A00278 Summary:

BILL NOA00278
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORCruz
 
COSPNSRForrest, Zaccaro, Gallagher, Gonzalez-Rojas, Stirpe, Weprin, Bores, Hevesi, Paulin, Rivera, Raga, Ramos, Shrestha, Simon, Seawright
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add Art 4-B §§155 - 158, Lab L; amd §291, Exec L; amd §53, Civ Serv L
 
Enacts the "New York emergency expedited temporary work permit act" to allow asylum seekers to apply for and be granted temporary work permits while their federal immigration status is being determined.
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A00278 Actions:

BILL NOA00278
 
01/08/2025referred to labor
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A00278 Committee Votes:

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A00278 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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A00278 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A278
 
SPONSOR: Cruz
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the labor law, the executive law and the civil service law, in relation to enacting the New York emergency expedited temporary work permit act; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: This legislation will create a worker permit program for asylum seekers who have filed federal. government paperwork needed to claim asylum. The work permit program will allow this legal group of immigrants to work legally and under full protections of New York State laws.   SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1 provides a title for this legislation Section 2 provides legislative findings and intent Section 3 amends the labor law by adding Article 4-b to read as follows: Section: 155. Definitions. 156. Asyiee worker permit program. 157. Rules and regulations. 158. Construction. § 155. Definitions. For the purposes of this article:
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A00278 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                           278
 
                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                       (Prefiled)
 
                                     January 8, 2025
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M. of A. CRUZ, FORREST, ZACCARO, GALLAGHER, GONZALEZ-RO-
          JAS, STIRPE, WEPRIN,  BORES,  HEVESI,  PAULIN,  RIVERA,  RAGA,  RAMOS,
          SHRESTHA,  SIMON, SEAWRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Labor
 
        AN ACT to amend the labor law, the executive law and the  civil  service
          law,  in  relation to enacting the New York emergency expedited tempo-
          rary work permit act; and providing for the repeal of such  provisions
          upon the expiration thereof
 
          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  "New  York
     2  emergency expedited temporary work permit act".
     3    § 2.  Legislative finding and intent.  The federal immigration law has
     4  become outdated and an impediment to New York state's ability to quickly
     5  and properly integrate asylum seekers allowed to enter the United States
     6  of  America.     Current federal law requires that an asylum seeker wait
     7  150 days before applying for a work permit.  Current work permit  appli-
     8  cations can take anywhere from 5 months to 14 months to process, leaving
     9  asylum  seekers  without  the  legal paperwork to support themselves and
    10  their families.  Asylum seekers desperate to provide shelter, food,  and
    11  living  expenses  for  themselves  and their families are forced to work
    12  without proper documentation leaving  them  open  to  exploitation  from
    13  employers that range from working in dangerous conditions without train-
    14  ing  to  having  their  wages  stolen.    In view of the current federal
    15  inaction to expedite federal work permit applications for  asylum  seek-
    16  ers, it is incumbent on New York state to exercise its state's constitu-
    17  tional  duties  and  the  powers  reserved  to  states under the federal
    18  constitution and enact a worker permit program.
    19    § 3. The labor law is amended by adding a new article 4-B to  read  as
    20  follows:
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01235-01-5

        A. 278                              2
 
     1                                 ARTICLE 4-B
     2                        ASYLEE WORKER PERMIT PROGRAM
     3  Section 155. Definitions.
     4          156. Asylee worker permit program.
     5          157. Rules and regulations.
     6          158. Construction.
     7    § 155. Definitions. For the purposes of this article:
     8    1.  The  term  "asylee"  shall have the same meaning as defined in the
     9  federal immigration and nationality act  (8 U.S.C. § 1101) provided that
    10  for the purposes of this article such term shall  include  both  asylees
    11  who  have  filed federal paperwork to obtain asylum status and those who
    12  are in the process of filing such application.
    13    2. The term "employment" shall include employment in both the  private
    14  and public sectors.
    15    §  156. Asylee worker permit program. 1. The commissioner shall estab-
    16  lish a temporary program for the expedited issuance of work  permits  by
    17  the  department to asylum seekers residing in New York within forty-five
    18  days of application.
    19    2. No fees shall be charged for the issuance of asylee worker permits.
    20    3. Permits issued under this section shall be valid for  a  period  of
    21  eighteen  months  from  issuance,  but  may be renewed pursuant to regu-
    22  lations adopted by the department.
    23    § 157. Rules and regulations. The commissioner shall promulgate  emer-
    24  gency  rules  and  regulations  for  the  issuance  of worker permits to
    25  asylees within thirty days of the effective date of this section.
    26    § 158. Construction. Nothing contained within this  article  shall  be
    27  construed  to  grant  any  additional rights not explicitly provided for
    28  pursuant to the provisions of this article.
    29    § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 291 of the executive law, as amended  by
    30  chapter 8 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
    31    1. The opportunity to obtain employment without discrimination because
    32  of  age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender
    33  identity or expression, military status, sex, marital status, [or] disa-
    34  bility, or status as an asylum  seeker,  is  hereby  recognized  as  and
    35  declared to be a civil right.
    36    §  5.   Section 53 of the civil service law, as amended by chapter 669
    37  of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
    38    § 53. Noncitizen status. Except  as  otherwise  provided  by  law,  no
    39  noncitizen  lawfully  admitted  for  permanent  residence  in the United
    40  States shall be denied appointment to  a  position  in  the  competitive
    41  class  of  civil service for reasons of noncitizen status. The state and
    42  municipal civil service  commissions  may,  by  rule,  provide  for  the
    43  appointment  of persons who are asylum seekers and who are issued worker
    44  permits under article four-B of the labor law.
    45    § 6. This act shall take effect on the forty-fifth day after it  shall
    46  have  become  a  law  and shall expire 2 years after such effective date
    47  when upon such date the provisions of this act shall be deemed repealed.
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A00278 LFIN:

 NO LFIN
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A00278 Chamber Video/Transcript:

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