New York State Bar Association’s 2024 Government Relations Legislative Update

New York State Bar Association’s 2024 Government Relations Legislative Update

6.24.2024

By Hilary Jochmans, Lena Faustel, Moe Whitcomb and David P. Miranda

The New York State Bar Association is pleased to provide this Government Relations 2024 NYS legislative session update highlighting major NYSBA policy that was acted on by the New York State legislature, as well as other Association legislative success in New York State and Washington D.C.  The NYS 2024 legislative session came to an end in the early hours of June 8^th, with many bills that NYSBA supported passing through both houses. Over the summer and into the fall, NYSBA’s Government Relations team will continue to advocate for policies important to the legal profession.

NYSBA State Legislative Priorities

• Among NYSBA’s legislative priorities for 2024 was the passage of A7241-A(Lavine)/S8663(Hoylman-Sigal), a bill which would exempt non-electronic notarial acts from the record-keeping rules and regulations set forth by the Department of State. NYSBA’s leadership and GR team advocated strenuously in support for this bill through memos and meetings, and NYSBA membership even got in on the effort through participating in a NYSBA run campaign enabling members to message their legislators asking for their support. This campaign garnered over 500 letters. Ultimately, NYSBA was excited to see this legislation pass in both the Assembly and the Senate.  The Government Relations team will continue to advocate for this bill with the Governor’s office with the hope to see it signed by the end of the year.
• Support for the Assigned Counsel rate increase, another of NYSBA’s priorities, was again included in the budget this year, ensuring that the State would continue to share the burden of cost with municipalities while still aiding those individuals who provide services. The Association continues to call on the State to fully fund the increased rate, and to enact a permanent escalator mechanism.

NYSBA State Legislative Policy

NYSBA saw a number of bills supported by Association policy pass in both houses this session, including:

• S895-B/A6789-B, a bill which requires disclosure of certain social media terms of service. This bill was supported by the Task Force on Combatting Antisemitism and Anti-Asian Hate’s Report, adopted by NYSBA’s House of Delegates in January 2024.
• S7524/A10350, a bill which would expand current authority for the use of e-filing in the courts. This bill was supported by Committee on Court Structure and Operations’ 2012 Report along with the 2023 Report by the Task Force on the Modernization of Criminal Practice.
• S206-A/A1432-A, a bill which removes the lifetime ban on jury duty for convicted felons. This bill is supported by the Task Force on Racism, Social Equity and the Law’s 2023 Report.
• S7567-A/A9143, a bill to ensure state-paid judges and justices receive death benefits even if they were not retired by the time of their death. A resolution was adopted by the Association in 2015 to support this policy.
• S5414/A5366, a concurrent resolution to remove the current constitutional cap on the number of supreme court justices, allowing the legislature to set the number of judges as they do for every other court. The Committee on the New York State Constitution supported this issue in their 2017 Report on the Judiciary Article of the NYS Constitution.
• S9839/A10540, a bill which increases the number of Family Court judges throughout the state as well as increases the number of judges of the Civil Court of the City of New York. The Committee on Family and the Law’s 2022 Report supports this policy.
• Some policies that NYSBA will continue to advocate for:
  • S9281/A8879, which would repeal section 470 of the judiciary law which requires out-of-state attorneys to have a physical office in NYS. This bill which passed both houses in 2023 but then was vetoed by the Governor, passed in the Senate this year, but did not make it out of committee in the Assembly before session ended.
  • S999-A/A170-A, which would establish the right to legal counsel in immigration court proceedings.
  • S2721, which would establish the civil right to counsel in eviction proceedings in NYS.
  • S5826/A3057, the Court Notification Act, which would require the court, prior to accepting a plea, to advise the defendant of the risk of deportation if they are not a citizen. This bill was vetoed in 2023 and not reintroduced in the 2024 session.
  • A995-C/S2445-C, the Medical Aid in Dying Act (MAID), a bill which would amend the public health law, in relation to a terminally ill patient’s request for and use of medication for medical aid in dying. This bill was amended a number of times and did not move out of the health committee in either house before the end of session.

A full list of the bills we advocated for this session can be found here: 2023 and 2024 Legislative Memoranda – New York State Bar Association (nysba.org)

NYSBA in Washington DC

The legislative session in Washington will continue through the end of the year.  NYSBA kicked-off its advocacy for the Association’s federal priorities in April during the American Bar Association (ABA) lobby days in Washington, D.C.

