Assembly Bill A163

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    163
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 6, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. PERRY -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Labor
 
 AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to specifying conditions  for
   the payment of wages to employees by direct deposit to a payroll debit
   card

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 192 of the labor law, as amended by chapter 301  of
 the  laws  of 1974, subdivision 1 as added by chapter 475 of the laws of
 1981 and renumbered by chapter 170 of the laws of 1994 and subdivision 2
 as amended by chapter 304 of the laws of 2007, is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   §  192.  [Cash  payment]  PAYMENT of wages. 1.   EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN
 SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND FOUR OF THIS SECTION, PAYMENT OF WAGES SHALL BE  IN
 LAWFUL  MONEY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES OR WITH CHECKS DRAWN ON FINANCIAL
 INSTITUTIONS WHERE SUITABLE ARRANGEMENTS ARE MADE  FOR  THE  CASHING  OF
 SUCH  CHECKS BY EMPLOYEES WITHOUT DIFFICULTY AND FOR THE FULL AMOUNT FOR
 WHICH THEY WERE DRAWN.
   2. No employer shall  without  the  advance  written  consent  of  any
 employee directly pay or deposit the net wage or salary of such employee
 in a bank or other financial institution.
   [2.] AN EMPLOYER MAY ARRANGE WITH A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION OR FINANCIAL
 INSTITUTIONS TO PAY THE WAGES OF AN EMPLOYEE BY DIRECT DEPOSIT, PROVIDED
 THAT ALL OF THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS ARE MET:
   (A)  THE EMPLOYEE SHALL FIRST CONSENT IN WRITING TO THE DIRECT DEPOSIT
 OF HIS OR HER WAGES;
   (B) THE EMPLOYEE'S CONSENT AS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDI-
 VISION SHALL BE OBTAINED BY THE EMPLOYER WITHOUT INTIMIDATION, COERCION,
 OR FEAR OF DISCHARGE OR REPRISAL FOR REFUSAL TO ACCEPT THE DIRECT DEPOS-
 IT ARRANGEMENT;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04340-01-1

