Assembly Passes Legislation Honoring Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day

Assembly Passes Legislation Honoring Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day

Speaker Carl Heastie and Committee on People with Disabilities Chair Angelo Santabarbara today announced the passage of legislation in honor of Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day to improve the lives of individuals living with disabilities across New York State.

"On Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day, our actions must speak as loud as our words, and the bills we passed today build on the progress we have made reducing barriers and supporting New Yorkers with disabilities," said Speaker Heastie. "The millions of New Yorkers that live with a disability deserve dignity, respect and a good quality of life, and this legislation ensures that they have the highest standard of services and care they need across the state."

"As we work to support New Yorkers living with intellectual and developmental disabilities, we must take action to eliminate the challenges that persist in our system, and the package of legislation we passed for Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day is another important step in delivering for disabled New Yorkers," said Assemblymember Santabarbara. "As the chair of the Committee on People with Disabilities, these bills will ensure that our disability community remains protected and that disability services, a lifeline for many, fully supports our communities and makes our state better for all."

Included in this package is legislation (A.6021, Santabarbara) that would establish a blue-ribbon commission to make recommendations for systemic reforms to the developmental disabilities service system, ensuring a sustainable set of supports and services are available in the future to meet the evolving needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Also included is a bill (A.688, Buttenschon) that would require basic training for firefighters on responding to emergency situations that involve people with physical and developmental disabilities.

"Our New York State firefighters bring tremendous skill, dedication, and compassion to every emergency they respond to," said Assemblymember Marianne Buttenschon. "This is due to their commitment to serving others, and the endless hours of training and education course work. While many departments already offer this training, this legislation builds on that strong foundation by ensuring all first responders across the state are equipped with the techniques needed to best serve individuals with physical and developmental disabilities. It will also provide consistent training statewide no matter where someone lives or travels."

Legislation in this package (A.2589, Kelles) restores the rights of state employees to sue New York State for damages due to violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.

"When the state fails to meet established workplace standards, whether that means providing reasonable accommodations for workers with disabilities or protecting family and medical leave, there must be a clear mechanism to address those violations," said Assemblymember Anna Kelles. "We cannot expect private employers to meet federal standards while shielding the state from the same level of accountability. This legislation ensures state employees have the same ability to enforce their rights as workers in every other sector. It does not create new rights or new damages, it ensures the ones already on the books can be meaningfully enforced."

The Assembly also passed a legislative resolution today to make April 29, 2026, New York State Assembly Legislative Disabilities Day in New York State.