NY State Senate Bill 2025-S4056

Senate Bill S4056

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Permits school districts and childcare businesses to look at the social media accounts of prospective employees

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Labor Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 31, 2025	referred to labor

2025-S4056 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Labor
Law Section:: Labor Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §201-i, Lab L

2025-S4056 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Permits school districts and entities licensed pursuant to section three hundred ninety of the social services law to look at the social media accounts of prospective employees.

2025-S4056 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4056

SPONSOR: MATTERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the labor law, in relation to permitting school
districts and childcare businesses to look at the social media accounts
of prospective employees

 
PURPOSE:

To give school districts and childcare business the ability to do a
comprehensive look at prospective employees

 
SUMMARY:

Section 1: subdivision 1 of section 201-i of the labor law as added by
chapter 367 of the laws of 2023 is amended

Section 2: subdivision 6 of section 201-i of the labor law as added by
chapter 367 of the laws of 2023 is amended

Section 3: Effective Date

 
JUSTIFICATION:

It is imperative that school districts and other entities like daycare
facilities have complete and unfettered access to every possible source
of information available to make the most educated hiring decisions for
the benefit and protection of the children they serve.  To deny or
infringe upon this access unreasonably impedes their ability to make
fully informed decisions and that is unacceptable.

This legislation will enhance the ability of school leaders and others
who are entrusted with the protection of children throughout New York
State. That will allow them to fully examine the complete and thorough
background of every prospective employee and allow them to best serve
their communities and the families who live there.

New York State entrusts those in certain positions to make decisions
related to the safety of our state's children and this legislation will
provide those who take on this responsibility with an essential tool to
fulfill their vital mission.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately

2025-S4056 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4056
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 31, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. MATTERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
 
 AN ACT to  amend  the  labor  law,  in  relation  to  permitting  school
   districts  and  childcare  businesses  to  look  at  the  social media
   accounts of prospective employees

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  (c)  of  subdivision 1 of section 201-i of the
 labor law, as added by chapter 367 of the laws of 2023,  is  amended  to
 read as follows:
   (c)  "Employer"  means  (i)  a person or entity engaged in a business,
 industry, profession, trade or other enterprise in the state;  (ii)  the
 state  of  New  York;  (iii)  a county, city, town, village or any other
 political subdivision or civil division of the  state;  (iv)  [a  school
 district   or]  any  government  entity  operating  a  [public  school,]
 college[,] or university; (v) a public improvement or special  district;
 (vi)  a  public  authority, commission or public benefit corporation; or
 (vii) any other public corporation, agency, instrumentality or  unit  of
 government  which  exercises  governmental  power  under the laws of the
 state; and (viii) shall include an agent, representative or designee  of
 the employer.
   §  2.  Subdivision  6  of  section 201-i of the labor law, as added by
 chapter 367 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
   6. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any law  enforce-
 ment  agency,  a  fire  department [or], a department of corrections and
 community supervision, A SCHOOL DISTRICT, OR ANY ENTITY LICENSED  PURSU-
 ANT TO SECTION THREE HUNDRED NINETY OF THE SOCIAL SERVICES LAW.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07539-01-5

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