Assembly Bill A4928

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4928
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 10, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Codes
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the penal law, in relation to increasing penalties for
   assault, obstruction and harassment of election officers
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Subdivision  11  of  section  120.05 of the penal law, as
 amended by section 2 of part Z of chapter 55 of the  laws  of  2024,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   11.  With  intent to cause physical injury to a train operator, ticket
 inspector, conductor, signalperson, bus operator, station agent, station
 cleaner, terminal cleaner, station customer assistant, traffic  checker;
 person  whose official duties include the sale or collection of tickets,
 passes, vouchers, or other revenue payment media for  use  on  a  train,
 bus, or ferry the collection or handling of revenues therefrom; a person
 whose official duties include the maintenance, repair, inspection, trou-
 bleshooting,  testing  or cleaning of buses or ferries, a transit signal
 system, elevated or underground subway tracks,  transit  station  struc-
 ture,  including  fare equipment, escalators, elevators and other equip-
 ment necessary to passenger service, commuter rail tracks  or  stations,
 train  yard,  revenue  train in passenger service, a ferry station, or a
 train or bus station or terminal; or a  supervisor  of  such  personnel,
 employed  by  any transit or commuter rail agency, authority or company,
 public or private, whose operation is authorized by New  York  state  or
 any  of  its  political  subdivisions, a city marshal, a school crossing
 guard appointed pursuant to section two hundred eight-a of  the  general
 municipal law, a traffic enforcement officer, traffic enforcement agent,
 prosecutor  as  defined in subdivision thirty-one of section 1.20 of the
 criminal procedure law, sanitation  enforcement  agent,  New  York  city
 sanitation worker, public health sanitarian, New York city public health
 sanitarian,   registered  nurse,  licensed  practical  nurse,  emergency
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08836-01-5
              

 A. 4928                             2
 
 medical service paramedic, [or] emergency  medical  service  technician,
 [he  or  she]  OR  ELECTION  OFFICER  AS DEFINED IN SECTION 1-104 OF THE
 ELECTION LAW, SUCH PERSON causes physical injury to such train operator,
 ticket  inspector, conductor, signalperson, bus operator, station agent,
 station cleaner, terminal cleaner, station customer  assistant,  traffic
 checker;  person whose official duties include the sale or collection of
 tickets, passes, vouchers or other revenue payment media for  use  on  a
 train,  bus,  or  ferry or the collection or handling of revenues there-
 from; a person whose official duties include  the  maintenance,  repair,
 inspection,  troubleshooting, testing or cleaning of buses or ferries, a
 transit signal system, elevated or underground  subway  tracks,  transit
 station  structure,  including fare equipment, escalators, elevators and
 other equipment necessary to passenger service, commuter rail tracks  or
 stations,  train  yard,  revenue  train  in  passenger  service, a ferry
 station, or a train or bus station or terminal; or a supervisor of  such
 personnel,  city  marshal,  school  crossing guard appointed pursuant to
 section two hundred  eight-a  of  the  general  municipal  law,  traffic
 enforcement officer, traffic enforcement agent, prosecutor as defined in
 subdivision  thirty-one  of  section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law,
 registered nurse, licensed practical nurse,  public  health  sanitarian,
 New  York  city  public health sanitarian, sanitation enforcement agent,
 New York city sanitation worker, emergency  medical  service  paramedic,
 [or]  emergency  medical  service technician, OR ELECTION OFFICER, while
 such employee is performing an assigned duty on, or directly related to,
 the operation of a train or bus, cleaning of a train or bus  station  or
 terminal,  assisting customers, checking traffic, the sale or collection
 of tickets, passes, vouchers, or other revenue media for use on a train,
 bus, or ferry or maintenance or cleaning of a train, a bus, a ferry,  or
 bus  station  or terminal, signal system, elevated or underground subway
 tracks, transit station structure, including fare equipment, escalators,
 elevators and other equipment necessary to passenger  service,  commuter
 rail  tracks  or  stations,  train  yard  or  revenue train in passenger
 service, a ferry station, or such city marshal, school  crossing  guard,
 traffic  enforcement  officer,  traffic enforcement agent, prosecutor as
 defined in subdivision thirty-one of section 1.20 of the criminal proce-
 dure law, registered nurse,  licensed  practical  nurse,  public  health
 sanitarian,  New York city public health sanitarian, sanitation enforce-
 ment agent, New York city sanitation worker, emergency  medical  service
 paramedic,  [or] emergency medical service technician, OR ELECTION OFFI-
 CER is performing an assigned duty; or
   § 2. Section 195.05 of the penal law, as amended by section 16 of part
 G of chapter 55 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
 § 195.05 Obstructing governmental administration in the second degree.
   A person is guilty of obstructing governmental administration when:
   1. Such person intentionally obstructs, impairs or perverts the admin-
 istration of law or other governmental function or prevents or  attempts
 to  prevent  a  public  servant,  INCLUDING  AN  ELECTION  OFFICER, from
 performing an official function,  by  means  of  intimidation,  physical
 force or interference, or by means of any independently unlawful act, or
 by means of interfering, whether or not physical force is involved, with
 radio,  telephone,  television or other telecommunications systems owned
 or operated by the  state,  or  a  county,  city,  town,  village,  fire
 district or emergency medical service or by means of releasing a danger-
 ous  animal  under  circumstances  evincing  the actor's intent that the
 animal obstruct governmental administration; or
 A. 4928                             3
 
   2. With the intent to violate a closing order, order to  seal,  tempo-
 rary  closing order, or temporary order to seal issued by a governmental
 entity to address a public health or safety concern, such person damages
 or removes any padlock or other device  installed  for  the  purpose  of
 effectuating such order.
   Obstructing governmental administration is a class A misdemeanor.
   § 3. Section 240.30 of the penal law is amended by adding a new subdi-
 vision 3-b to read as follows:
   3-B.  WITH  THE INTENT TO HARASS, ANNOY, THREATEN OR ALARM AN ELECTION
 OFFICER, SUCH PERSON  STRIKES,  SHOVES,  KICKS,  OR  OTHERWISE  SUBJECTS
 ANOTHER  PERSON  TO PHYSICAL CONTACT, OR ATTEMPTS OR THREATENS TO DO THE
 SAME WHILE SUCH ELECTION OFFICER IS PERFORMING SUCH  ELECTION  OFFICER'S
 OFFICIAL DUTIES; OR
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.