Bill Text: NY S00155 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires the use of gender-neutral terms in law.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2023-05-22 - SUBSTITUTED BY A1142 [S00155 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S00155-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 155 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 4, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sens. KRUEGER, HOYLMAN, JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judici- ary AN ACT to amend the general construction law, in relation to requiring the use of gender-neutral terms in law The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 22 of the general construction law, as added by 2 chapter 730 of the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 22. Gender. Whenever words of the masculine or feminine gender 4 appear in any law, rule or regulation, unless the sense of the sentence 5 indicates otherwise, they shall be deemed to refer to [both male or6female] persons of any gender. This construction shall apply to gender 7 indicative suffixes or prefixes as well as to gender indicative words. 8 Whenever the reference is to a corporation, board, body, group, organ- 9 ization or other entity comprising more than one person or to an assem- 10 blage of persons or to an inanimate object the reference shall be 11 construed to be neuter in gender. Hereafter, in any law, rule, regu- 12 lation, ordinance or resolution, gendered terms shall not be used and 13 gender-neutral terms, including but not limited to "they", "them" and 14 "theirs", shall be used in substitution therefor and with the same force 15 and effect; provided, however, if such law, rule, regulation, ordinance 16 or resolution is in reference to a specific person, the language refer- 17 ring to such person shall be gendered in accordance with the gender 18 identity of such person. 19 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01090-01-3