522  of  the  laws  of  2022,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   (a)  There  is  hereby  established  the  office  of  the  independent
 substance use disorder and mental health ombudsman program that will  be
 operated  or  selected by the office of addiction services and supports,
 in consultation with the office of mental  health  for  the  purpose  of
 assisting  individuals  with  a  substance  use  disorder  and/or mental
 illness to ensure that they receive appropriate health insurance  cover-
 age.  The office of addiction services and supports in consultation with
 the office of mental health shall provide annual  outreach  services  to
 other  state and local entities, including but not limited to the [divi-
 sion] DEPARTMENT of veterans'  services,  the  office  for  people  with
 developmental  disabilities, the office of children and family services,
 the department of corrections, or providers contracted by such  agencies
 to  provide assistance to the impacted populations to make them aware of
 the independent substance  use  disorder  and  mental  health  ombudsman
 program and the assistance they provide.
   §  4.  Subdivisions  1-d  and  1-e of section 247 of the military law,
 subdivision 1-d as added by chapter 582 of the laws of 2022 and subdivi-
 sion 1-e as added by chapter 583 of the  laws  of  2022  and  separately
 renumbered  by  chapters 609 and 610 of the laws of 2023, are amended to
 read as follows:
   1-d. The governor is hereby authorized to present in the name  of  the
 legislature  of  the state of New York, a medal, to be known as the "New
 York  State  Vietnam  War  Commemorative  Medal",  bearing  a   suitable
 inscription,  to  any  person: (i) who is a resident of the state of New
 York; or (ii) who was a resident of the state of New York while  serving
 in the armed forces of the United States; (iii) who served in the United
 States  Armed Forces, defined as army, air force, navy, marine corps, or
 coast guard, or the organized  militia  defined  as  the  army  national
 guard,  the  air  national guard, the New York naval militia, or the New
 York guard, on active duty abroad in Vietnam, Thailand, Laos,  Cambodia,
 or  in  the  contiguous waters or air space thereof during the period of
 time from  November  first,  nineteen  hundred  fifty-five  through  May
 seventh,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-five;  and  (iv)  who was honorably
 discharged or released under honorable circumstances or who has a quali-
 fying condition, as defined in section [three hundred fifty] ONE of  the
 [executive]  VETERANS' SERVICES law, and received a discharge other than
 bad conduct or dishonorable discharge, or is a discharged LGBT  veteran,
 as  defined  in  section  [three  hundred  fifty] ONE of the [executive]
 VETERANS' SERVICES law, and received a discharge other than bad  conduct
 or  dishonorable  discharge.  No  person shall receive more than one New
 York State Vietnam War Commemorative Medal. In the event of the death of
 any eligible person prior to the receipt of  such  commemorative  medal,
 such  commemorative medal shall be presented to the designated represen-
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 tative of the deceased. The adjutant general, in consultation  with  the
 director  of the [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans' services, shall make
 such rules and regulations as may be deemed  necessary  for  the  proper
 presentation and distribution of such medals.
   1-e.  The  governor is hereby authorized to present in the name of the
 legislature of the state of New York, a medal, to be known as  the  "New
 York   State   Korean  War  Commemorative  Medal",  bearing  a  suitable
 inscription, to any person: (i) who is a resident of the  state  of  New
 York,  or (ii) who was a resident of the state of New York while serving
 in the armed forces of the United States; (iii) who served in the United
 States Armed Forces, defined as army, air force, navy, marine corps,  or
 coast  guard,  or  the  organized  militia  defined as the army national
 guard, the air national guard, the New York naval  militia  or  the  New
 York  guard,  on  active  duty  on  the Korean peninsula, its contiguous
 waters, or its airspace in the Korean War defined as the period of  time
 from  June  twenty-seventh, nineteen hundred fifty through January thir-
 ty-first, nineteen  hundred  fifty-five;  and  (iv)  who  was  honorably
 discharged or released under honorable circumstances or who has a quali-
 fying  condition, as defined in section [three hundred fifty] ONE of the
 [executive] VETERANS' SERVICES law, and received a discharge other  than
 bad  conduct or dishonorable discharge, or is a discharged LGBT veteran,
 as defined in section [three  hundred  fifty]  ONE  of  the  [executive]
 VETERANS'  SERVICES law, and received a discharge other than bad conduct
 or dishonorable discharge. No person shall receive  more  than  one  New
 York  State Korean War Commemorative Medal. In the event of the death of
 any person prior to the receipt of such commemorative medal, such comme-
 morative medal shall be presented to the  designated  representative  of
 the deceased. The adjutant general, in consultation with the director of
 the  [division]  DEPARTMENT of veterans' services, shall make such rules
 and regulations as may be deemed necessary for the  proper  presentation
 and distribution of such medals.
   §  5.  Paragraph  (y)  of  subdivision  1 of section 201 of the public
 health law, as added by chapter 95 of the laws of 2022,  is  amended  to
 read as follows:
   (y)  To  develop  a  form  by  which a coroner, coroner's physician or
 medical examiner, pursuant to section six hundred seventy-seven  of  the
 county  law,  shall  report  to  the  [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans'
 services any death which appears to be caused by  suicide  by  a  person
 who,  to  the  knowledge  of the coroner, coroner's physician or medical
 examiner, is a veteran.   This form  shall  at  a  minimum:  (i)  ensure
 compliance  with  the  strictest  privacy protections and encourage data
 aggregation to the extent feasible; (ii) provide the  address  to  which
 the  form is to be mailed or submitted electronically; and (iii) include
 the county of residence and the branch of service of  deceased  veterans
 during the reporting period.
   §  6.  Subdivision  3  of  section 2805-o of the public health law, as
 added by chapter 75 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
   3. Every nursing home, residential  health  care  facility  and  every
 adult care facility licensed and certified by the department pursuant to
 title  two of article seven of the social services law or article forty-
 six-B of this chapter,  including  all  adult  homes,  enriched  housing
 programs,  residences for adults, assisted living programs, and assisted
 living residences, with the permission of individuals identifying  them-
 selves  as  veterans or spouses of veterans, shall transmit such veteran
 status information to the [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans' services.
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   § 7. Subdivision 10 of section 458 of the real property  tax  law,  as
 added  by  section  35  of part AA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2019, is
 amended to read as follows:
   10.  The  commissioner shall develop in consultation with the director
 of the New York state [division]  DEPARTMENT  of  veterans'  services  a
 listing  of  documents  to  be  used to establish eligibility under this
 section, including but not  limited  to  a  certificate  of  release  or
 discharge  from  active duty also known as a DD-214 form or an Honorable
 Service Certificate/Report of Causality from the department of  defense.
 Such  information  shall be made available to each county, city, town or
 village assessor's office, or congressional chartered  veterans  service
 officers  who  request such information. The listing of acceptable mili-
 tary records shall be made available on the  internet  websites  of  the
 [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans' services and the office of real prop-
 erty tax services.
   § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.