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- Referred to codes
- Referred to codes
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Establishes the homeless protection act which designates certain offenses against homeless persons as hate crimes
In Assembly Committee · Codes · Sponsor Rory Lancman
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S918
Title of bill
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to designating offenses against homeless persons as hate crimes
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would protect the homeless from the abuse and attacks often levied against them by designating such attacks as hate crimes.
Summary of specific provisions
Amends subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 485.05 of the penal law as added by chapter 107 of the laws of 2000 to include "homelessness" as a defining category in groups legally recognized as protected under hate crimes law. Section 2 also defines the term "homelessness" as a set of circumstances in which a person or persons are undomiciled, with no address, regular residence, or resides in a place not designed for regular sleeping accommodation, a shelter, a residential program for victims of domestic violence or in a hotel/motel on a temporary basis.
Justification
In the summer of 2009 the National Coalition for the Homeless released a report documenting a rise in violence against the homeless in the past ten years. Over the last decade there have been approximately 860 attacks, and 244 of them resulted in the victim's death. These unprovoked attacks are often perpetrated by young men with no relation to the victim. They prey on, the homeless precisely because they are vulnerable. These attacks have been as extreme as setting a victim on fire, as well as videotaping attacks to post on the Internet, only further encouraging the maltreatment of the homeless. Designating these attacks as hate crimes emphasizes the humanity of the homeless and challenges the misconception that these are people who have been forgotten.
Prior legislative history
2009-2010 - S.8032A/A.9222A Remained in the Senate Committee and the Assembly Committee on Codes
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.