The New York State Senate

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

                                  2739

                       2017-2018 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 23, 2017
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. LAVINE, LUPARDO, JENNE, SIMANOWITZ, JAFFEE, SKAR-
  TADOS, BARRETT, COOK, MOYA, OTIS, PERRY, HUNTER, COLTON -- Multi-Spon-
  sored by -- M. of A. CRESPO, CROUCH, CYMBROWITZ, FAHY, KEARNS, MALLIO-
  TAKIS,  McDONOUGH, McKEVITT, MONTESANO, RAIA -- read once and referred
  to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to providing  certain
  benefits  to veterans; and to amend the correction law, in relation to
  requiring certain reports relating to veterans

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

  Section 1.  Subdivision 1 of section 3803 of the public health law, as
amended  by  chapter  743  of  the  laws  of 2006, is amended to read as
follows:
  1. There is hereby created within the department the  veterans  health
care information program (referred to in this section as the "program"),
which  shall  provide information on health issues associated with mili-
tary duty, including but not limited to Agent Orange, SPINA BIFIDA, Gulf
War Syndromes, toxic materials  or  harmful  physical  agents  such  as,
depleted  uranium,  and  hepatitis  C,  AND SPECIFIC MENTAL AND PHYSICAL
HEALTH ISSUES INCLUDING POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, TRAUMATIC  BRAIN
INJURY  AND  OTHER BRAIN-RELATED INJURIES, for veterans, their surviving
spouses, CHILDREN OF VETERANS and health care providers.
  § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 29 of the correction law, as amended  by
section  12 of subpart A of part C of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is
amended to read as follows:
  1. The department shall continue to  collect,  maintain,  and  analyze
statistical  and  other  information  and  data  with respect to persons
subject to the jurisdiction of the department, including but not limited
to: (a) the number of such persons: placed in the custody of the depart-
ment, assigned to a  specific  department  program,  accorded  community
supervision and declared delinquent, recommitted to a state correctional

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

                                                           LBD05715-01-7

A. 2739                             2

institution upon revocation of community supervision, or discharged upon
maximum  expiration  of  sentence;  (b)  the  criminal  history  of such
persons; (c) the social, educational, and  vocational  circumstances  of
any such persons; [and,] (d) the institutional and community supervision
programs  and  the behavior of such persons; AND, (E) THE MILITARY BACK-
GROUND AND CIRCUMSTANCES, IF SUCH PERSON SERVED  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES
ARMED  FORCES.  Provided, however, in the event any statistical informa-
tion on the ethnic background of the inmate population of a correctional
facility or facilities is collected by the department, such  statistical
information  shall  contain, but not be limited to, the following ethnic
categories: (i) Caucasian;  (ii)  Asian;  (iii)  American  Indian;  (iv)
Afro-American/Black;  and  (v)  Spanish speaking/Hispanic which category
shall include, but  not  be  limited  to,  the  following  subcategories
consisting  of:  (1)  Puerto Ricans; (2) Cubans; (3) Dominicans; and (4)
other Hispanic nationalities.
  § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law; provided, that  any  rules  and  regulations
necessary  for  the  timely  implementation of this act on its effective
date shall be promulgated on or before such date.