S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8541
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              January 8, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. WALLACE -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Consumer Affairs and Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business  law,  in  relation  to  access  to
   certain restroom facilities by employees of a utility entity
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Section 399-k of the general business law, as  added  by  a
 chapter  of  the laws of 2023 relating to permitting employees of public
 utilities access to certain restroom facilities without being  a  paying
 customer,  as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5444 and A. 6978,
 is amended to read as follows:
   § 399-k. Access to [restroom] TOILET facilities FOR  UTILITY  WORKERS.
 1.  A place of business open to the general public for the sale of goods
 or services that has a toilet facility for its employees shall allow any
 individual who is lawfully on the premises of  such  place  of  business
 [while performing a utility related service] to use that toilet facility
 during  normal  business  hours,  even if the place of business does not
 normally make the employee toilet  facility  available  to  the  public,
 provided that all of the following conditions are met:
   a.  the  individual requesting the use of the employee toilet facility
 is an employee of a [public utility company or a public  utility  corpo-
 ration  as  defined  in  section  two of the public service law] UTILITY
 ENTITY WHO IS ON DUTY PROVIDING UTILITY-RELATED SERVICES AT THE TIME  OF
 THE  REQUEST,  provided that the place of business may require the indi-
 vidual to present reasonable evidence that the individual is an employee
 of [such public] A utility entity;
   b. two or more employees of the place of business are working  at  the
 time the individual requests use of the employee toilet facility;
   c.  the  employee  toilet  facility  is  not  located in an area where
 providing access would create an obvious health or safety  risk  to  the
 requesting  individual or create a security risk to the people, or prop-
 erty within the place of business;
   d. use of the toilet facility would not create an  obvious  health  or
 safety risk to the requesting individual; and
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD07109-02-4
 A. 8541                             2
 
   e.  a  public restroom is not immediately accessible to the requesting
 individual.
   2.  A  violation of the provisions of this section shall be punishable
 by a  civil  penalty  not  to  exceed  five  hundred  dollars  for  each
 violation.
   3. [Businesses] A PLACE OF BUSINESS shall not be  liable for any inju-
 ries  which  result  from  toilet  facility  use by [utility workers] AN
 EMPLOYEE OF A UTILITY ENTITY, PROVIDED THAT THIS SUBDIVISION  SHALL  NOT
 BE  INTERPRETED, OR CONSTRUED, AS A LIMIT ON LIABILITY FOR ACTS OF GROSS
 NEGLIGENCE OR FOR WILLFUL OR MALICIOUS FAILURE  TO  GUARD,  OR  TO  WARN
 AGAINST, A DANGEROUS CONDITION, USE, STRUCTURE OR ACTIVITY.
   4.  FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, "EMPLOYEE OF A UTILITY ENTITY" MEANS
 AN EMPLOYEE OF A "UTILITY COMPANY" OR "PUBLIC UTILITY COMPANY"  AS  SUCH
 TERMS  ARE DEFINED IN SECTION TWO OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE LAW, A MUNICIPAL
 CORPORATION THAT PROVIDES PUBLIC  UTILITY  SERVICES,  A  RURAL  ELECTRIC
 COOPERATIVE, OR A STATE PUBLIC AUTHORITY THAT PROVIDES UTILITY SERVICES,
 OR  AN  EMPLOYEE  OF  A  CONTRACTOR  THAT  IS  PROVIDING UTILITY-RELATED
 SERVICES FOR ANY OF THE AFOREMENTIONED ENTITIES.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same
 manner as a chapter of the laws of 2023 relating to permitting employees
 of  public utilities access to certain restroom facilities without being
 a paying customer, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5444  and
 A.  6978, takes effect.