S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
6128
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
May 11, 2017
___________
Introduced by Sen. MURPHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
ment Operations
AN ACT to amend the executive law, the legislative law, the public
service law, the public buildings law, the education law, the social
services law, the general business law, the civil service law, the
workers' compensation law, the agriculture and markets law and the
public housing law, in relation to changing references to "hearing
impaired" to "deaf or hard of hearing"
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 14 of section 296 of the executive law, as
amended by chapter 141 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as
follows:
14. In addition to reasonable modifications in policies, practices, or
procedures, including those defined in subparagraph (iv) of paragraph
(d) of subdivision two of this section or reasonable accommodations for
persons with disabilities as otherwise provided in this section, includ-
ing the use of an animal as a reasonable accommodation, it shall be an
unlawful discriminatory practice for any person engaged in any activity
covered by this section to deny access or otherwise to discriminate
against a blind person, a [hearing impaired] person WHO IS DEAF OR HARD
OF HEARING or a person with another disability because he or she is
accompanied by a dog that has been trained to work or perform specific
tasks for the benefit of such person by a professional guide dog, hear-
ing dog or service dog training center or professional guide dog, hear-
ing dog or service dog trainer, or to discriminate against such profes-
sional guide dog, hearing dog or service dog trainer engaged in such
training of a dog for use by a person with a disability, whether or not
accompanied by the person for whom the dog is being trained.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10196-02-7
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§ 2. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph a and paragraph c of subdivision 9
of section 374 of the executive law, as amended by chapter 23 of the
laws of 1989, are amended to read as follows:
(ii) three members one of whom shall represent an organization which
serves as an advocate for the [hearing impaired] DEAF AND HARD OF HEAR-
ING, one of whom shall represent consumers of products designed for the
[hearing impaired] DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING, and one of whom represents
an institution of higher education with expertise in the area of assis-
tive listening technology, who shall be entitled to be reimbursed for
necessary travel and incidental expenses out of monies appropriated to
the division of housing and community renewal.
c. In developing such recommendations the advisory board shall take
into consideration the costs of such systems, the standardization and
compatibility of such systems, if the technology permits, and the utili-
zation of such systems by the [hearing impaired] consumer WHO IS DEAF OR
HARD OF HEARING. Particular attention should be given to the ability of
consumers to utilize a single receiver which is compatible in a variety
of installations employing the same assistive listening device technolo-
gy.
§ 3. Subdivision 8 and the opening paragraph of subdivision 10 of
section 378 of the executive law, as renumbered by chapter 494 of the
laws of 1991, subdivision 8 as added by chapter 435 of the laws of 1986
and the opening paragraph of subdivision 10 as amended by chapter 23 of
the laws of 1989, are amended to read as follows:
8. Standards for hotels, motels and lodging houses requiring (in addi-
tion to any other requirement) portable smoke-detecting alarm devices
for the deaf and HARD OF hearing [impaired] of audible and visual
design, available for three percent of all units available for occupan-
cy, with a minimum of one unit. If any other law or regulation requires
a central, closed circuit interior alarm system, such device shall be
incorporated into or connected to the system so as to be capable of
being activated by the system. Incorporation into the existing system
shall be in lieu of the portable alarms. Standards shall require opera-
tors of any such establishment to post conspicuously at the main desk or
other similar station a notice in letters at least three inches in
height stating that smoke-detector alarm devices for the deaf and HARD
OF hearing [impaired] are available. The council shall mandate by rule
and regulation the specific design of the smoke-detector alarm devices.
Standards for assistive listening systems for new construction
commenced after January first, nineteen hundred ninety-one requiring the
installation of assistive listening systems at all places of public
assembly so designated by the appropriate building and fire code for use
by [hearing impaired] persons WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING who
require use of such a system to improve their reception of sound.
§ 4. Section 7-e of the legislative law, as added by chapter 169 of
the laws of 1987, is amended to read as follows:
§ 7-e. Assistive listening system for the DEAF AND HARD OF hearing
[impaired]. (a) The temporary president of the senate and the speaker of
the assembly shall have the power and it shall be their individual duty
to equip the senate chambers, the assembly chambers and any hearing
rooms located in the legislative office building in Albany which accom-
modate more than one hundred persons with an assistive listening system
for use by the DEAF AND HARD OF hearing [impaired].
(b) For purposes of this section, the term "assistive listening
system" shall mean situational-personal acoustic communication equipment
designed to improve the transmission and auditory reception of sound.
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Such system shall include but not be limited to the use of standard
amplitude modulation (AM), frequency modulation (FM), audio induction
loop, infrared light sound, or hard wire systems.
