S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2377
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 24, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Securi-
   ty and Military 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
 institution upon revocation of community supervision, or discharged upon
 maximum  expiration  of  sentence;  (b)  the  criminal  history  of such
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD03275-01-9

 S. 2377                             2
 
 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. Effective immediately the addition, amend-
 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made on or
 before such date.