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Senate Bill S1980

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Prohibits the sale or promotional distribution of machetes to minors

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Consumer Protection Committee

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2025-S1980 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:
A1169
Current Committee:
Senate Consumer Protection
Law Section:
General Business Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §399-qq, Gen Bus L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2017-2018: S5125, A7013
2019-2020: S658, A4900
2021-2022: S6145, A4983
2023-2024: S4979, A4488

2025-S1980 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits the sale or promotional distribution of machetes to minors; defines machete as a large heavy knife with a broad blade, used primarily for cutting brush or vegetation.

2025-S1980 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S1980 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1980
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 14, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MURRAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting the
   sale or promotional distribution of machetes to minors
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  399-qq  of the general business law, as added by
 chapter 243 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
   § 399-qq.  Sale  or  promotional  distribution  of  MACHETES,  utility
 knives,  box cutters, or box cart cutters. 1. No person, firm, or corpo-
 ration shall sell or offer to sell or give away as either  a  retail  or
 wholesale  promotion  a  MACHETE, utility knife, box cutter, or box cart
 cutter to any person under eighteen years of age.
   2. For purposes of  this  section,  the  term  "utility  knife",  "box
 cutter", or "box cart cutter" means a knife consisting of a razor blade,
 retractable  or non-retractable, attached to or contained within a plas-
 tic or metal housing.   FOR THE  PURPOSES  OF  THIS  SECTION,  THE  TERM
 "MACHETE"  MEANS  A LARGE HEAVY KNIFE WITH A BROAD BLADE, USED PRIMARILY
 FOR CUTTING BRUSH OR VEGETATION.
   3. The provisions of this section shall  not  preclude  the  temporary
 transfer  of a MACHETE, utility knife, box cutter, or box cart cutter to
 a person under eighteen years of age by  such  person's  employer  where
 such device is possessed only on the employer's premises and only during
 the course and scope of such person's employment.
   4.  No  provision  of  this  section  shall  be deemed to restrict the
 authority of any county, city, town or  village  to  enact  and  enforce
 additional  local  laws,  ordinances  or  codes,  or  portions  thereof,
 provided the provisions thereof are not inconsistent with the provisions
 of this section.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02391-01-5
 S. 1980                             2

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