Assembly Bill A11119

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   11119
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             November 6, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Hunter) --
   read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to  creat-
   ing  an  action for the recovery of damages for personal injury caused
   by exposure to toxic burn pits while serving as a member of the  armed
   forces

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The civil practice law and rules is amended by adding a new
 section 214-i to read as follows:
   § 214-I. ACTION TO RECOVER  DAMAGES  FOR  PERSONAL  INJURY  CAUSED  BY
 CONTACT  WITH  OR  EXPOSURE  TO  TOXIC BURN PITS. 1. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY
 PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY,  AN  ACTION  TO  RECOVER  DAMAGES  FOR
 PERSONAL INJURY CAUSED BY EXPOSURE TO TOXIC BURN PITS WHILE SERVING AS A
 MEMBER OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES IN AFGHANISTAN, BAHRAIN,
 BURKINA  FASO,  CAMEROON, CHAD, DIEGO GARCIA, DJIBOUTI, EGYPT, ETHIOPIA,
 GABON, GHANA, IRAQ, JORDAN,  KENYA,  KUWAIT,  KYRGYZSTAN,  LIBYA,  MALI,
 NIGER,  NIGERIA,  OMAN,  PAKISTAN,  PHILIPPINES,  SAUDI ARABIA, SOMALIA,
 SOUTH SUDAN, SUDAN, SYRIA,  TAJIKISTAN,  TUNISIA,  TURKEY,  UNITED  ARAB
 EMIRATES,  UZBEKISTAN,  AND  YEMEN  ON  OR AFTER AUGUST SECOND, NINETEEN
 HUNDRED NINETY, MAY BE COMMENCED WITHIN TWO YEARS FROM THE DATE  OF  THE
 DISCOVERY OF SUCH INJURY, OR WITHIN TWO YEARS FROM THE DATE WHEN THROUGH
 THE  EXERCISE  OF  REASONABLE  DILIGENCE THE CAUSE OF SUCH INJURY SHOULD
 HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED, WHICHEVER IS LATER.
   2. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, A PERSONAL INJURY  INCLUDES,  BUT
 SHALL  NOT  BE  LIMITED TO THE FOLLOWING DISEASES: ASTHMA THAT WAS DIAG-
 NOSED AFTER SERVICE IN A COUNTRY OR  TERRITORY  LISTED,  CANCER  OF  ANY
 TYPE,   CHRONIC   BRONCHITIS,  CHRONIC  OBSTRUCTIVE  PULMONARY  DISEASE,
 CONSTRICTIVE BRONCHIOLITIS  OR  OBLITERATIVE  BRONCHIOLITIS,  EMPHYSEMA,
 GRANULOMATOUS  DISEASE,  INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE, LYMPHOMA, PLEURITIS,
 PULMONARY FIBROSIS, AND SARCOIDOSIS.
   § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 214 of the civil practice law and rules,
 as separately amended by chapters 485 and 682 of the laws  of  1986,  is
 amended to read as follows:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17555-02-0

 A. 11119                            2
 
   5.  an  action  to  recover  damages  for  a personal injury except as
 provided in sections 214-b, 214-c, 214-I and 215;
   §  3.  Every cause of action for an injury or death caused by exposure
 to toxic burn pits while serving as a member of the armed forces of  the
 United  States  in  Afghanistan,  Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad,
 Diego Garcia, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia,  Gabon,  Ghana,  Iraq,  Jordan,
 Kenya,  Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan,
 Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria,  Tajikis-
 tan,  Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Yemen on or
 after August second, nineteen hundred ninety, which is barred as of  the
 effective  date  of this act because the applicable period of limitation
 has expired is hereby revived and extended and any action thereon may be
 commenced and prosecuted.
   § 4. The provisions of this act shall be severable, and if any clause,
 sentence, paragraph, subdivision or part of this act shall  be  adjudged
 by  any  court  of  competent  jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment
 shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall
 be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph,  subdi-
 vision  or  part  thereof  directly involved in the controversy in which
 such judgment shall have been rendered.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.