Establishes Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as school holidays, with dates established by religious law and tradition; allows for school districts and municipalities with a population of less than fifty thousand to opt into the recognition of such holidays.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A2598A
SPONSOR: Sayegh TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to establishing Eid
al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as school holidays
PURPOSE:
To establish Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, two Muslim holidays, as school
holidays.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Sections 1 and 2 amend education law to add Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha
to the list of days school cannot be in session, when a municipality or
school district has a population of over 50,000. For municipalities and
school districts with populations under 50,000, such municipalities and
school districts may opt-in, but are not required to.
Section 3 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
There are over half a million Muslims in New York State, ranging from
the children in our school systems to our seniors. Eid al-Fitr is known
to the Muslim community as "the festival of breaking the fast." It
concludes the month-long fast of Ramadan. Eid al-Adha is the "feast of
the sacrifice" to honor Allah with gifts and fasting. It is our duty to
ensure that we respect and acknowledge their holidays and celebrations
as an integral part of New York State.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2018: A11350 (Fernandez) referred to governmental operations
2019-20: A2768 (Fernandez) referred to governmental operations
2021-22: A1835 (Fernandez) referred to governmental operations
2023-24: A3068A(Fernandez) referred to governmental operations
2025-26: A2598A (Fernandez) referred to governmental operations
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
