New York lawmakers passed 896 bills this year, of which 774 had been signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul, marking the end of a busy legislative session.
Some of the most significant laws are aimed at making it easier for New Yorkers to vote, helping consumers, improving public health and safety, protecting wildlife and the environment, and making sure New Yorkers are paid a living wage.
About a dozen of the bills were signed into law in the days just before Christmas as part of a string of after-hours actions by the governor.
One of those late laws outraged Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon and other Republicans statewide. The controversial law will change most local elections to even years – the same years when New York holds its state and federal elections.
The changes are due to become effective with the 2026, 2028 and 2030 elections, depending on whether the office has a two-year or four-year term.
Here’s a quick look at some of the new laws that will be enforced starting in 2024:
Clean Slate Act
The criminal records of New Yorkers who complete their sentences and stay out of trouble will be sealed under a law that will become effective in November 2024.
The Clean Slate Act will seal most criminal records three years after a person serves time or parole for a misdemeanor, and eight years after a person is released for felony convictions.
Criminal records for those convicted of murder, sex crimes, domestic terrorism and most Class A felonies will not be eligible for sealing.
Advocates for the law say it will help about 2.2 million New Yorkers who face hurdles in accessing jobs, housing, and education because of their criminal records. New York is the 12th state to pass a law that will seal those records.
Banning wildlife killing contests
Beginning in January, New York will become the eighth state to ban wildlife killing contests.
The ban outlaws any “contest, competition, tournament or derby where the objective of such contest or competition is to take wildlife” for prizes or entertainment. The law does not ban hunting or fishing, including fishing derbies.
Advocates for the law said it will protect New York’s biodiversity by stopping the wasteful taking of wildlife. The ban applies to wildlife such as coyotes, crows, squirrels and rabbits.
Assemblyman John Lemondes, R-LaFayette, is among opponents who call the law an infringement on hunting and Second Amendment rights. Lemondes, who owns a sheep farm, said coyotes ravage sheep and turkey flocks.
Voting reforms
A package of new voting laws will allow New Yorkers to cast their vote by mail, allow same-day voter registration and require prisons to provide voting rights information to people who have served their sentence.
A separate law signed by Hochul allows for absentee ballots to be counted if they have been taped and show no signs of tampering.
New York will also allow any resident of voting age to register on the first day of the early voting period and cast their ballot at a polling place on the same day.
State and federal Republican leaders filed a lawsuit aimed at stopping the new law that allows New Yorkers to vote by mail. Previously, mail-in ballots could be cast only if a voter had a valid excuse for an absentee ballot. Republicans have called the change unconstitutional.
Cracking down on unlicensed, reckless drivers
Beginning Nov. 1, it will become a felony for New Yorkers to drive with a record of five or more license suspensions, down from 10 suspensions. Violators found guilty of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.
The state Legislature passed “Angelica’s Law” in June. The law was named for Angelica Nappi of Long Island, who was killed in a 2008 car crash with a driver operating a vehicle with seven prior license suspensions. The driver had been released from prison after serving four months.
Banning harmful pesticides
New York will largely ban a group of pesticides that environmental and health advocates consider harmful to children.
The “Birds and Bees Protection Act” targets neonicotinoid pesticides that have been widely used in home and garden applications and in farming.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found the chemicals are contributing to high death rates and low birth rates for more than 200 animal species.
The New York Farm Bureau initially opposed an outright ban, but supported an amended bill signed by Hochul that gives state agencies the power to regulate the pesticides.
Protecting credit card customers
Credit card companies must now give customers who close an account at least 90 days to use any accrued rewards points or cash tied to the card. The law became effective Dec. 10.
The companies must notify cardholders within 45 days when any existing credit card account or rewards program is canceled or modified in a way that is less favorable to consumers.
Raising the minimum wage
The minimum wage in New York increases Dec. 31, 2023, the eighth consecutive year of a phased-in wage hike.
In Upstate New York and areas outside of New York City and its suburbs, the minimum wage will increase from $14.20 to $15 per hour.
The 5.6% wage hike means that a person working in a minimum wage job as a full-time employee will be paid an extra $32 per week.
In New York City and its suburbs (Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk counties) the minimum wage will increase to $16 per hour.
Red light and school zone cameras for Syracuse
A new law gives Syracuse permission to install speed cameras in school zones and red-light cameras at major intersections to catch and ticket drivers who endanger public safety.
Syracuse had asked state lawmakers to authorize the installation of 34 cameras to issue speeding tickets in school zones, and 36 cameras to catch drivers who run red lights at intersections.
