Bill Text: NY A06116 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Requires each agency to develop and implement a five-year accessibility plan, to include: the steps the agency is taking and will be taking over the next 5 years to ensure accessibility to the agency's facilities, services, and programs for persons with disabilities, and information on ongoing projects and projects planned over the next 5 years related to improving physical, digital and programmatic access, and effective communications for persons with disabilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-03-20 - print number 6116a [A06116 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A06116-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6116--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY April 3, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BURDICK, EPSTEIN, RIVERA, DICKENS, LUNSFORD, LEVENBERG, SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Govern- mental Operations -- recommitted to the Committee on Governmental Operations in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to requiring agencies to develop a five-year accessibility plan providing full and equal access to the physical facilities, services, programs, and activities of any state agency or department for persons with disabilities The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 2 40-h to read as follows: 3 § 40-h. Right of equal access; five-year accessibility plan. All 4 persons within the jurisdiction of this state shall be entitled to the 5 full and equal access to the physical facilities, services, programs, 6 and activities of any state agency or department, subject only to the 7 conditions and limitations established by law and applicable alike to 8 all persons. 9 1. As used in this section: 10 (a) "five-year accessibility plan" means an accessibility plan 11 required by subdivision two of this section, utilizing a template to be 12 created by the chief disability officer; and 13 (b) "officer" means the chief disability officer described in section 14 four-b of the executive law. 15 2. Requirements of five-year accessibility plan. Each state agency, in 16 consultation with the officer, shall develop and implement a five-year 17 accessibility plan ensuring that the agency's physical facilities, 18 services, programs, and activities are accessible to and accommodating EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10303-03-4A. 6116--A 2 1 and inclusive of persons with disabilities. Such plan shall include, at 2 a minimum: 3 (a) the steps the agency is currently taking and will be taking over 4 the next five years to ensure that the agency's facilities, services, 5 programs, and activities are accessible to and accommodating and inclu- 6 sive of persons with disabilities; and 7 (b) information regarding ongoing projects and projects planned over 8 the next five years that are related to improving physical, digital, and 9 programmatic access, and effective communications for persons with disa- 10 bilities, including, but not limited to: any alterations or structural 11 changes to facilities or premises that are owned and operated by the 12 agency or contracted for use by the agency or otherwise under the agen- 13 cy's jurisdiction; any planned upgrades or investments in technology or 14 tools that will improve accessibility within the agency or access to 15 such agency's services and programs; and any other steps the agency is 16 taking or plans to take to make its programs and services more accessi- 17 ble to and inclusive of persons with disabilities. Budgetary information 18 and timelines relating to such projects shall be included where practi- 19 cable. 20 3. (a) No later than December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-five, 21 each agency shall post a proposed five-year accessibility plan on its 22 website and circulate such proposed plan for public comment. In circu- 23 lating the proposed plan for public comment, each agency, in consulta- 24 tion with the officer, shall ensure that stakeholders, community-based 25 organizations, providers, and all other appropriate individuals or enti- 26 ties have an adequate opportunity to provide input on the content of the 27 plan. 28 (b) No later than March fifteenth, two thousand twenty-six, each agen- 29 cy shall post its five-year accessibility plan on its website and 30 provide a copy of such plan to the officer. 31 (c) No later than March thirtieth, two thousand twenty-six, the offi- 32 cer shall post online and submit all received five-year accessibility 33 plans to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the 34 speaker of the assembly. 35 4. (a) No later than March fifteenth, two thousand twenty-five, each 36 agency shall post on its website a statement regarding web accessibility 37 and a mechanism for receiving complaints about web accessibility. 38 (b) No later than May first, two thousand twenty-five, each agency 39 shall submit to the officer the name of the office within each agency 40 that shall be responsible for ensuring that the agency's five-year 41 accessibility plan is completed by the deadline, and such office name 42 shall also appear on each agency's respective website. 43 5. Outreach to the metropolitan transportation authority. The office 44 shall invite the metropolitan transportation authority to develop and 45 submit a five-year accessibility plan. 46 6. Agency non-completion of five-year accessibility plans. (a) If any 47 agency or entity, including, but not limited to the metropolitan trans- 48 portation authority does not develop a five-year accessibility plan, the 49 officer shall conduct outreach with such agency or entity to share best 50 practices and recommendations regarding accessibility with such agency 51 or entity. 52 (b) No later than ninety days after the outreach required by paragraph 53 (a) of this subdivision, if an agency or entity does not develop a five- 54 year accessibility plan, the officer shall post on the officer's website 55 a statement that such agency or entity did not develop such plan and a 56 summary of the best practices and recommendations that the officerA. 6116--A 3 1 shared with such agency or entity pursuant to paragraph (a) of this 2 subdivision. 3 7. Annual reporting. Beginning May first, two thousand twenty-six, and 4 annually thereafter, each agency shall post on its website a report of 5 the progress such agency has made in the previous fiscal year towards 6 achieving the goals of the agency's five-year accessibility plan. Such 7 reports shall also be submitted to the officer, who shall submit such 8 reports to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the 9 speaker of the assembly on or before June thirtieth, two thousand twen- 10 ty-six and annually thereafter. 11 8. Triennial reporting. Beginning May first, two thousand twenty- 12 eight, and triennially thereafter, each agency shall post on its website 13 an updated five-year accessibility plan. Such updated plans shall also 14 be submitted to the officer, who shall submit such updates to the gover- 15 nor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assem- 16 bly on or before May fifteenth, two thousand twenty-eight and triennial- 17 ly thereafter. 18 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
