NY State Senate Bill 2025-S727

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary 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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2025	referred to judiciary

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2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A1190
Current Committee:: Senate Judiciary
Law Section:: Civil Practice Law and Rules
Laws Affected:: Amd §214-c, CPLR
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2009-2010: A4187
2011-2012: A3714
2013-2014: A6137
2015-2016: A4441
2017-2018: A4845
2019-2020: S4920, A4879
2021-2022: S667, A5031
2023-2024: S1295, A4472

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that in toxic tort cases the date of discovery of the injury by the plaintiff or claimant is presumed to be the date of diagnosis and where the specific toxic etiological cause of injury is not known for up to ten years (instead of five years) after the injury itself is discovered a plaintiff shall have three years to file a claim from the time such specific cause is discovered.

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S727

SPONSOR: SANDERS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to time
limitations for filing claims for certain injuries

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill waives the State's sovereign immunity with regard to applica-
tion of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; the Age Discrimi-
nation in Employment Act of 1967; the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938;
and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 as they apply to the
protection of state employees. It also waives the immunity of all
instrumentalities and political subdivisions of the state.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

This bill will restore the rights of state employees to sue the State of
New York for damages due to violations of the Americans with Disabili-
ties Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and preserve their rights under the
Family and Medical Leave. Act (FMLA). This would allow the State of New
York to be sued in state or federal court for any violation of the
rights cf state employees under these federal statutes, including the
ADA's access and accommodation standards. In addition, it will ensure
the right of people with disabilities to bring a civil action against
the state for failure to provide access for the disabled public to
government services, programs and activities.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

On February 22, 2001, the US Supreme Court ruled in Board of Trustees v.
Garrett that in the enactment of the ADA, the US Congress had exceeded
its power to authorize lawsuits by residents against their own states
under the 11th Amendment. On January 11, 2000 the US Supreme Court ruled
in Kimel, J. Daniel Jr. v. Florida Board of Regents that in the enact-
ment of the ADEA, the US Congress had exceeded its power to authorize
lawsuits by residents against their own states under the 11th Amendment.
On June 23,.1999 the US Supreme Court ruled in Alden, John v. Maine that
a state's immunity from suit under FLSA is beyond congressional power to
abrogate by Article I legislation. These rulings allow states to opt to
hold themselves to the standards that were originally set out by the
ADA, the ADEA, and the FLSA prior to those decisions by waiving their
sovereign immunity and thereby permit- ting actions in state and federal
courts. These rulings effectively took away the protection for state
employees under these laws while upholding the same protection for
privately employed individuals, creating a disparity. This bill will
ensure that all employees, including those employed by the state, have
the same protections. Waiver under the ADA will provide redress for
failure to accommodate state employees with disabilities and failure to
provide access for the disabled public to government services, programs
and activities. On May 27, 2003, the US Supreme Court ruled in Nevada
Department of Human Resources v. Hibbs that the family medical care
provision of FMLA is a valid exercise of congressional power to abrogate
the states' 11th Amendment immunity from suit by individuals, because it
remedies gender discrimination. As with ADA, AREA and FLSA, a state will
be required to consent unequivocally to a waiver of its sovereign immu-
nity, to ensure that state employees have the same protection as private
sector employees under the FMLA.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024: A.6541 (Kelles) - Passed Assembly

2023: A.6541 (Kelles) - Passed Assembly

2022: A.7121 (Kelles) - Passed Assembly

2021: A.7121 (Kelles) - Passed Assembly

2020: A.1092 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2019: A.1092 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2018: A.2546 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2017: A.2546 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2016: A.5388 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2015: A.5388 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2014: A.828 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2013: A.828 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2012: A.3689 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

2011: A.3689 (Lifotn) - Passed Assembly

2010: A.3651 (Lifton) - Passed Assembly

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None to the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    727
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in  relation  to  time
   limitations for filing claims for certain injuries

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Subdivision 2 of section 214-c of the civil  practice  law
 and  rules,  as  added by chapter 682 of the laws of 1986, is amended to
 read as follows:
   2. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 214, the three year peri-
 od within which an action to recover  damages  for  personal  injury  or
 injury  to  property  caused  by  the  latent effects of exposure to any
 substance or combination of substances, in any form, upon or within  the
 body or upon or within property must be commenced shall be computed from
 the  date of discovery of the injury by the plaintiff, WHICH IS PRESUMED
 TO BE THE DATE THE DIAGNOSIS WAS CONVEYED TO THE PLAINTIFF OR  CLAIMANT,
 or  from the date when through the exercise of reasonable diligence such
 injury should have been discovered by the plaintiff, whichever is earli-
 er.
   § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 214-c of  the  civil  practice  law  and
 rules,  as  added by chapter 682 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read
 as follows:
   4. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions  two  and  three  of
 this  section,  where  the  discovery  of the SPECIFIC TOXIC ETIOLOGICAL
 cause of the injury, INCLUDING  THE  SOURCE  OF  THE  ALLEGED  HARM,  is
 alleged  to  have occurred less than [five] TEN years after discovery of
 the injury or when with reasonable diligence  such  injury  should  have
 been  discovered,  whichever is earlier, an action may be commenced or a
 claim filed within [one year] THREE YEARS of such discovery of the cause
 of the injury; provided, however, if any such  action  is  commenced  or
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD02381-01-5
 S. 727                              2
 
 claim  filed  after  the  period  in  which it would otherwise have been
 authorized pursuant to subdivision two or  three  of  this  section  the
 plaintiff or claimant shall be required to allege and prove that techni-
 cal,  scientific  or  medical  knowledge  and  information sufficient to
 ascertain the cause of [his] THE PLAINTIFF OR CLAIMANT'S injury had  not
 been discovered, identified or determined, OR THAT AFTER DILIGENT EFFORT
 THE CAUSE WAS NOT KNOWN BY THE PLAINTIFF OR CLAIMANT, prior to the expi-
 ration  of  the  period within which the action or claim would have been
 authorized and that [he] THE PLAINTIFF OR CLAIMANT has otherwise  satis-
 fied the requirements of subdivisions two and three of this section.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S727

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary Committee

co-Sponsors

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S727

Share this bill

Sponsored By

James Sanders Jr.

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary Committee

co-Sponsors

Andrew Gounardes

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

Robert Jackson

Liz Krueger

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S727 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments