What's happening
This bill expands sick leave protections and anti-retaliation measures for public employees with World Trade Center-related health conditions.
Why it matters
Removes barriers to sick leave eligibility. for public employees with World Trade Center (WTC)-related health conditions by allowing them to receive line of duty sick leave even if they were not employed by their current employer during their WTC service, ensuring broader coverage for those who participated in rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations.
Expands anti-retaliation protections. , making it illegal for public employers to take any adverse personnel actions (such as discipline, demotion, suspension, or discrimination) against employees who request or use sick leave due to a qualifying WTC-related condition, thus providing stronger job security for affected workers.
Clarifies that “adverse personnel action”. includes a wide range of negative employment consequences, explicitly listing actions like issuing a notice of discipline or penalization, which strengthens legal safeguards and deters employer retaliation.
Mandates state reimbursement for local governments. (except New York City) and public authorities for the costs of this expanded sick leave, reducing financial burdens on smaller municipalities and ensuring they can provide these protections without economic hardship.
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Who cares
Public employees with qualifying World Trade Center conditions
The bill would remove the requirement that they develop the condition while publicly employed to qualify for line-of-duty sick leave at regular pay without using accrued sick leave.
Public employers and personnel officers
The bill would prohibit adverse personnel actions against employees for requesting or using leave due to a qualifying World Trade Center condition or line-of-duty sick leave under this section.
Public authorities and municipal corporations
The bill would revise eligibility for state reimbursement of line-of-duty sick leave costs and apply its changes to all reimbursement claims filed under the law.
Headline styles
Protect 9/11 Workers’ Sick Leave
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to local government
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to local government
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3818
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 15, 2019
Introduced by Sens. GOUNARDES, KAMINSKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and to amend chapter 273 of the laws of 2017 amending the general municipal law relating to granting sick leave for officers and employees with the qualifying World Trade Center condition, in relation to sick leave for officers and employees with a qualifying World Trade Center condition
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 92-d of the general municipal law, as added by chapter 273 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as follows:
§ 92-d. Sick leave for officers and employees with a qualifying World Trade Center condition. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, officers and employees of the state, a public authority or any municipal corporation outside of a city with a population of one million or more who filed a notice of participation in World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations and subsequently develop a qualifying World Trade Center condition, as defined in section two of the retirement and social security law, [while employed by the state, a public authority or such municipal corporation or public authority] shall be granted line of duty sick leave commencing on the date that such employee was diagnosed with a qualifying World Trade Center condition regardless of whether such officer or employee was employed by his or her current employer at the time that such officer or employee participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations. The officer or employee shall be compensated at his or her regular rate of pay for those regular work hours during which the officer or employee is absent from work due to his or her qualifying World Trade Center condition. Such leave shall be provided without loss of an officer or employee's accrued sick leave.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09970-01-9
S. 3818 2
(b) A public employer shall not take any adverse personnel action against a public employee regarding the employee's employment because either (1) the employee utilizes, or requests to utilize, sick leave or any other available leave due to a qualifying World Trade Center condition, as such term is defined in section two of the retirement and social security law, or (2) the employee utilizes or requests to utilize line of duty sick leave provided by this section.
(c) For purposes of this section, an "adverse personnel action" means any discipline, including issuing a notice of discipline, discharge, suspension, demotion, penalization, or discrimination against an employee utilizing line of duty sick leave pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section.
§ 2. Section 2 of chapter 273 of the laws of 2017, amending the general municipal law relating to granting sick leave for officers and employees with a qualifying World Trade Center condition, is amended to read as follows:
§ 2. The state shall reimburse any public authority or municipal corporation [of less than] other than a city with a population of one million people for the cost of any line duty sick leave granted pursuant to this act.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on the same date as chapter 273 of the laws of 2017, took effect; and provided that this act shall apply to all claims for reimbursement filed pursuant to section 92-d of the general municipal law, as amended by this act.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the general municipal law and to amend chapter 273 of the laws of 2017 amending the general municipal law relating to granting sick leave for officers and employees with the qualifying World Trade Center condition, in relation to sick leave for officers and employees with a qualifying World Trade Center condition
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill makes some technical corrections to Chapter 273 of the Laws of 2017 and protects employees who use line of duty sick leave from employ- er retaliation.
Summary of provisions
Section one of this bill amends General Municipal Law section 92-d to make technical corrections and create 3 subdivisions. The current stat- ute, as amended, is subdivision (a). New subdivision (b) prohibits employers from taking "an adverse personnel action against an employee who utilizes or requests to utilize any type of available leave, includ- ing line of duty sick leave provided by this section, due to a qualify- ing World Trade Center condition." New subdivision (c) defines an "adverse personnel action" to be "any discipline including issuing a notice of discipline, discharge, suspension, demotion, penalization, or discrimination against an employee utilizing line of duty sick leave pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section."
Read the full memo (674 words)
Section two of this bill provides a technical amendment to Chapter 273 of the Laws of 2017 by correcting the reimbursement to municipal corpo- rations from municipal corporations with a population of less than a million to municipal corporations with a population of a million or more.
Section three of this bill provides that this act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on the same date as chapter 273 of the laws of 2017, took effect; and provided that this act shall apply to all claims for reimbursement filed pursuant to section 92-d of the general municipal law, as amended by this act.
Existing law
Currently, only municipalities with a population of less than a million will be reimbursed for line of duty sick leave. Additionally, employers are not prohibited from retaliating against employees who use, or request to use, leave due to a qualifying World Trade Center Condition.
Justification
In 2017, the Legislature took action to help public employees vt -ti ere there for New York in its darkest hours. These public employees who helped with World Trade Center rescue, recovery and cleanup efforts put aside their personal safety to help us in the wake of the World Trade Center attack. For the brave first responders who are still employed by the State, a public authority, or a municipality and are now suffering from a qualified World Trade Center condition, the Legislature created line of duty sick leave so that they can receive the medical attention that they need without having to worry about having enough leave for their medical appointments. Unfortunately, many of our World Trade Center first responders are either not receiving line of duty sick leave or being retaliated against for using line of duty sick leave. This bill prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who either use or request to use line of duty sick leave. We owe these brave first responders a debt of gratitude. Their employers should not be denying their requests to use World Trade Center sick leave and they certainly should not be taking an adverse personnel action against any first responder who requests to use or utilizes line of duty sick leave. This bill will help to ensure that employers act properly toward our World Trade Center first responders.
Prior legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on the same date as chapter 273 of the laws of 2017, took effect; and provided that this act shall apply to all claims for reimbursement filed pursuant to section 92-d of the general munici- pal law, as amended by this act.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.