NY State Senate Bill 2025-S8511

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules 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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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Sep 24, 2025	referred to rules

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Criminal Procedure Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §160.57, CP L

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Authorizes any prospective employer of a volunteer firefighter or paid firefighter to perform a background check on such applicant.

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8511

SPONSOR: HELMING
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to background
checks for applicants for volunteer or paid firefighters

 
PURPOSE:

To allow both paid and volunteer fire companies or departments to
perform full background checks on applicant firefighters

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends section 160.57 of the criminal procedure law to make a
language correction, and to add a new subparagraph xviii; Provides any
prospective employer of a volunteer or paid firefighter with all records
obtained and makes records of convictions available to applicants for
the purpose of providing an explanation

Section 2: Sets the effective date

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In order to ensure the safety of the public, the Clean Slate Act of 2023
permitted certain first responders, including law enforcement, access to
sealed records.

Firefighters are also first responders. During the performance of their
duties, firefighters routinely enter people's homes and businesses.
Firefighters often interact with the most vulnerable members of our
society. In our rural communities, firefighters are often the first to
respond to, and arrive at, the scene of an emergency.

In their capacity as paid or volunteer first responders, firefighters
have direct contact with children, the elderly, and other at-risk popu-
lations.

To ensure adequate public safety protections, members of multiple fire
departments have requested the same full access to criminal records as
law enforcement. These Departments have asserted that fully vetting a
potential employee or volunteer will help minimize potential public
safety risks and maintain both the public's trust and confidence in our
fire departments.

This bill would provide fire departments with the ability to have full
access to an applicant's record of convictions, as well as allow that
applicant to provide an explanation. Doing so would permit prospective
employers of departments to make a fully informed decision on the candi-
date they are considering.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8511
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                            September 24, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HELMING -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in  relation  to  background
   checks for applicants for volunteer or paid firefighters
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subparagraphs (xvi) and (xvii) of paragraph (d) of subdivi-
 sion 1 of section 160.57 of the criminal procedure law,    as  added  by
 chapter  631  of  the  laws  of 2023, are amended and a new subparagraph
 (xviii) is added to read as follows:
   (xvi) the state education department for the purposes of investigating
 professional misconduct as defined in subparagraph (i) of paragraph  (a)
 of  subdivision five of section sixty-five hundred nine of the education
 law, consideration of restoration of a professional license pursuant  to
 section  sixty-five  hundred  eleven  of  the education law, or determi-
 nations for issuing a  license  to  practice  a  profession  or  issuing
 certificates  and  privileges for which prior licensure is required, for
 the professions under  articles  one  hundred  thirty-one,  one  hundred
 [thirty-one-b]  THIRTY-ONE-B,  one hundred thirty-two, one hundred thir-
 ty-three, one hundred thirty-four, one hundred thirty-five, one  hundred
 thirty-six,  one  hundred  thirty-seven,  one  hundred  thirty-nine, one
 hundred forty, one  hundred  forty-one,  one  hundred  forty-three,  one
 hundred forty-four, one hundred forty-five, one hundred forty-seven, one
 hundred forty-nine, one hundred fifty-three, one hundred fifty-four, one
 hundred  fifty-five, one hundred fifty-six, one hundred fifty-seven, one
 hundred fifty-nine,  one  hundred  sixty,  one  hundred  sixty-two,  one
 hundred sixty-three, one hundred sixty-four, and one hundred sixty-seven
 as  such  professions  are  defined in title eight of the education law,
 provided that the state education department certifies to  the  division
 of  criminal  justice  services  that  it is investigating an individual
 licensed to practice a profession pursuant to article one hundred thirty
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13766-01-5

 S. 8511                             2
 
 of the education law for professional misconduct as defined in paragraph
 (a) of subdivision five of section sixty-five hundred nine of the educa-
 tion law, considering restoration of a professional license pursuant  to
 section  sixty-five  hundred  eleven  of  the education law, or making a
 determination for issuing a license to practice a profession or  issuing
 certificates  and  privileges  for  which prior licensure is required as
 appropriate. Provided, further, that the board of regents  may  consider
 any  prior  conviction  that  formed the basis of a determination of the
 board of regents  in  a  disciplinary  proceeding  pursuant  to  section
 sixty-five  hundred  ten  of  the  education law and the rules and regu-
 lations promulgated pursuant thereto in an application  for  reconsider-
 ation,  even  if  such  conviction later becomes sealed pursuant to this
 section; [and]
   (xvii) the office of mental health and  the  office  for  people  with
 developmental  disabilities, where such agencies are statutorily author-
 ized to receive such information, provided further, that  such  informa-
 tion  may  also be made available for case review under section 10.05 of
 the mental hygiene law, as well as to providers licensed, funded, desig-
 nated, certified or otherwise authorized by the office of mental  health
 or  the  office  for  people with developmental disabilities, where such
 information is included in the clinical record of any person  under  the
 care of or receiving services from such provider or program[.]; AND
   (XVIII)  ANY  PROSPECTIVE  EMPLOYER OF A VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER OR PAID
 FIREFIGHTER, IN RELATION TO AN APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT AS A VOLUNTEER
 FIREFIGHTER OR PAID FIREFIGHTER, PROVIDED, HOWEVER,  THAT  EVERY  PERSON
 WHO  IS  AN  APPLICANT  SHALL  BE  FURNISHED  WITH A COPY OF ALL RECORDS
 OBTAINED UNDER THIS SUBPARAGRAPH AND AFFORDED AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE  AN
 EXPLANATION THERETO.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S8511

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Actions

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Pamela Helming

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Actions

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8511 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments