Bill Text: NY A01243 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes the awarding of punitive damages to persons aggrieved by sexual harassment.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to governmental operations [A01243 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A01243-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1243 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 14, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to the awarding of puni- tive damages to persons aggrieved by sexual harassment The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph c of subdivision 4 and subdivision 9 of section 2 297 of the executive law, paragraph c of subdivision 4 as amended by 3 chapter 166 of the laws of 2000, subparagraph (vi) of paragraph c of 4 subdivision 4 as amended by section 1 of part AA of chapter 57 of the 5 laws of 2009, subdivision 9 as amended by section 16 of part D of chap- 6 ter 405 of the laws of 1999, are amended to read as follows: 7 c. Within one hundred eighty days after the commencement of such hear- 8 ing, a determination shall be made and an order served as hereinafter 9 provided. If, upon all the evidence at the hearing, the commissioner 10 shall find that a respondent has engaged in any unlawful discriminatory 11 practice as defined in this article, the commissioner shall state find- 12 ings of fact and shall issue and cause to be served on such respondent 13 an order, based on such findings and setting them forth, and including 14 such of the following provisions as in the judgment of the division will 15 effectuate the purposes of this article: (i) requiring such respondent 16 to cease and desist from such unlawful discriminatory practice; (ii) 17 requiring such respondent to take such affirmative action, including 18 (but not limited to) hiring, reinstatement or upgrading of employees, 19 with or without back pay, restoration to membership in any respondent 20 labor organization, admission to or participation in a guidance program, 21 apprenticeship training program, on-the-job training program or other 22 occupational training or retraining program, the extension of full, 23 equal and unsegregated accommodations, advantages, facilities and privi- 24 leges to all persons, granting the credit which was the subject of any 25 complaint, evaluating applicants for membership in a place of accommo- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04828-01-9A. 1243 2 1 dation without discrimination based on race, creed, color, national 2 origin, sex, disability or marital status, and without retaliation or 3 discrimination based on opposition to practices forbidden by this arti- 4 cle or filing a complaint, testifying or assisting in any proceeding 5 under this article; (iii) awarding of compensatory damages to the person 6 aggrieved by such practice; (iv) awarding of punitive damages, in cases 7 of housing discrimination only, in an amount not to exceed ten thousand 8 dollars, to the person aggrieved by such practice; (v) requiring payment 9 to the state of profits obtained by a respondent through the commission 10 of unlawful discriminatory acts described in subdivision three-b of 11 section two hundred ninety-six of this article; [and] (vi) assessing 12 civil fines and penalties, in an amount not to exceed fifty thousand 13 dollars, to be paid to the state by a respondent found to have committed 14 an unlawful discriminatory act, or not to exceed one hundred thousand 15 dollars to be paid to the state by a respondent found to have committed 16 an unlawful discriminatory act which is found to be willful, wanton or 17 malicious; (vii) requiring a report of the manner of compliance; and 18 (viii) awarding of punitive damages, in cases of sexual harassment only, 19 to the person aggrieved by such practice. If, upon all the evidence, the 20 commissioner shall find that a respondent has not engaged in any such 21 unlawful discriminatory practice, he or she shall state findings of fact 22 and shall issue and cause to be served on the complainant an order based 23 on such findings and setting them forth dismissing the said complaint as 24 to such respondent. A copy of each order issued by the commissioner 25 shall be delivered in all cases to the attorney general, the secretary 26 of state, if he or she has issued a license to the respondent, and such 27 other public officers as the division deems proper, and if any such 28 order issued by the commissioner concerns a regulated creditor, the 29 commissioner shall forward a copy of any such order to the superinten- 30 dent. A copy of any complaint filed against any respondent who has 31 previously entered into a conciliation agreement pursuant to paragraph a 32 of subdivision three of this section or as to whom an order of the divi- 33 sion has previously been entered pursuant to this paragraph shall be 34 delivered to the attorney general, to the secretary of state if he or 35 she has issued a license to the respondent and to such other public 36 officers as the division deems proper, and if any such respondent is a 37 regulated creditor, the commissioner shall forward a copy of any such 38 complaint to the superintendent. 39 9. Any person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory 40 practice shall have a cause of action in any court of appropriate juris- 41 diction for damages, including, in cases of housing discrimination and 42 sexual harassment only, punitive damages, and such other remedies as may 43 be appropriate, including any civil fines and penalties provided in 44 subdivision four of this section, unless such person had filed a 45 complaint hereunder or with any local commission on human rights, or 46 with the superintendent pursuant to the provisions of section two 47 hundred ninety-six-a of this [chapter] article, provided that, where the 48 division has dismissed such complaint on the grounds of administrative 49 convenience, on the grounds of untimeliness, or on the grounds that the 50 election of remedies is annulled, such person shall maintain all rights 51 to bring suit as if no complaint had been filed with the division. At 52 any time prior to a hearing before a hearing examiner, a person who has 53 a complaint pending at the division may request that the division 54 dismiss the complaint and annul his or her election of remedies so that 55 the human rights law claim may be pursued in court, and the division 56 may, upon such request, dismiss the complaint on the grounds that suchA. 1243 3 1 person's election of an administrative remedy is annulled. Notwithstand- 2 ing subdivision (a) of section two hundred four of the civil practice 3 law and rules, if a complaint is so annulled by the division, upon the 4 request of the party bringing such complaint before the division, such 5 party's rights to bring such cause of action before a court of appropri- 6 ate jurisdiction shall be limited by the statute of limitations in 7 effect in such court at the time the complaint was initially filed with 8 the division. Any party to a housing discrimination complaint shall have 9 the right within twenty days following a determination of probable cause 10 pursuant to subdivision two of this section to elect to have an action 11 commenced in a civil court, and an attorney representing the division of 12 human rights will be appointed to present the complaint in court, or, 13 with the consent of the division, the case may be presented by 14 complainant's attorney. A complaint filed by the equal employment oppor- 15 tunity commission to comply with the requirements of 42 USC 2000e-5(c) 16 and 42 USC 12117(a) and 29 USC 633(b) shall not constitute the filing of 17 a complaint within the meaning of this subdivision. No person who has 18 initiated any action in a court of competent jurisdiction or who has an 19 action pending before any administrative agency under any other law of 20 the state based upon an act which would be an unlawful discriminatory 21 practice under this article, may file a complaint with respect to the 22 same grievance under this section or under section two hundred ninety- 23 six-a of this article. 24 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 25 have become a law.
