What did and didn't get done in Albany’s last week of session

And just like that, Albany is quiet once again (and likely will be for much of the remainder of the year) with focus shifted to the midterm elections. 

The legislative session ended with the same calm but plodding, and heavy, air that hung over the exceedingly late state budget process that wrapped last week. Still, lawmakers managed to clear 485 bills in both houses in the final week, for a total of 759 bills for the whole year. Not bad, but fewer than the 563 they passed in the last year’s (slightly extended) final week and 856 bills total for the year. 

“This is not a normal place, and I think we can all agree on that,” state Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt said just before 1 a.m. Friday. Amen to that. 

The state Senate wrapped up its legislative work for the year in the wee hours of Friday morning after a day of marathon debating and voting. The Assembly followed suit just after 8 p.m. Friday – just in time to catch the Knicks win game two of the NBA Finals, but not without heartfelt sentiments from longtime departing members, including Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes.

A few surprises punctuated session’s end as some legislation cleared one house and not the other, either because it fell apart in negotiations, or lawmakers simply ran out of time. Any measure that didn’t wind up passing both houses is now officially dead for the year. And for the bills that did pass, Gov. Kathy Hochul has until the end of the year (or in some cases, until the start of February) to sign them into law, or veto them. 

A prolonged state budget process left state lawmakers with just one post-budget legislative week to pass any number of members’ legislative priorities. But they still did an admirable job of getting hundreds of bills moved through both chambers, including some controversial measures which saw their political futures fluctuating wildly as everyone and their mother attempted to move the needle in their favor.

Legislators weren’t exactly pleased with the amount of time the budget negotiations dragged on this year, truncating the typical two-plus month period for legislating without Hochul in the driver’s seat. But the mad dash in the last week of session is hardly new, even if the circumstances this year are different. State lawmakers regularly pass hundreds of bills through both chambers in the waning days of the scheduled session, including some of the most controversial measures of the year. And this time turned out no different. 

Now that lawmakers have finished debating, New Yorkers have a much clearer picture on what their lawmakers did – and did not – manage to get done before heading home.. Here’s how things have landed. This story was last updated on June 7. 

PASSED

Redistricting amendments

New York leaders have been frank for weeks: They won’t leave Albany for the year without passing a constitutional amendment to tweak the state’s redistricting process. True to their word, legislators approved the measure after six hours of – at times very tense – debate combined between the two chambers. The next step for lawmakers is to pass it again next year, allowing it to go before voters as early as November 2027.

As first reported by Politico, legislative leaders introduced a proposal late Monday to give the Legislature the power to redraw its election districts in the middle of a decade while removing language that prohibits gerrymandering – something the state Constitution specifically prohibits. And it removes the requirement for a two-thirds majority vote to override the Independent Redistricting Commission if one party controls the Legislature. Like any constitutional amendment, it will have to pass in a consecutive legislative session before going before voters in a statewide ballot proposal in 2027.

The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that weakened the Civil Rights-era Voting Rights Act has kicked off a national race in both parties to draw partisan districts and give them an edge in House control.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie told reporters Tuesday New York Democrats want to change the state law that prohibits districts from favoring a certain political party because of that ruling.

“We want to be able to have as much flexibility in our districts as other states around the nation,” he said, adding he’s concerned about Republicans trying to wipe out Black members of Congress. “This thing about asking New York to play fair while everybody else is playing ruthless, I think, is not right to ask us this.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, who’s facing one of the most competitive midterm elections in the country in NY-17, traveled to Albany on Monday to blast Democrats’ latest efforts to alter redistricting in the state. “The only way they think they can beat me is if they gerrymander,” he said. New York Republicans and Democrats are pointing the finger at each other for starting the redistricting battle. Lawler said he’s confident both parties will spend millions to defeat, or pass, any statewide ballot proposal that goes to voters, including legal challenges. “Obviously, this is a national fight, I think everybody realizes that,” Lawler said, later adding: “That’s just a reality of where we are today.”

More even-year elections

Redistricting wasn’t the only constitutional amendment to move at the end of the legislative session. The state Senate gave first passage to another one that would move local elections in cities throughout New York – with the exception of New York City – from odd to even years. It would also shift judicial races to even years as well. The amendment builds on a contentious law from 2023 that moved most town and county elections from odd to even years in order to consolidate them with state and federal races. The amendment would largely complete the odd-to-even-year shift throughout the state, exempting only New York City. Big Apple residents last year voted down a ballot referendum on whether state lawmakers should institute the change in the five boroughs. The Assembly was debating the amendment Friday afternoon, so its passage was imminent.

AI data center moratorium

In another environmental priority, legislators had hoped to approve a three-year moratorium on building new data centers, which today are largely used for artificial intelligence data processing. They reached a compromise on a one-year moratorium as part of a larger data center omnibus bill. It passed the Assembly first on Thursday, with the state Senate following a few hours later, in spite of some staunch opposition.

Data centers are hugely energy intensive, and require massive amounts of water, resulting in significant negative environmental effects and strain on the state’s electrical grid at a time when it’s already in a state of crisis. During the moratorium, the bill would require the state Department of Environmental Conservation to issue an environmental impact report on data centers.

News of the deal to pass the moratorium drew swift backlash from powerful building trades unions. Newsday reported the groups have begun circulating a memo of opposition among legislators that argued delays to new projects would have harmful economic impacts.

The state previously passed a similar multiyear pause on cryptocurrency mining projects, which also make use of data centers, for similar environmental and grid concerns.

In addition to the moratorium, the new omnibus includes parts of other bills relating to data centers, including a measure to set energy efficiency and environmental standards for the centers, requiring the Public Service Commission to account for high-energy usage data centers when considering utility rate increases and enacting new regulations to ensure that those data centers pay more equitable energy prices for their outsized grid impacts. Yet another data center measure included in the package would require large centers to provide direct benefit to the communities they’re located in, whether through utility relief measures or funding home electrification projects.

The omnibus bill also includes a decades-old bill that would require the state PSC to consider the economic impact of significant rate increase on New Yorkers before approving such increases, a measure not directly related to data centers.

Moratorium on AI chatbots in toys

It’s a big year for moratoriums, it seems, as both chambers of the Legislature approved legislation to place a five-year pause on the sale of toys for young kids that include AI chatbots. During that time, the bill would empower a task force with representatives from the state Department of State, Office of Mental Health, attorney general’s office and Office of Digital Innovation, Governance, Integrity and Trust with studying the risks that those chatbot toys may pose to children.

It’s the latest in a series of laws that have gone into effect in recent years to enact protections for young people against potentially harmful new technologies. Hochul has been at the forefront supporting or helping to champion some of the measures, including a recent ban on addictive algorithmic feeds for children and a cellphone ban in schools. 

Both the state Senate and Assembly passed the measure on Tuesday, meaning its next stop is Hochul’s desk.

Cannabis inversion

Lawmakers tackled the pervasive issue of cannabis inversion, or the illegal trafficking of cannabis products – typically from other states – and presenting them on the licensed market as legal products. The Cannabis Supply Chain Integrity and Anti-Inversion Act explicitly prohibits cannabis inversion and gives the state Office of Cannabis Management and Cannabis Control Board clearer statutory authority to investigate and impose penalties for trafficked products, including  license suspension and revocation, product seizure and civil penalties.

State Senate confirmations

Not to be forgotten, the upper chamber of the state Legislature typically has a series of gubernatorial nominations to various positions to confirm (or in rare cases, reject) before the end of the legislative year. City & State first reported that Hochul nominated a formerly incarcerated man to fill out the five-person state Commission of Correction. A new law approved last year requires that at least one commissioner on the body have previously served time in a jail or prison. Hochul decided to select Alexander Dockery, whose sentence she commuted about three years ago. The full state Senate confirmed him on Thursday.

The state Senate confirmed John Kagia on Wednesday as the Office of Cannabis Management’s permanent new executive director after Hochul appointed him in an acting capacity in February. Senators also gave approval to two other Hochul administration picks: Terry O’Leary as the commissioner of the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and Kathy Moser as the commissioner of the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Members also confirmed Audrey Zibelman as the new board chair of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, a move applauded by environmental advocates.

Additionally, the chamber gave approval to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s picks to join the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board on Thursday. Members also approved Kathryn Wylde, the former president and CEO of the Partnership for New York City, to serve on the New York City Financial Control Board.

Health Information Privacy Act

Hochul vetoed a version of a bill meant to protect New Yorkers’ digital healthcare information last year, but legislators are trying again this year. Both chambers approved a reintroduced and slightly tweaked version of the bill on Thursday. It will head to Hochul next, who rejected it previously due to overly broad provisions she argued could have unintended consequences.

Although the bill was pitched as a reproductive health justice measure – meant to protect reproductive health data that could be weaponized against people in areas where access to abortion care is illegal or restricted – it faced staunch opposition from both business interests and the tech industry. Regulations within the legislation would have far-reaching implications around data privacy, as well as how companies can access that data, potentially well beyond the type of HIPAA-protected health information it is intended to target. The bill was one of the top lobbied bills last year, one of only two non-budget bills in the top 10 list.

Delaying New York City class size mandates

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani asked the state to delay the full implementation of a law to reduce class sizes as a cost-saving measure as he attempts to balance his first budget. The measure fell out of budget negotiations, but a new bill from state Sen. John Liu has prepped the issue to get resolved before lawmakers go home for the year. The legislation would give the city an extra two years to adhere to the class size law, extending the deadline from 2028 to 2030, giving Mamdani some breathing room and savings. 

Regulating surveillance pricing (one passed, one dead)

New York business leaders aren’t pleased with state Attorney General Letitia James’ campaign to aggressively regulate surveillance pricing. A source familiar with the office’s strategy said Wednesday that James’ staff was calling lawmakers in both chambers this week in effort to whip votes and ensure two bills addressing the issue get to Hochul’s desk. And her efforts seemed to work. At least, mostly. 

Both chambers late Thursday and very early Friday approved one of the bills James pushed called the One Fair Price Act. It would ban surveillance pricing, or the act of companies using a consumer’s personal data to set individualized prices in real time. This follows a 2025 law that required businesses to disclose when they use algorithmic pricing.

James’ office enforces that policy, and slaps a $1,000 penalty on businesses that fail to comply. But business leaders are vehemently against additional regulation, arguing shoppers will miss out on special deals and discounts. 

James also urged the Legislature to pass a bill to prohibit the use of electronic shelf labels in grocery stores, pharmacies and other brick-and-mortar businesses that can change prices throughout the day, but the Assembly failed to bring it to the floor. The state Senate approved that bill on Thursday. 

Business groups lobbying against the proposals, and lobbyists with organizations like AARP that are in favor of the regulations, were out in force in the Capitol on Wednesday, increasing their pressure on lawmakers as both proposals remain in limbo.

Casino payments to racetracks

Resorts World recently began a stealth campaign to change state law governing payments its new downstate commercial casino will need to make to the horse racing industry. Under current law, the three full New York City casinos recently granted licenses are meant to pay the $150 million in “racing support” annually to the state’s Racing Association – but until the other two open up, Resorts World will be on the hook for the full sum every year. With just days left, legislative leaders quietly introduced a bill that included a fix to help Resorts World by allowing that money to come out of the casino’s tax revenue – a pot of money currently earmarked for transportation improvements and education – rather than through separate payments directly out of the casino’s own pocket (at least until the other gambling halls open up up). Both chambers have passed it and Hochul has signaled her support as well, so it’s likely to get signed.

Industrial octopus farming ban

It’s not unusual for animal rights activists to get state lawmakers to hear their plea. And their passion worked again this year as a measure cleared both chambers to ban industrial octopus farming and prohibit the sale of farmed octopus products throughout the state. If signed into law, "aquaculture" or the farming and breeding of any species of octopus under controlled conditions for human consumption, would be prohibited in the state. Any business would also not be permitted to sell, possess or transport any farmed octopus within the state. It does not apply to wild-caught octopi, those that are raised, cultivated or harvested for research or educational purposes.

Two-person train crews

After Hochul vetoed a bill last year to require the current, two-person crews on New York City subway trains, lawmakers are giving it another go in an effort to protect existing jobs. The state Senate passed a new version of the legislation on Thursday night, and the Assembly did the same on Friday afternoon. The measure is strongly supported by Transport Workers United Local 100 – frequent and harsh critics of the governor – while transit advocacy and good government groups oppose it.

