NY State Senate Bill 2025-S8045

Senate Bill S8045

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Requires the office for the prevention of domestic violence provide informational materials on removing an abuser's access to a smart home

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Social Services Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 15, 2025	referred to social services

2025-S8045 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5455
Current Committee:: Senate Social Services
Law Section:: Executive Law
Laws Affected:: Add §577, Exec L

2025-S8045 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the office for the prevention of domestic violence provide informational materials on removing an abuser's access to a smart home and the use of other technology for harassment.

2025-S8045 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8045

SPONSOR: BYNOE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the executive law, in relation to requiring the office
for the prevention of domestic violence provide informational materials
on the removal of accounts from smart home systems

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill requires the state Office for the Prevention of Domestic
Violence to provide informational materials to survivors on how to
remove abusers from smart home systems and how to protect against cyber
harassment and stalking that maybe associated with these devices.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

  Section one amends the executive law by adding a new section 577.

  Section two establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In  the  digital  age,  domestic violence survivors face new patterns of
harassment, control, intimidation, and monitoring  through  their  smart
home  devices.  These  attacks can leave survivors feeling powerless and
unsafe in the privacy of their own homes even if their abuser no  longer
lives  with  them. This issue is fueled by a lack of awareness about the
operations of smart home systems, uncertainty of  the  level  of  access
that abusers may have to smart home technology and the legal resources a
survivor can take to cease abuse.

A  Guardian  article published in 2023 highlighted the shocking rise and
devastating effects that this abuse can have on survivors. According  to
a  report  by refuge, a staggering 57% of homes owned at least one smart
device in 2019, and the cases  of  tech-facilitated  abuse  reported  to
Refuge  skyrocketed  by  258% between 2018 and 2022.  Instances of abuse
ranged from smart home devices being controlled without consent, cameras
being accessed, thermostats being controlled, and home speakers blasting
music sporadically.  Additionally, research from the group Which? showed
that many smart devices stopped receiving security  updates  from  their
manufacturers  in as little as two years. The unregulated environment of
control and fear that is created through the manipulation of this  tech-
nology underscores the desperate need for more education and resources.

This bill would ensure that the state Office of the Prevention of Domes-
tic  Violence  provides  survivors  with  information  on  how to remedy
harassment through the removal of abusers' access to smart home technol-
ogy accounts. Additionally, the legislation would require  the  develop-
ment  of  strategies  to improve laws pertaining to cyber harassment and
stalking to ensure that as smart home technologies  update,  information
provided to survivors will as well.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
90 days.

2025-S8045 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8045
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 15, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  BYNOE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services
 
 AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to requiring  the  office
   for  the prevention of domestic violence provide informational materi-
   als on the removal of accounts from smart home systems

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.   The executive law is amended by adding a new section 577
 to read as follows:
   § 577.  INFORMATIONAL  MATERIALS  ON  HARASSMENT  THROUGH  SMART  HOME
 SYSTEMS. 1. (A) IN FURTHERANCE OF THE ACTIVITIES REQUIRED IN SUBDIVISION
 THREE  OF  SECTION  FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY-FIVE OF THIS ARTICLE AND WITHIN
 AMOUNTS APPROPRIATED FOR SUCH PURPOSE, THE OFFICE SHALL CONTRACT WITH AN
 ORGANIZATION DESIGNATED BY THE FEDERAL DEPARTMENT OF  HEALTH  AND  HUMAN
 SERVICES  TO COORDINATE STATEWIDE IMPROVEMENTS WITHIN LOCAL COMMUNITIES,
 SOCIAL SERVICES SYSTEMS, AND PROGRAMMING REGARDING  THE  PREVENTION  AND
 INTERVENTION  OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN NEW YORK STATE TO MUTUALLY DEVELOP
 AND PROMOTE INFORMATION MATERIALS, INCLUDING ONLINE RESOURCES AND  PHYS-
 ICAL  PAMPHLETS  FOR  VICTIMS  OF  DOMESTIC  VIOLENCE  FACING HARASSMENT
 THROUGH SMART HOME SYSTEMS.
   (B) SUCH RESOURCES SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED  TO,  INFORMATION
 ON DEVICES COMMONLY USED TO HARASS VICTIMS, THE TACTICS COMMONLY USED TO
 HARASS  VICTIMS,  WAYS  IN  WHICH  VICTIMS CAN ENHANCE THEIR SAFETY WITH
 RESPECT TO HARASSMENT THROUGH SMART HOME SYSTEMS  AND  INSTRUCTIONS  FOR
 REMOVING  AN  INDIVIDUAL'S  ACCESS  TO A SMART HOME SYSTEM. FURTHER, THE
 CONTRACTED ORGANIZATION  SHALL  MAKE  RECOMMENDATIONS  ON  POLICIES  AND
 PRIORITIES  FOR REDUCING TECHNOLOGY-FACILITATED ABUSE, INCLUDING BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO, HARASSMENT THROUGH SAFE HOME SYSTEMS,  CYBER-HARASSMENT  AND
 STALKING.
   (C)  FOR  THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, "SMART HOME SYSTEM" SHALL MEAN
 ANY ELECTRONIC DEVICE OR TECHNOLOGY INSTALLED  DIRECTLY  INTO  THE  HOME
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06383-06-5

 S. 8045                             2
 
 WHICH  HANDLES THE SECURITY, CLIMATE AND/OR APPLIANCES IN THE HOME, THAT
 IS CAPABLE OF CONNECTING TO THE INTERNET, DIRECTLY OR  INDIRECTLY,  THAT
 IS  ASSIGNED  AN INTERNET PROTOCOL ADDRESS OR BLUETOOTH ADDRESS, AND HAS
 COMPUTER  PROCESSING CAPABILITIES FOR COLLECTING, SENDING, RECEIVING, OR
 ANALYZING DATA.
   2. THE INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF
 THIS SECTION SHALL BE PROVIDED BY THE OFFICE TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE  SHEL-
 TERS,  LOCAL  SOCIAL  SERVICES  DISTRICTS, LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS, AND
 LOCAL CHILDCARE FACILITIES TO BE DISTRIBUTED  TO  POTENTIAL  VICTIMS  OF
 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
   §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary  for  the  implementation  of
 this  act  on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
 on or before such date.

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