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Assembly Bill A1142

Signed By Governor

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Requires the use of gender-neutral terms in law

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Archive: Last Bill Status - Signed by Governor

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2023-A1142 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Senate Version of this Bill:
S155
Law Section:
General Construction Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §22, Gen Con L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:
A9428, S8440

2023-A1142 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the use of gender-neutral terms in law.

2023-A1142 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1142
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 13, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. KELLES -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Governmental Operations
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the general construction law, in relation to requiring
   the use of gender-neutral terms in law
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Section  22  of the general construction law, as added by
 chapter 730 of the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows:
   § 22. Gender. Whenever words  of  the  masculine  or  feminine  gender
 appear  in any law, rule or regulation, unless the sense of the sentence
 indicates otherwise, they shall be deemed to  refer  to  [both  male  or
 female]  persons  OF ANY GENDER. This construction shall apply to gender
 indicative suffixes or prefixes as well as to gender  indicative  words.
 Whenever  the  reference is to a corporation, board, body, group, organ-
 ization or other entity comprising more than one person or to an  assem-
 blage  of  persons  or  to  an  inanimate  object the reference shall be
 construed to be neuter in gender.  HEREAFTER, IN ANY  LAW,  RULE,  REGU-
 LATION,  ORDINANCE  OR  RESOLUTION, GENDERED TERMS SHALL NOT BE USED AND
 GENDER-NEUTRAL TERMS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO  "THEY",  "THEM"  AND
 "THEIRS", SHALL BE USED IN SUBSTITUTION THEREFOR AND WITH THE SAME FORCE
 AND  EFFECT; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, IF SUCH LAW, RULE, REGULATION, ORDINANCE
 OR RESOLUTION IS IN REFERENCE TO A SPECIFIC PERSON, THE LANGUAGE  REFER-
 RING  TO  SUCH  PERSON  SHALL  BE GENDERED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE GENDER
 IDENTITY OF SUCH PERSON.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01090-01-3

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