S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5397
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on  Veterans,  Home-
   land Security and Military Affairs
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the veterans' services law, the military law and the
   civil rights law, in relation to certificates of honorable  separation
   from or service in the armed forces of the United States
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 4 of the  veterans'  services  law  is  amended  by
 adding a new subdivision 40 to read as follows:
   40.  TO RECEIVE A CERTIFICATE OF RELEASE OR DISCHARGE FROM ACTIVE DUTY
 WHICH WAS ISSUED BY THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND  DELIVERED  TO  THE
 DEPARTMENT,  AND  SHALL  FORWARD  SUCH  CERTIFICATE WITHIN SIXTY DAYS OF
 RECEIPT TO THE APPROPRIATE LOCAL VETERANS' SERVICE  AGENCY,  BASED  UPON
 THE  MAILING  ADDRESS  AFTER  SEPARATION NOTED ON SUCH CERTIFICATE. SUCH
 TRANSMISSION MAY BE MADE ELECTRONICALLY. INFORMATION CONTAINED  IN  SUCH
 CERTIFICATES  SHALL  BE  PROTECTED  AS PERSONAL CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
 UNDER ARTICLE SIX-A OF THE PUBLIC OFFICERS  LAW  AGAINST  DISCLOSURE  OF
 CONFIDENTIAL MATERIAL, AND USED ONLY FOR INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE WITH
 REGARDS TO STATE BENEFITS AND ENTITLEMENTS UNDER FEDERAL AND STATE LAW.
   § 2. Section 250 of the military law, as amended by chapter 298 of the
 laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
   § 250. Recording  certificates of honorable discharge. Any certificate
 issued after April sixth, nineteen hundred seventeen, of  the  honorable
 separation  from  or service in the armed forces of the United States of
 any veteran, may be recorded in any one county, in  the  office  of  the
 county clerk, and when so recorded shall constitute notice to all public
 officials  of  the  facts set forth therein. It shall be the duty of the
 county clerk to record the certificate upon presentation thereof without
 the payment of any fee. For any purpose for which the  original  certif-
 icate  may be required in the state of New York, a certified copy of the
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07624-01-5
              

 S. 5397                             2
 
 record shall be deemed sufficient and shall be accepted in lieu thereof.
 Notwithstanding any inconsistent provisions of law, it shall be the duty
 of the county clerk of each county, to furnish  without  charge  to  any
 veteran,  or parent, spouse, dependent or child of the veteran, a certi-
 fied copy of the certificate of the veteran so recorded in the office of
 the county clerk. No filed  certificate  or  any  information  contained
 therein,  shall be disclosed to any person except the veteran or parent,
 spouse, dependent or child of the veteran, representative of the  estate
 of the deceased veteran, AN AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF A FUNERAL FIRM,
 AS  DEFINED  IN  SECTION  THIRTY-FOUR  HUNDRED OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW,
 WHICH ASSISTS WITH THE BURIAL OF A VETERAN, or a public official, acting
 within the scope of [his or her] THEIR employment, unless  such  disclo-
 sure  is  authorized  in  writing by the veteran. The provisions of this
 section also apply to the counties within the city of New York.
   § 3. Section 79-g of the civil rights law is amended by adding  a  new
 subdivision c to read as follows:
   C. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION IN THIS SECTION TO THE CONTRARY, SUCH
 CERTIFICATE SHALL BE MADE AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC INSPECTION AND COPYING IN
 ACCORDANCE  WITH  THE ARCHIVAL SCHEDULE ADOPTED BY THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
 AND RECORD ADMINISTRATION (NARA) TOGETHER WITH THE UNITED STATES DEPART-
 MENT OF DEFENSE (DOD), SIGNED ON JULY EIGHTH, TWO THOUSAND EIGHT, MAKING
 THE OFFICIAL MILITARY PERSONNEL FILES PERMANENT RECORDS  OF  THE  UNITED
 STATES. SUCH SCHEDULE MANDATES THE LEGAL TRANSFER OF SUCH FILES FROM DOD
 OWNERSHIP  TO  NARA OWNERSHIP SIXTY-TWO YEARS AFTER THE SERVICE MEMBER'S
 SEPARATION FROM THE MILITARY.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided,  however,  that
 section  two  of this act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth
 day after it shall have become a law.  Effective immediately, the  addi-
 tion,  amendment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations necessary for
 the implementation of this act on its effective date are  authorized  to
 be made and completed on or before such effective date.