§ 5. The section heading and subdivision 1 of section 92-a of the
public service law, as amended by section 3 of part H-1 of chapter 62 of
the laws of 2003, are amended to read as follows:
Special telephone equipment for DEAF AND HARD OF hearing [impaired]
persons. 1. The commission shall require any regulated landline tele-
phone corporation providing local exchange service to sell or lease
special telecommunication equipment to a person certified as DEAF OR
HARD OF hearing [impaired] where the addition of such equipment is
necessary to enable such person to access and utilize the local exchange
network. The sale of such equipment shall be at an amount not to exceed
the actual purchase price by the corporation and the lease of such
equipment shall be at a rate to be determined by the commission. Any
person who leases such equipment shall be permitted to apply the lease
payments toward the equipment's purchase.
§ 6. Section 92-a of the public service law, as amended by chapter 487
of the laws of 1987, is amended to read as follows:
§ 92-a. Special telephone equipment for DEAF AND HARD OF hearing
[impaired] persons. The commission shall require any regulated landline
telephone corporation providing local exchange service to sell or lease
special telecommunication equipment to a person certified as DEAF OR
HARD OF hearing [impaired] where the addition of such equipment is
necessary to enable such person to access and utilize the local exchange
network. The sale of such equipment shall be at an amount not to exceed
the actual purchase price by the corporation and the lease of such
equipment shall be at a rate to be determined by the commission. Any
person who leases such equipment shall be permitted to apply the lease
payments toward the equipment's purchase.
§ 7. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 9 of section 3 of the public build-
ings law, as added by chapter 169 of the laws of 1987, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The commissioner of general services shall have the power and it
shall be his OR HER duty to equip that room in the state capitol custom-
arily utilized by the governor to brief the members of the working press
and news media with an assistive listening system for use by the DEAF
AND HARD OF hearing [impaired].
§ 8. Subdivision 1 of section 53 of the public buildings law, as
amended by chapter 23 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as
follows:
1. All new public buildings, construction of which commences after
January first, nineteen hundred ninety-one, containing an auditorium,
theater, meeting hall, hearing room, amphitheater, or room used in any
similar capacity which are so designated by the appropriate building and
fire code shall have equipped and installed an assistive listening
system for use by [hearing impaired] persons WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF
HEARING who require the use of such a system to improve their reception
of sound.
§ 9. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 3230 of the education law, as
added by chapter 765 of the laws of 1992, are amended to read as
follows:
1. The board of education or trustees of each school district shall
ensure that at any meeting or activity which is conducted by the board
of education, trustees, school district or a district school which is
specific to a child's educational program and which parents or persons
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in parental relationship who are DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impaired], as
defined by the commissioner, attend, the board of education or trustees
shall provide interpreter services at no charge to such persons,
provided a written request therefor is made to the school district with-
in a reasonable time prior to the scheduled meeting or activity. In the
event interpreter services are requested, the school district shall
appoint an interpreter of the deaf to interpret the proceedings of the
meeting or activity. In the event that an interpreter is unavailable,
other reasonable accommodations shall be made which are satisfactory to
the parents or guardians.
3. For the purposes of this section "meeting" or "activity" shall
include those school-initiated meetings or activities which parents or
persons in parental relationship who are DEAF OR HARD OF hearing
[impaired] attend which are specific to the academic and/or disciplinary
aspects of their child's educational program including parent-teacher
conferences and other such meetings and activities as defined by the
commissioner.
§ 10. Paragraph c of subdivision 6 of section 4410 of the education
law, as added by chapter 581 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as
follows:
c. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the
exemption in subdivision two of section eighty-two hundred seven of this
chapter shall apply to persons employed by a center-based program
approved pursuant to subdivision nine of this section to perform the
duties of a speech-language pathologist, audiologist, teacher of the
speech and DEAF AND HARD OF hearing [impaired] or teacher of the deaf to
students enrolled in such approved center-based program in the course of
their employment.
§ 11. Subdivision 3 of section 326-b of the social services law, as
amended by chapter 191 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as
follows:
3. The loan fund shall provide the disabled with the financial oppor-
tunity to purchase or replace essential equipment used by them for daily
living or vocational functioning following rehabilitation, including,
but not limited to, prosthesis, ramps, wheelchairs, wheelchair van
lifts, telecommunication devices for the deaf and HARD OF hearing
[impaired], devices which allow persons who are blind or visually
impaired to discern printed materials and adaptive equipment to permit a
disabled person to operate a motor vehicle but not to purchase or
replace a motor vehicle itself.
§ 12. Subdivision 1 of section 336-b of the general business law, as
added by chapter 190 of the laws of 1991, is amended to read as follows:
1. Each telephone corporation doing business in this state which
provides public pay telephones, including those owners or providers of
customer owned currency operated telephones (COCOT's), shall provide at
least twenty-five percent of its public pay telephones installed on or
after January first, nineteen hundred ninety-three with volume control
equipment to enable DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impaired] persons to access
and utilize telecommunications services. The telephones with volume
control equipment shall be distributed evenly among the public pay tele-
phones provided by the corporation. Each public pay telephone with a
volume control shall have signage either on the telephone or in the
immediate vicinity thereof, identifying that telephone as being equipped
with a DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impaired] volume control.
