New York State Assembly

 
•  Summary 
 
•  Actions 
 
•  Committee Votes 
 
•  Floor Votes 
 
•  Memo 
 
•  Text 
 
•  LFIN 
 
•  Chamber Video/Transcript 

A01982 Summary:

A01982 Actions:

A01982 Committee Votes:

Committee:HEALTH   Chair:Gottfried      
DATE:01/24/2017AYE/NAY:24/0  Action: Favorable refer to committee Codes        
Gottfried
Aye
Raia
Aye
Schimminger
Aye
McDonough
Aye
Galef
Aye
Ra
Aye
Dinowitz
Aye
Walter
Aye
Cahill
Excused
Garbarino
Aye
Paulin
Aye
Byrne
Aye
Cymbrowitz
Aye
Norris
Aye
Gunther
Aye
Rosenthal
Aye
Hevesi
Aye
Lavine
Aye
Titone
Aye
Mayer
Aye
Jaffee
Aye
Steck
Aye
Abinanti
Aye
Braunstein
Excused
Kim
Aye
Solages
Aye

Committee:CODES   Chair:Lentol      
DATE:02/07/2017AYE/NAY:19/1  Action: Favorable         
Lentol
Aye
Graf
Aye
Schimminger
Aye
Giglio
Aye
Weinstein
Excused
McKevitt
Aye
Pretlow
Aye
Montesano
Nay
Cook
Aye
Ra
Aye
Cymbrowitz
Aye
Morinello
Aye
Titus
Aye
O'Donnell
Aye
Lavine
Aye
Perry
Aye
Zebrowski
Aye
Abinanti
Aye
Weprin
Aye
Mosley
Aye
Hevesi
Excused
Fahy
Aye

A01982 Floor Votes:

A01982 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
 submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)



 
BILL NUMBER: A1982
 
SPONSOR: Paulin (MS)

 
TITLE OF BILL:
 
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to enacting the
Crohn's and colitis fairness act
 
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
 
To make toilet facilities that are for employee use only, in places of
business open to the general public, accessible to those who have an
eligible medical condition such as Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis,
or other medical conditions that require immediate access to a bathroom.
 
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section one provides that this act shall be known and may be cited as
"The Crohn's and Colitis Fairness Act."
 
Section two amends the public health law by adding a new article 19.
Section 1900 of article nineteen provides the definition for "eligible
medical condition." Section 1901 of article nineteen provides that a
place of business that is open to the general public and has a toilet
facility for its employees shall allow a person who is lawfully on the
premises during normal business hours access to the employee toilet
facility as long as the person requesting use of the employee toilet has
an eligible medical condition or utilizes an ostomy device, provided
that the place of business may require the individual to present reason-
able evidence that he or she has an eligible medical condition or uses
an ostomy device; two or more employees of the place of business are
working at the time the individual requests use of the employee toilet
facility; the place of business does not normally make the employee
toilet facility available to the public; the employee toilet facility is
located in at area where there would be no obvious health safety or
security risk; use of the toilet facility would not create an obvious
health or safety risk to the requesting individual; and a public rest-
room is not immediately accessible to the requesting person.  Section
1902 of article nineteen provides that a place of business open to the
public for the sale of goods or services is not required to make phys-
ical changes to its employee toilet facility.
 
Section three provides the effective date.
 
 
JUSTIFICATION:
 
Increasing numbers of people are being diagnosed with inflammatory bowel
diseases. It is estimated that over 600,000 Americans suffer from
Crohn's disease alone, which is an ongoing disorder of the gastrointes-
tinal tract. It causes swelling of the intestines, creating pain and
diarrhea. People who suffer from such diseases often need urgent and
sudden access to a toilet facility.
 
In Illinois, a teenaged girl named Ally Bain, who has Crohn's disease,
had a humiliating incident in public when she was denied access to an
employee-only restroom. She was, bravely, instrumental in the passage of
Illinois's Restroom Access Act, also known as Ally's Law. In addition to
Illinois, fourteen other states have passed the Restroom Access Act:
Texas, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Minnesota, Michigan, Washington, Tennes-
see, Colorado, Ohio, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, and
Oregon.
 