Child sex trafficking loophole

Both chambers approved legislation to fix a loophole that allows adults who bought sex from 15- to 17-year-olds to only face minimal consequences. Under current law, not all minors are treated the same when it comes to sexual exploitation, trafficking and prostitution. The bill would update the state law to conform with federal statute to ensure that someone who purchases sex from anyone who is under 18 can face the same penalties.

Kyra’s Law

Judges across the state will have to prioritize the life and safety of the child in a custody case if Hochul signs a bill that unanimously passed the Legislature. The legislation, known as Kyra’s Law, is named for 2-year-old Kyra Franchetti, whose father shot her in the back while she slept during a court-ordered unsupervised visit in 2016. He then doused his home with gasoline in a murder-suicide during an ongoing custody battle. If the bill becomes law, justices will have to undergo specific child abuse training intended to reduce the instances of children being hurt, or murdered, by an abusive caretaker.

DEAD

Essential Plan

Lawmakers are heading home without taking any targeted action to help more than 450,000 New Yorkers who are set to lose their low- to-no cost, state-subsidized health insurance come July 1. Thanks to federal changes, hundreds of thousands of low-income New Yorkers will lose access to the Essential Plan. Though back in March, the state managed to avoid an even more dire outcome that would have seen over a million losing their coverage, the action meant that New Yorkers making between 200% and 250% of the federal poverty line would lose coverage. 

Legislators had introduced a measure for the state to continue insuring that population on New York’s dime. Cost estimates varied greatly, as did the number of people expected to use the coverage – as they might purchase a private plan on the marketplace or return to their employer’s insurance instead. Lawmakers and state leaders also discussed methods to keep the state price tag down while keeping the low-cost insurance option. But it never made it into the budget and was not moved on during the last week of session.

 In a shift in tone Thursday, Stewart-Cousins seemed to lay the blame for the inaction squarely at the feet of Hochul. “We did try – we suggested different ways,” she told reporters. “The governor was frankly not a supporter. So we are looking at, yes, that situation in July.”

Packaging reduction

Another year, another attempt to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act. After two straight years of near-misses in the Assembly, lawmakers are once again trying to combat extensive and deep-pocketed opposition efforts that have successfully kept the bill off the floor of the lower chamber. According to Heastie, those efforts from lawmakers are set to fail again, as he told reporters Tuesday the legislation doesn’t have the votes, even if he personally supports the bill.

Among other things, the legislation would require a 30% reduction in single-use packaging and require the creation of what’s called an extended producer responsibility program that would put the recycling onus on plastic companies and other major corporations that create the most single-use packaging. 

Unlike past years, when the state Senate approved the bill earlier in the year, the upper chamber hasn’t yet acted on it this year. A recently amended version of the bill still has to make it through both houses, but the fight still boils down to the Assembly, where it may have the support – if it actually ever makes it to an actual vote. Legislators ran out of time last year after expecting it to come to the Assembly floor, and they appeared willing to at least try again after Democrats privately conferenced the legislation. 

Closing the sexual exploitation loophole

Survivors of abuse by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are calling on state lawmakers to create new felony crimes for profiting from trafficking and to expand legal protections for survivors. The Trafficking Survivor Recovery and Accountability Act targets traffickers and makes it a crime for someone to finance a trafficking operation or advertise for it, maintain a premises that traffickers use, provide transportation or security for or otherwise support a trafficking operation while receiving something of value in return. It applies to any person who “knew or reasonably should have known” they were participating in trafficking. The bill advanced in the state Senate, but didn’t move in the Assembly.

The measure would significantly expand a trafficking survivor’s ability to bring civil lawsuits against their abusers, as well as businesses, property owners, estates or other entities that participated in profiting from the operation. But critics are concerned the standard is too broad and will open businesses and property owners to litigation. It would open a one-year lookback window for survivors of trafficking crimes that have already expired beyond its statute of limitations to file lawsuits – similar to temporary lookback windows the state has opened for survivors of child sexual abuse or sexual abuse that occurred as an adult.

