Senate Bill S8928

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8928
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 16, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COONEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor
 
 AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation  to  requiring  employers  to
   disclose  the use of artificial intelligence or automation as a factor
   in workforce reductions under the "New York  state  worker  adjustment
   and  retraining notification (WARN) act"; and providing for the repeal
   of certain provisions of law upon expiration thereof
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "artificial intelligence workforce impact transparency act".
   § 2. Legislative  findings  and  intent.  The  legislature  finds  and
 declares that:
   1. Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies are trans-
 forming industries and workplaces at an unprecedented pace.
   2.  While  innovation  offers  significant productivity gains, it also
 carries risks of workforce displacement and requires  responsive  public
 policy.
   3.  The  existing worker adjustment and retraining notification (WARN)
 act provides notice  and  data  on  large-scale  layoffs  but  does  not
 currently identify whether job losses are linked to automation or AI.
   4.  Collecting  and  publishing  this  information will allow New York
 state to better  understand  technological  impacts  on  its  workforce,
 inform  future retraining programs, and guide equitable AI policy devel-
 opment.
   It is therefore the intent of the legislature to amend the  labor  law
 to  require  employers  to  disclose whether layoffs subject to WARN are
 due, in whole or in part, to automation or AI deployment.
   § 3. Paragraphs (d) and (e) of subdivision 1 of section 860-b  of  the
 labor law, as amended by chapter 86 of the laws of 2021, are amended and
 a new paragraph (f) is added to read as follows:
   (d)  the  chief elected official of the unit or units of local govern-
 ment and the school district or districts for the locality of  the  site

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14156-01-5
              

 S. 8928                             2
 
 of  employment  at  which the mass layoff, relocation or employment loss
 will occur; [and]
   (e)  each  locality  which  provides  police,  firefighting, emergency
 medical or ambulance services or other emergency services to the site of
 employment within which such mass layoff, relocation, or employment loss
 will occur, as applicable[.]; AND
   (F) (I) EACH NOTICE REQUIRED UNDER THIS SECTION SHALL INCLUDE A STATE-
 MENT INDICATING WHETHER THE EMPLOYMENT LOSSES DESCRIBED ARE THE  RESULT,
 IN  WHOLE  OR  IN  PART,  OF THE INTRODUCTION, EXPANSION, OR ADOPTION OF
 ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE  (AI)  SYSTEMS,  AUTOMATION  TECHNOLOGIES,   OR
 MACHINE-BASED  PROCESSES  THAT  HAVE  REPLACED OR MATERIALLY ALTERED THE
 DUTIES OF AFFECTED EMPLOYEES.
   (II) SUCH STATEMENT SHALL ALSO INCLUDE, TO THE  EXTENT  KNOWN  BY  THE
 EMPLOYER AT THE TIME OF NOTICE:
   (A)  THE  ESTIMATED PERCENTAGE OF POSITIONS AFFECTED DUE TO SUCH AUTO-
 MATION OR AI INTEGRATION; AND
   (B) A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE TECHNOLOGY OR PROCESS THAT  CONTRIBUTED
 TO THE REDUCTION.
   § 4. 1. The commissioner of labor shall maintain a database of reports
 submitted  under  paragraph (f) of subdivision 1 of section 860-b of the
 labor law.
   2. Such commissioner shall prepare  and  publish  quarterly  summaries
 analyzing the number, sector, and location of workforce reductions iden-
 tified as resulting from AI or automation.
   3.  Such reports shall be made publicly available on the department of
 labor's website and shared with the department of  economic  development
 for use in workforce innovation planning and retraining programs.
   §  5.  1. The department of labor shall, within 180 days of the effec-
 tive date of this act, establish a two-year pilot program known  as  the
 AI Innovation and Workforce Tracking Initiative.
   2.  The  program  shall evaluate compliance, data accuracy, and policy
 impacts of the reporting requirement, and issue a report to the governor
 and the legislature within 90 days after completion of the pilot  period
 established pursuant to subdivision one of this section.
   3. The commissioner of labor may promulgate such rules and regulations
 as necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
   §  6. Severability. If any provision of this act or its application to
 any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act  or
 the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances shall
 not be affected.
   § 7. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it  shall  have  become  a  law; provided however that the provisions of
 section five of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed  two  years
 after  such  date. 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 effective date.