Bill Text: NY A04238 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Retroactively adjusts the compensation of formerly incarcerated individuals who were unjustly convicted; exempts such adjusted income from state income taxes.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-31 - referred to correction [A04238 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A04238-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4238

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 31, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. CUNNINGHAM, DILAN, GIBBS, HYNDMAN, WALKER, COOK,
          LEVENBERG, WEPRIN -- read  once  and  referred  to  the  Committee  on
          Correction

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  correction  law and the tax law, in relation to
          adjusting the earnings of formerly incarcerated individuals  who  were
          unjustly convicted

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The correction law is amended by adding a new  section  188
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  188.  Adjustment  of  earnings  of incarcerated individuals; unjust
     4  conviction. 1. (a) Any incarcerated individual who is employed  pursuant
     5  to  the  provisions  of  this article shall be entitled to a retroactive
     6  adjustment in their rate of compensation where such  incarcerated  indi-
     7  vidual is subsequently (i) pardoned upon the grounds of innocence of the
     8  crime or crimes for which such incarcerated individual was sentenced and
     9  which  are  the grounds for the fine, restitution or reparation; or (ii)
    10  such incarcerated individual's judgment of conviction  was  reversed  or
    11  vacated,  and the accusatory instrument dismissed or, if a new trial was
    12  ordered, either such incarcerated individual was found not guilty at the
    13  new trial or such defendant was not retried and the  accusatory  instru-
    14  ment dismissed; provided that the judgment of conviction was reversed or
    15  vacated,  and  the  accusatory  instrument  was dismissed, on any of the
    16  following grounds: (1) paragraph (a), (b), (c), (e) or (g)  of  subdivi-
    17  sion  one of section 440.10 of the criminal procedure law; or (2) subdi-
    18  vision one (where based upon grounds set forth in  clause  one  of  this
    19  subparagraph),  two, three (where the count dismissed was the sole basis
    20  for the imprisonment complained of) or five of  section  470.20  of  the
    21  criminal  procedure law; or (3) comparable provisions of the former code
    22  of criminal procedure or subsequent law; or (4) the statute, or applica-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04092-01-5
        A. 4238                             2

     1  tion thereof, on which the accusatory instrument was based violated  the
     2  constitution of the United States or the state of New York.
     3    (b) Such compensation adjustment shall be the greater of:
     4    (i) the current minimum wage of the state;
     5    (ii) the current wage or industry standard wage of the trade or indus-
     6  try  that  such  incarcerated  individual  was  actively  employed in or
     7  trained/certified to work in; or
     8    (iii) the wage equivalent of the incarcerated individual's  salary  at
     9  the time of conviction.
    10    2.  Within  ninety  days following the notice of adjudication for such
    11  pardon, reversal or vacation pursuant to subparagraphs (i) and  (ii)  of
    12  paragraph  (a)  of subdivision one of this section, the department shall
    13  notify such formerly incarcerated individual of their right to receive a
    14  compensation adjustment pursuant to the provisions of this section.
    15    3. Within ninety days of providing notice pursuant to subdivision  two
    16  of this section, the department shall remit to such formerly incarcerat-
    17  ed  individual  any  moneys  owed as adjusted compensation as well as an
    18  accounting, including the method of accounting, for all such moneys.
    19    4. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the  contrary,  any  moneys
    20  remitted   to   a  formerly  incarcerated  individual  pursuant  to  the
    21  provisions of this section shall not diminish or impair any compensation
    22  or award which may be available to such formerly incarcerated individual
    23  pursuant to the provisions of section eight-b of  the  court  of  claims
    24  act.
    25    §  2.  Subsection  (i)  of  section  601  of the tax law is relettered
    26  subsection (j) and a new subsection (i) is added to read as follows:
    27    (i)  Adjusted  compensation  of  formerly  incarcerated   individuals.
    28  Notwithstanding  the  provisions of subsections (a), (b), (c) and (d) of
    29  this section and any other provision of this article, for taxable  years
    30  beginning  after the effective date of this subsection, the income of an
    31  individual received pursuant to the provisions of  section  one  hundred
    32  eighty-eight  of  the correction law shall be exempt from tax under this
    33  article regardless of whether such income is subject to  federal  income
    34  taxation.
    35    §  3.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
    36  have become a law.