Anti-“anti-weaponization” legislation

Unlike the redistricting amendments, lawmakers have in fact introduced legislation meant to take aim at President Donald Trump’s nearly $2 billion “anti-weaponization fund” that would benefit those who claim the federal government unfairly investigated or persecuted them. Participants of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the White House are expected to receive most of the payouts. The bill from lawmakers would tax any payout from the fund to New Yorkers at a rate of 100%. But the new legislation takes attention and resources away from existing measures lawmakers have pushed for with limited time left in the session. The bill appears moot now though, as Trump’s Justice Department decided to pull the plug on the fund following backlash.

340B

Legislative leaders were close, but failed, to reach a compromise on a measure that intends to preserve the integrity of savings within the federal 340B program, which allows hospitals and clinics that serve low-income and underserved populations to purchase outpatient drugs at a discount. The bill, which passed the state Senate in the 11th hour, would bar pharmaceutical manufacturers, pharmacy benefit managers and other third-party providers from creating obstacles to access the discounted drugs for safety-net healthcare providers that participate in the program. It would also give the state health commissioner the authority to impose civil penalties on entities that violate the rules. But it died in the Assembly, meaning negotiations will go back to the drawing board next year. 

Upstate rent control

This might be the year Democrats in Albany decide to expand rent stabilization outside New York City amid an ongoing housing crisis. Legislative leaders have indicated they’re exploring passing a measure to update the Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974. Current law requires local governments to conduct a vacancy study to prove it has a housing vacancy rate of 5% or less to adopt rent stabilization. The proposed Rent Emergency Stabilization for Tenants, or REST Act, would let localities outside the five boroughs use more public data like rates of homelessness or eviction rates in place of a costly vacancy study to declare a housing emergency and impose local rent control. Heastie told reporters on Tuesday that Democrats in his chamber had privately conferenced the measure, but ultimately the measure didn’t make it to the floor in either chamber.

Voluntary intoxication loophole

All eyes are on the Assembly to pass a bill to change the state’s rape law and make it easier to prosecute sex crimes. Current law can shield a person who’s been charged with rape or other sex crimes if the survivor chose to become intoxicated at the time it occured. The measure, which has passed the state Senate unanimously multiple times, would ban the legal defense citing intoxication of the accuser and also clarifies the limitations of consent. It would make it a crime to have sex with a semi-conscious person who is unable to consent, or so heavily under the influence of drugs or alcohol that they cannot control their conduct or express a clear lack of consent where a reasonable person would know they were incapacitated.

With the session clock ticking, 20 Epstein survivors signed and sent a letter to Heastie on May 28, urging him to bring the bill to the floor for a vote. The Assembly reverted to the original version of the bill May 5, and the state Senate reintroduced one that matches this week. It remains in the Assembly Codes Committee, where it died for the year.

Beauty Justice Act

The end of the legislative session brought with it pretty intense campaigns both for and against legislation to restrict the ingredients used in makeup and cosmetics. It targets toxic  and potentially harmful chemicals that could have negative impacts on both people and the environment, including PFAS “forever chemicals” and some heavy metals. Companies and businesses would no longer be allowed to sell products containing any banned ingredients. The bill has staunch opposition from cosmetic industry groups, some salon owners and some business groups. 

The state Senate passed the bill earlier this year, and passed it last year as well. It failed to advance in the Assembly on the last day of session, even though it was close, getting held up in the Ways and Means Committee.

Child Victims Act/Adult Survivors Act loophole

Roughly 1,800 pending cases – about 300 filed under the Child Victims Act and close to 1,500 under the Adult Survivors Act – will have a higher chance of getting dismissed on minor factual technicalities because the Assembly failed to take up a bill that would have fixed the issue. The 2019 Child Victims Act, and similar Adult Survivors Act from 2022, opened temporary lookback windows for survivors of sexual crimes to file civil cases against their abusers for a limited time, regardless of how much time had passed. 

A state Court of Appeals decision last year dismissed a case filed under the Child Victims Act for lacking sufficient information to bring a claim against the state. Survivor advocates argue it’s unrealistic for survivors to know the exact time, date and location when their abuse occurred, including for many cases from people who were in prison at the time.