Violators caught speeding in school zones or running red lights will be fined $50 for each occurrence. Vehicle owners who don’t respond to tickets could face a $25 surcharge on top of the fine.
Speeding tickets would be issued only when a vehicle is found to be traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit.
State Assemblyman William Magnarelli, D-Syracuse, and Sen. Rachel May, D-Syracuse, pushed the new law through the state Legislature at the request of city officials.
Increasing the number of judges
Starting in January, a law will expand the number of judges across New York to deal with a backlog of court cases.
Family Court judges will be added in Onondaga and Oneida counties and eight other counties across the state. The Onondaga County Family Court will go from five to six judges.
Judges also will be added in three of the state’s 13 Supreme Court judicial districts.
Voters will choose the new judges in the Nov. 5, 2024 election.
Identifying lead water pipes
The “Lead Pipe Right to Know Act” will make it easier for New Yorkers to find out if their home’s water is supplied through lead water pipes.
The new law requires public water systems to take an inventory of their lead water pipes and publicly share how many pipes are present in their distribution system and where those lines are located.
Lead pipes are considered a public health risk, particularly for children. The state wants to use the information about the number and location of lead pipes to apply for federal grants that would pay for their removal. More than 14,000 homes and businesses in Syracuse receive water through lead pipes.
Transparency on LLC ownership
A new law requires the state to create a database listing the owners of limited liability companies, or LLCs, that will be accessible to government agencies and law enforcement.
Hochul signed the law in the final days of the year, saying it will help law enforcement officials crack down on conduct such as wage theft, money laundering and tenant mistreatment.
The database will be accessible only to local, state and federal government authorities – not the general public – as part of a compromise to protect the privacy of the LLC owners, the governor said.
New rights for renters
A law authored by two Syracuse lawmakers will give renters a new tool to use against landlords who refuse to fix code violations and other poor living conditions.
The “Tenant Dignity and Safe Housing Act” allows courts to order reductions in future rent for those living in substandard housing.
New York City, which already has a separate set of laws protecting tenants, is exempt from the new law.
The new state law was sponsored by May and Magnarelli.
Expanded coverage for cancer tests
All state-regulated health insurance plans will be required to cover comprehensive biomarker testing.
A biomarker test analyzes the genes and proteins of a patient to determine if their cancer is likely to grow. The tests also help doctors determine what treatments would have the greatest benefit to the patient.
Assembly member Pamela Hunter, D-Syracuse, authored the law after a survey of more than 300 oncology providers found that 66% considered insurance coverage a barrier for their patients to receive a biomarker test.
New training required for cosmetologists, hair stylists
A new law will require cosmetologists and hair stylists to complete basic training for all hair types and textures as a condition of their license.
Licensed individuals must be trained on various curl and wave patterns, and varying hair strand thickness.
State lawmakers who backed the new law said they want to close a knowledge gap that disproportionately affects women and girls of color with textured and diverse hair.
Protecting homeowners against deed theft
Homeowners will receive new protections against deed theft, a crime in which property owners are defrauded out of the property titles to their homes or real estate.
The law will make it easier for the state or local district attorney to prosecute deed theft.
Authorities will have the power to put on hold any legal proceeding where possession or title to a property is at issue, such as foreclosures, evictions, and ownership disputes.
Courts will now be required to grant a stay during an investigation or if the government has filed a civil or criminal charge in a deed theft investigation. New Yorkers can report suspected deed theft by calling the attorney general’s office at 800-771-7755.
Keeping medical debt off credit scores
A new law prohibits hospitals, health care professionals and ambulance companies from reporting an individual’s medical debt to credit agencies.
Supporters of the law cited a 2023 study from the Urban Institute, which found 740,000 New Yorkers have medical debt on their credit reports. People of color were twice as likely to have medical debt referred to a credit bureau.
The institute found that Syracuse had the worst rate of medical debt among the state’s big cities, affecting an estimated 25% of adults – or about 30,000 people.
Related: How NY state, Upstate Medical haul thousands of sick and poor into court for little gain
The law is aimed at making it easier for people with medical debt to get jobs, secure credit, rent an apartment and improve their credit scores.
Free menstrual products in private school restrooms
Beginning July 1, all private middle schools and private high schools in the state will be required to provide students with free menstrual products in school restrooms.
The law’s sponsors in the state Assembly and Senate said about 25% of menstruating students don’t have access to period products due to the cost, forcing some students to miss classes and school days.
The state has required all public schools in New York serving grades 6-12 to provide free menstrual products in restrooms since 2018.
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