S. 6128 5
§ 13. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 13 of section
798 of the general business law, as amended by chapter 301 of the laws
of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
(ii) and the physician certifies in writing that, in his or her
professional judgement, at the time the dispensing occurred the purchas-
er had either a DIAGNOSIS OF DEAFNESS OR BEING HARD OF hearing [impair-
ment] for which a hearing aid provides no benefit or had a medical
condition which contraindicates the use of a hearing aid, and
§ 14. Paragraphs (n) and (q) of subdivision 2 of section 799 of the
general business law, paragraph (n) as amended by chapter 133 of the
laws of 1999 and paragraph (q) as added by chapter 599 of the laws of
1998, are amended to read as follows:
(n) no hearing aid dispenser, registrant or hearing aid trainee shall
state or imply that the use of any hearing aid will restore hearing to
normal, or preserve hearing, or prevent or retard the progression of [a]
DEAFNESS OR BEING HARD OF hearing [impairment] or any false or mislead-
ing or medically or audiologically unsupportable claims regarding the
efficacy or benefits of hearing aids.
(q) making any predictions or prognostications as to the future course
of [a] DEAFNESS OR BEING HARD OF hearing [impairment], either in general
terms or with reference to an individual person, except where such
predictions and prognostications are made by a hearing aid dispenser
licensed pursuant to the provisions of article one hundred fifty-nine of
the education law and consistent with such law.
§ 15. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 6 of the civil service
law, as amended by chapter 265 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read
as follows:
(c) rules for sick leaves, vacations, time allowances and other condi-
tions of employment in the classified service of the state and, notwith-
standing any other provision of this chapter or any other law, such
rules may provide for cash payment of the monetary value of accumulated
and unused vacation or time allowances granted in lieu of overtime
compensation standing to the credit of an employee at the time of his or
her separation from service or his or her entrance into the armed forces
of the United States for active duty (other than for training) as
defined by title ten of the United States code, whether or not such
entrance constitutes a separation from service, and for the payment of
the monetary value of his or her accumulated and unused time allowances
granted in lieu of overtime compensation standing to the credit of an
employee at the time of his or her appointment, promotion or transfer
from the department or agency in which such time allowances were earned
to another department or agency and provided further however that any
such rules or regulations shall provide that individuals certified by an
examining physician as benefiting from the use of a service animal in
performing major life activities, individuals registered with the New
York state commission for the blind as legally blind or certified by an
examining physician or licensed optometrist as legally blind, as mani-
fested by visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with best
correction or visual field of 20 degrees or less, and individuals who
[have a] ARE DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impairment] manifested by a speech
discrimination score of forty percent or less in the better ear with
appropriate correction as certified by an examining physician or a
licensed audiologist or otorhinolaryngologist as defined in section
seven hundred eighty-nine of the general business law, or a physician
who has examined such person pursuant to the provisions of section seven
hundred ninety-two of such law, may charge against accumulated sick
S. 6128 6
leave credits and upon written agreement between the individual and the
employer, may borrow against sick leave credits not yet accumulated, for
the purpose of obtaining service animals or guide dogs and necessary
training, up to a maximum of twenty-six days in any one calendar year;
and
§ 16. Subdivision (e) of section 49-gg of the workers' compensation
law, as amended by chapter 415 of the laws of 1983, is amended to read
as follows:
(e) proper deductions for presbycusis and other non-industrial causes
of DEAFNESS AND BEING HARD OF hearing [impairment], and
§ 17. Subdivision 21 of section 108 of the agriculture and markets
law, as amended by chapter 536 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read
as follows:
21. "Hearing dog" means any dog that is trained to aid a person [with
a] WHO IS DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impairment] and is actually used for
such purpose, or any dog during the period such dog is being trained or
bred for such purpose.
§ 18. Section 223-b of the public housing law, as amended by chapter
536 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows:
§ 223-b. Discrimination against a person [with a] WHO IS DEAF OR HARD
OF hearing [impairment] who has a hearing dog. No person who [has a] IS
DEAF OR HARD OF hearing [impairment] shall be denied occupancy in a
dwelling in any project or be subjected to eviction from any such dwell-
ing on the sole ground that such person owns a hearing dog as defined in
section forty-seven-b of the civil rights law, provided, however, that
if after occupancy a health hazard results on account of such dog, the
public health officer having jurisdiction may take such corrective meas-
ures as may be appropriate.
§ 19. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend-
ments to section 92-a of the public service law, made by section five of
this act, shall not affect the expiration and reversion of such section,
and shall expire therewith when upon such date section six of this act
shall take effect.