Last month, Heastie said he wasn’t sure if the measure was a priority for the lower house. Clearly, it wasn’t, as it died in the Judiciary Committee and didn’t advance since early April. This session likely marked one of the last chances to move the bill and make the fix, as most of the pending cases get resolved, or dismissed, over the next year.

Mobile horse race gambling

Five years ago, the state legalized mobile sports betting to much fanfare and following a tough fight with strong support and opposition. Left behind in that law was betting on horse races, which did not benefit from the update. The New York Racing Association is now pushing for legislation that would update the law to treat horse racing the same as other forms of sports wagering, and to permit the users of mobile and online sports betting operators to place bets on races – so long as the operators of the app or website have entered into an agreement with the race track in question. The bill sponsors predict the change could generate up to $250 million in tax revenue for the state.

Additional immigration reforms

Legislators may have won significant new immigrant protections in the state budget this year, but that won’t stop them from still trying to get the full New York for All Act that would cover what was left out of the final deal with Hochul. The sponsors and other supportive lawmakers and advocates have criticized the budget deal for failing to ban all forms of informal cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials. To accomplish that and more, they committed to continue pushing for the New York for All Act. The limited time left in the session, the fact the state has already approved a large immigrant protection package and how tense negotiations were to get to that point, proved too much to overcome, and lawmakers unsurprisingly did not pass the measure.

Legislators also introduced a new bill for the end of the session that would prohibit armed government officials and military from interfering at poll sites. The sponsor’s memo cites concerns about federal immigration enforcement being deployed at polling places, and the bill is meant to strengthen a measure approved as part of the budget immigration package that designates poll sites as sensitive locations that immigration agents cannot enter without judicial warrants. The measure was introduced explicitly after the budget passed in the hopes it would get approved before lawmakers go home, but legislators are splitting  town without voting on it.

Criminal justice reforms (at least the big ones)

In what has almost become a perennial issue, criminal justice reform advocates are once again hoping to get sentencing, parole and other prison reform measures through the state Legislature before lawmakers go home. Advocates have recently begun highlighting the fact that over 200 people have died in state prisons since the beating death of Robert Brooks in December 2024. Though legislators approved omnibus prison reform legislation last year, it didn’t include most of the high-profile measures activists have for years fought to pass, including the Second Look Act, the Fair & Timely Parole Act, the Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act and other bills to increase rights for people behind bars.

Those higher-profile measures didn’t wind up moving in the Legislature this year, but some smaller items did advance. That included a measure that would enable judges to accept plea deals that are below a required mandatory minimum sentence for an offense in certain cases “in the interest of justice.” Another bill that got done would make it illegal to restrain an incarcerated person actively giving birth, as well as to restrain pregnant and postpartum people in law enforcement custody, including at police stations and in courthouses.

Fair Pricing Act

Legislation that would cap prices for routine outpatient healthcare procedures somewhat unexpectedly gained traction in the past month – just not enough to make it over the finish line. Democrats unanimously voted to advance the bill out of the Assembly Health Committee on May 27, and state Senate Democrats did the same in their chamber’s Health Committee on May 12. It’s meant to ensure New Yorkers don’t get charged more for the same procedure at a hospital outpatient facility as at a doctor's office, by capping prices in both settings at 150% Medicare rates. The measure has strong union support, with 32BJ SEIU leading the charge alongside other labor groups like the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and the District Council 37. But it has faced opposition from hospital and healthcare industry groups that stand to lose money from a cap.

Champerty law reform

The issue of sovereign debt purchasing is a perennial end-of-session item, as is the case this year. New York-based hedge funds  often purchase foreign debt from developing nations and economically struggling territories like Puerto Rico. It’s particularly salient in New York’s immigrant communities. 

The purchase of that debt by venture capital funds can serve to make those groups millions – or even billions – by suing those territories over their debt, leaving them in an even deeper fiscal hole and greatly hindering attempts at economic revitalization. According to a memo from the sponsors of a bill to amend the Champerty Doctrine in New York to close a 2004 loophole, more than half of sovereign debt contracts are governed by state statute. 

The state Senate approved the bill on Wednesday, as it has done in past years, but so far it has failed to move through the Assembly even once, as it failed again to do this year.