S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  8969

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              June 17, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  WEINSTEIN  --  read once and referred to the
  Committee on Judiciary

AN ACT to amend the estates, powers  and  trusts  law,  in  relation  to
  exempt assets for the benefit of the family of a decedent

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Paragraph (a) of section 5-3.1 of the estates,  powers  and
trusts law, as amended by chapter 595 of the laws of 1992, is amended to
read as follows:
  (a) If a person dies, leaving a surviving spouse or children under the
age  of twenty-one years, the following items of property are not assets
of the estate but vest in, and  shall  be  set  off  to  such  surviving
spouse,  unless  disqualified,  under  5-1.2, from taking an elective or
distributive share of the decedent's estate. In case there is no surviv-
ing spouse or such spouse, if surviving, is disqualified, such items  of
property  vest in, and shall be set off to the decedent's children under
the age of twenty-one years:
  (1) All housekeeping utensils, musical  instruments,  sewing  machine,
JEWELRY UNLESS DISPOSED OF IN THE WILL, CLOTHING OF THE DECEDENT, house-
hold  furniture  and appliances, [including but not limited to computers
and electronic devices, used in and about  the  house,]  ELECTRONIC  AND
PHOTOGRAPHIC  DEVICES,  AND  fuel[, provisions and clothing of the dece-
dent] FOR PERSONAL USE, not exceeding in aggregate  value  [ten]  TWENTY
thousand dollars.  THIS SUBPARAGRAPH SHALL NOT INCLUDE ITEMS USED EXCLU-
SIVELY FOR BUSINESS PURPOSES.
  (2) The family bible OR OTHER RELIGIOUS BOOKS, family pictures, [video
tapes,  and]  BOOKS, computer tapes, discs[,] and software [used by such
family, and books], DVDS, CDS, AUDIO TAPES,  RECORD  ALBUMS,  AND  OTHER
ELECTRONIC  STORAGE  DEVICES,  INCLUDING  BUT NOT LIMITED TO VIDEOTAPES,
USED BY SUCH FAMILY, not exceeding in  value  [one]  TWO  thousand  FIVE
HUNDRED dollars.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD10932-02-9
              

A. 8969                             2

  (3)  Domestic  AND  FARM  animals  with their necessary food for sixty
days, farm machinery, one tractor and one lawn tractor, not exceeding in
aggregate value [fifteen] TWENTY thousand dollars.
  (4)  THE  SURVIVING  SPOUSE  OR  DECEDENT'S CHILDREN MAY ACQUIRE ITEMS
REFERRED TO IN SUBPARAGRAPHS (1), (2) AND  (3)  OF  THIS  PARAGRAPH,  IN
EXCESS  OF  THE VALUES SET FORTH IN SUCH SUBPARAGRAPHS BY PAYMENT TO THE
ESTATE OF THE AMOUNT BY WHICH THE VALUE OF THE  ITEMS  ACQUIRED  EXCEEDS
THE  AMOUNTS SET FORTH IN SUCH SUBPARAGRAPHS. IF ANY ITEM SO ACQUIRED BY
THE SPOUSE OR  CHILDREN  OF  THE  DECEDENT  WAS  A  SPECIFIC  LEGACY  IN
DECEDENT'S  WILL,  THE PAYMENT TO THE ESTATE FOR SUCH ITEM SHALL VEST IN
THE SPECIFIC LEGATEE.
  (5) One motor vehicle not exceeding  in  value  [fifteen]  TWENTY-FIVE
thousand  dollars.  In  the alternative, if the decedent shall have been
the owner of one or more motor vehicles each of which  exceed  [fifteen]
TWENTY-FIVE   thousand   dollars  in  value,  the  surviving  spouse  or
decedent's children may acquire one such motor vehicle from the  estate,
regardless of the fact that the decedent may also have been the owner of
another  motor  vehicle of lesser value than [fifteen] TWENTY-FIVE thou-
sand dollars, by payment to the estate of the amount by which the  value
of  the motor vehicle exceeds [fifteen] TWENTY-FIVE thousand dollars; in
lieu of receiving such motor vehicle, the surviving spouse  or  children
may  elect  to receive in cash an amount equal to the value of the motor
vehicle, not to exceed [fifteen] TWENTY-FIVE thousand dollars.   If  any
motor  vehicle so acquired by the spouse or children of the decedent was
a specific legacy in decedent's will, the payment to the estate  of  the
amount  by  which the value of the motor vehicle exceeds [fifteen] TWEN-
TY-FIVE thousand dollars shall vest in the specific legatee.
  [(5)] (6) Money [or other personal property] INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
TO CASH, CHECKING, SAVINGS AND MONEY MARKET  ACCOUNTS,  CERTIFICATES  OF
DEPOSIT  OR  EQUIVALENTS THEREOF, not exceeding in value [fifteen] TWEN-
TY-FIVE thousand dollars, [except that] REDUCED BY THE EXCESS VALUE,  IF
ANY,  OF  ACQUIRED  ITEMS REFERRED TO IN SUBPARAGRAPHS (1), (2), (3) AND
(5) OF THIS PARAGRAPH.  HOWEVER, where assets are  insufficient  to  pay
the  reasonable funeral expenses of the decedent, the personal represen-
tative must FIRST apply such  money  [or  other  personal  property]  to
defray any deficiency in such expenses.
  (7)  ANY  SET  OFF  TO  A  CHILD UNDER THE AGE OF TWENTY-ONE YEARS NOT
EXCEEDING TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS SHALL BE COVERED  BY  THE  PROVISIONS  OF
SECTION TWENTY-TWO HUNDRED TWENTY OF THE SURROGATE'S COURT PROCEDURE ACT
AS  IF  THE  CHILD  WERE A BENEFICIARY OF THE ESTATE. ANY EXCESS AMOUNTS
SHALL BE GOVERNED BY THE GUARDIANSHIP STATUTE, IF APPLICABLE.
  (8) THE COURT SHALL HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ISSUE SUCH DOCUMENTATION  AS
NECESSARY TO EFFECTUATE THE TRANSFER OF ANY ITEMS UNDER THIS SECTION.
  S  2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
ing the date on which it shall have become a law.