 A. 163                              2
 
   (C) THE EMPLOYEE'S CONSENT AS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDI-
 VISION SHALL NOT BE A CONDITION OF HIRE OR CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT;
   (D)  THE  EMPLOYEE'S WAGES SO DEPOSITED SHALL BE SUBJECT TO WITHDRAWAL
 AND OTHER DISPOSITION BY THE EMPLOYEE TO THE SAME EXTENT AND IN THE SAME
 MANNER AS IF SUCH DEPOSIT HAD BEEN MADE DIRECTLY BY THE EMPLOYEE;
   (E) THE EMPLOYEE SHALL BE FURNISHED WITH  A  STATEMENT  OF  DEDUCTIONS
 MADE  FROM  HIS  OR  HER  WAGES FOR EACH PAY PERIOD SUCH DEDUCTIONS WERE
 MADE; AND
   (F) THE EMPLOYEE SHALL, ON TIMELY NOTICE TO THE EMPLOYER, BE PERMITTED
 BY THE EMPLOYER TO ELECT NOT TO HAVE HIS OR HER WAGES DEPOSITED  IN  THE
 MANNER  PRESCRIBED  IN  THIS SUBDIVISION AND TO BE PAID HIS OR HER WAGES
 DIRECTLY OR AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION FOUR OF THIS SECTION.
   3. WHEN AN EMPLOYEE WITH DIRECT DEPOSIT HAS HIS OR HER ACCOUNT DEBITED
 WITH A CHECK-DEPOSIT-RETURN FEE WITH REGARD TO THE DIRECT DEPOSIT OF HIS
 OR HER WAGES, THE EMPLOYER SHALL  REIMBURSE  THE  EMPLOYEE  AS  SOON  AS
 POSSIBLE,  BUT  NO  LATER  THAN  THE  NEXT  REGULARLY  SCHEDULED PAYDAY.
 REIMBURSEMENT BY THE EMPLOYER SHALL BE FOR THE FULL AMOUNT OF THE CHECK-
 DEPOSIT-RETURN FEE AND SHALL NOT BE PAID TO THE EMPLOYEE AS WAGES.
   4. NO EMPLOYER SHALL  WITHOUT  THE  ADVANCE  WRITTEN  CONSENT  OF  ANY
 EMPLOYEE DIRECTLY PAY OR DEPOSIT THE NET WAGE OR SALARY OF SUCH EMPLOYEE
 BY  CAUSING  THE  AMOUNT  OF  SUCH EMPLOYEE'S WAGES TO BE DEPOSITED IN A
 PAYROLL DEBIT CARD ACCOUNT.  AN EMPLOYER MAY PAY THE WAGES OF AN EMPLOY-
 EE BY CAUSING THE AMOUNT OF SUCH EMPLOYEE'S WAGES TO BE DEPOSITED  IN  A
 PAYROLL  DEBIT  CARD  ACCOUNT, PROVIDED THAT ALL OF THE FOLLOWING CONDI-
 TIONS ARE MET:
   (A) THE EMPLOYEE SHALL FIRST CONSENT IN WRITING TO THE DEPOSIT OF  HIS
 OR HER WAGES IN A PAYROLL DEBIT CARD ACCOUNT;
   (B) THE EMPLOYEE'S CONSENT AS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDI-
 VISION SHALL BE OBTAINED BY THE EMPLOYER WITHOUT INTIMIDATION, COERCION,
 OR FEAR OF DISCHARGE OR REPRISAL FOR REFUSAL TO ACCEPT THE PAYROLL DEBIT
 CARD ACCOUNT DEPOSIT ARRANGEMENT;
   (C) THE EMPLOYEE'S CONSENT AS PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDI-
 VISION SHALL NOT BE A CONDITION OF HIRE OR CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT;
   (D)  THE EMPLOYEE'S WAGES SO DEPOSITED IN A PAYROLL DEBIT CARD ACCOUNT
 SHALL BE SUBJECT TO WITHDRAWAL AND OTHER DISPOSITION BY THE EMPLOYEE  TO
 THE  SAME EXTENT AND IN THE SAME MANNER AS IF SUCH DEPOSIT HAD BEEN MADE
 DIRECTLY BY THE EMPLOYEE INTO  AN  ACCOUNT  MAINTAINED  IN  A  FINANCIAL
 INSTITUTION IN THE NAME OF THE EMPLOYEE;
   (E)  ON  AT  LEAST  ONE OCCASION PER PAY PERIOD, THE EMPLOYEE SHALL BE
 PERMITTED, USING THE PAYROLL DEBIT CARD, TO WITHDRAW HIS OR HER WAGES IN
 FULL, IN LAWFUL MONEY OF THE UNITED  STATES,  WITHOUT  ANY  FEE  TO  THE
 EMPLOYEE AND WITHOUT DIFFICULTY;
   (F)  THE  EMPLOYEE  SHALL  BE FURNISHED WITH A STATEMENT OF DEDUCTIONS
 MADE FROM HIS OR HER WAGES FOR EACH  PAY  PERIOD  SUCH  DEDUCTIONS  WERE
 MADE; AND
   (G) THE EMPLOYEE SHALL, ON TIMELY NOTICE TO THE EMPLOYER, BE PERMITTED
 BY  THE  EMPLOYER TO ELECT NOT TO HAVE HIS OR HER WAGES DEPOSITED IN THE
 MANNER PRESCRIBED IN THIS SUBDIVISION AND TO BE PAID HIS  OR  HER  WAGES
 DIRECTLY OR IN THE MANNER PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION.
   5.  AN  EMPLOYER  SHALL  PAY  THE  FULL AMOUNT OF WAGES DUE HIS OR HER
 EMPLOYEES AT LEAST TWICE DURING EACH CALENDAR MONTH, ON REGULAR  PAYDAYS
 DESIGNATED IN ADVANCE BY THE EMPLOYER.
   6.  This section shall not apply to any person employed in a bona fide
 executive, administrative, or professional capacity whose  earnings  are
 in  excess of nine hundred dollars a week, nor to employees working on a
 farm not connected with a factory.

 A. 163                              3
 
   7. AS USED IN THIS SECTION:
   (A)  "CHECK-DEPOSIT-RETURN  FEE"  MEANS  A CHARGE WHICH RESULTS FROM A
 PAYROLL CHECK HAVING BEEN RETURNED DUE TO  INSUFFICIENT  OR  UNCOLLECTED
 FUNDS;
   (B)  "DIRECT  DEPOSIT"  MEANS  PAYMENT  OF THE WAGES OF AN EMPLOYEE BY
 CAUSING THE AMOUNT OF SUCH  EMPLOYEE'S  WAGES  TO  BE  DEPOSITED  IN  AN
 ACCOUNT  OR  ACCOUNTS MAINTAINED IN A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION OR FINANCIAL
 INSTITUTIONS IN THE NAME OF THE EMPLOYEE;
   (C) "FINANCIAL INSTITUTION" MEANS ANY  STATE-CHARTERED  OR  FEDERALLY-
 CHARTERED INSTITUTION AUTHORIZED TO ACCEPT DEPOSITS IN NEW YORK; AND
   (D) "PAYROLL DEBIT CARD" MEANS A MAGNETICALLY ENCODED CARD ISSUED BY A
 FINANCIAL  INSTITUTION,  WHICH  PROVIDES  AN  EMPLOYEE WITH THE MEANS OF
 OBTAINING THE FULL AMOUNT OF ALL WAGES EARNED IN A PAY PERIOD IN A  FORM
 THAT  IS  EQUIVALENT  TO  PAYMENT  IN LAWFUL MONEY OF THE UNITED STATES,
 PAYMENT BY CHECK OR PAYMENT BY DIRECT DEPOSIT.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.