The NYSBA delegation included Richard Lewis; NYSBA Immediate-Past-President; Dominick Napoletano; President; Kathleen Sweet, President-elect; T. Andrew Brown, past-President; and Hilary Jochmans, Federal Legislative Policy Consultant.

 

Over two days, we met with Representatives Rep. Paul Tonko, Rep. Andrew Garbarino, Rep. Joe Morelle, Rep. Nydia Velazquez, Rep. Tom Suozzi and Rep. Jerry Nadler – Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee.  Additionally, the NYSBA delegation met with staff for Rep. Dan Goldman, Senator Gillibrand, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Democratic Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.

 The NYSBA team shared the full list of the Association’s federal priorities and discussed in greater detail those that particularly resonated with the Members of Congress.  These included funding for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), the crisis in immigration reform, firearms and mass shootings and student loan relief.

 The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is an independent non-profit corporation established by Congress in 1974 to provide financial support for civil legal aid to low-income Americans to promote equal access to justice. New York has seven LSC grantees that serve low-income individuals, children, families, seniors, and veterans throughout the state and in every congressional district. It is critically important that Congress provide adequate funding for LSC in order to provide access to justice for those who need assistance.   LSC received $560 million in FY 2024.  This year, NYSBA requests, as usual, that Congress appropriate increased funding, rather than a specific dollar amount, for LSC recipients to be able to carry out its critical work.

 The need for counsel for individuals facing civil immigration detention, removal and expulsion continues to grow.  The condition of these immigrants is often exacerbated by the lack of available counsel necessary to navigate the complexities of modern immigration law. Without competent counsel in immigration proceedings, a vast majority of non-citizens are ill-equipped to know where to turn for help or how to proceed in an immigration matter. New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s measure, The Fairness to Freedom Act, would establish the universal right to federally funded legal representation for individuals facing removal who are unable to afford an attorney.  The Act would ensure full-scope representation, require the government to facilitate access to counsel for people in its custody, establish the Office of Immigration to oversee the new national system of representation, and work with existing state and locally funded removal defense programs. The House companion is supported by several members of the NY Congressional delegation.  The legislation is not only an immigration or fairness issue, but an economic issue as it facilitates employment.  NYSBA’s Immigration Committee has been active on this issue and the Bar is committed to enactment of a statutory right to appointed counsel to ensure justice for that community of immigrants who are confronted with legal proceedings.

Firearms and Mass Shootings: The United States has more mass shootings and more casualties from mass shootings than any other developed country in the world. NYSBA convened a task force on Mass Shootings and Assault Weapons in an effort, based on available data, to understand the incidence and causes of mass shootings, and to make recommendations that offer a reasonable chance to reduce the number of mass shootings while respecting the Second Amendment.  Several of the Task Force’s legislative recommendations are bills pending in Congress including:  bans on assault weapons, bump stocks, and ‘ghost’ guns as well as bills enacting universal background checks and extending the time for these checks.  These measures have the support of many members of the NY Congressional delegation but have not been enacted yet.  The Biden Administration has been active on “red flag” initiatives and may do more on gun control before the end of his term if Congress continues to fail to act.

 More than 40 million Americans, mostly people under 35 years of age, have student loan debt. While Congress and the Administration have provided some relief, more needs to be done including extending the moratorium on payments, expanding the program to private loans, and providing targeted monetary relief in cases of economic hardship. When debilitating student loan payments prevent young people from pursuing a legal career, the result is a dearth of attorneys, particularly in underserved areas.   This issue generated the most discussion and engagement from Democratic and Republican Members and staff in the NYSBA meetings.  There is an interest in developing a plan for loan forgiveness for lawyers who serve in rural or underserved areas, similar to a federal program for doctors and dentists. As highlighted in the NYSBA’s Rural Justice Report, the lack of lawyers in some parts of New York State has created an access to justice crisis for the residents in these areas.  The Bar will continue to explore legislative options with the members of the NYS delegation in Congress.

 In addition to the federal priorities, recent Association reports were discussed and shared with the Members including: Rural Justice, Artificial Intelligence, Affirmative Action, Mental Health and Homelessness.

Thank you to our members who participated in NYSBA advocacy campaigns! Check back later in the year for more updates.