This legislation creates a compassionate system for those who suffer
from gastrointestinal diseases by making it possible for those who have
an eligible medical condition, as defined in the bill, to have access to
an employee-only toilet facility in a place of business that is already
open to the public when there are at least two employees working at the
time of the request, and using that facility would not create a health,
safety, or security risk.
 
This legislation would not create any additional cost to businesses as
they are not required to alter their toilet facility. Also, a business
would not be required to provide access to their toilet facility when
another facility is immediately accessible to the requesting person.
 
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
 
A.277 passed in the assembly in 2015 and 2016. Same as S.4918 was
advanced to a third reading and committed to rules in 2015 and
2016.A.5099-A, 2013 referred to rules and 2014 referred to codes. Same
as S.4803-A, 2013 and 2014 referred to health. A.83-B, 2011 referred to
health and 2012 referred to rules.  Same as S.7153, 2012 referred to
health. A.807, 2009 and 2010 referred to health. A.10058, 2008 referred
to health. Same as S.7138, 2008 referred to health.
 
 
FISCAL IMPLICATION:
 
None.
 
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become law, provided that the addition, amendment and/or
repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of
this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be made
and completed on or before such effective date.

A01982 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          1982
 
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    January 17, 2017
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by M. of A. PAULIN, DINOWITZ, GALEF, RIVERA, HEVESI, FAHY --
          Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. GOTTFRIED -- read once and referred  to
          the Committee on Health
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  public  health law, in relation to enacting the
          Crohn's and colitis fairness act

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  This  act shall be known and may be cited as the "Crohn's
     2  and colitis fairness act".
     3    § 2. The public health law is amended by adding a new  article  19  to
     4  read as follows:
     5                                 ARTICLE 19
     6                      CROHN'S AND COLITIS FAIRNESS ACT
     7  Section 1900. Definition.
     8          1901. Access to restroom facilities.
     9          1902. Required changes.
    10    §  1900. Definition. As used in this article, "eligible medical condi-
    11  tion" means Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, any other  inflammatory
    12  bowel  disease,  irritable bowel syndrome or any other medical condition
    13  that requires immediate access to a toilet facility.
    14    § 1901. Access to restroom facilities. A place of business open to the
    15  general public for the sale of goods  or  services  that  has  a  toilet
    16  facility for its employees shall allow any individual who is lawfully on
    17  the  premises  of  such  place  of  business to use that toilet facility
    18  during normal business hours, even if the place  of  business  does  not
    19  normally  make  the  employee  toilet  facility available to the public,
    20  provided that all of the following conditions are met:
    21    1. the individual requesting the use of the employee  toilet  facility
    22  has an eligible medical condition or utilizes an ostomy device, provided
    23  that the place of business may require the individual to present reason-
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01074-01-7
        A. 1982                             2
 
     1  able  evidence  that the individual has an eligible medical condition or
     2  uses an ostomy device;
     3    2.  two  or more employees of the place of business are working at the
     4  time the individual requests use of the employee toilet facility;
     5    3.   the employee toilet facility is not  located  in  an  area  where
     6  providing  access  would  create an obvious health or safety risk to the
     7  requesting individual or create an obvious security risk to the place of
     8  business;
     9    4. use of the toilet facility would not create an  obvious  health  or
    10  safety risk to the requesting individual; and
    11    5.  a  public restroom is not immediately accessible to the requesting
    12  individual.
    13    § 1902. Required changes. Nothing in section nineteen hundred  one  of
    14  this article shall be construed as requiring a place of business open to
    15  the  general  public for the sale of goods or services that has a toilet
    16  facility for its employees to make any physical changes to  an  employee
    17  toilet facility.
    18    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
    19  it  shall become law, provided that effective immediately, the addition,
    20  amendment and/or repeal of any rule  or  regulation  necessary  for  the
    21  implementation  of  this  act  on  its effective date are authorized and
    22  directed to be made and completed on or before such effective date.

A01982 Chamber Video/Transcript: