STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1943 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 14, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. WEBER, ASHBY, BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, MARTINS, MATTERA, OBERACKER, O'MARA, PALUMBO, RHOADS, ROLISON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to expanding the criteria for a hate crime The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 485.05 of the penal law, as 2 amended by chapter 8 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 3 1. A person commits a hate crime when [~~he or she~~] such person: 4 (a) commits a specified offense and either: 5 [~~(a)~~] (i) intentionally selects the person against whom the offense is 6 committed or intended to be committed in whole or in substantial part 7 because of a belief or perception regarding the race, color, national 8 origin, ancestry, gender, gender identity or expression, religion, reli- 9 gious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, 10 regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct, or 11 [~~(b)~~] (ii) intentionally commits the act or acts constituting the 12 offense in whole or in substantial part because of a belief or percep- 13 tion regarding the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, 14 gender identity or expression, religion, religious practice, age, disa- 15 bility or sexual orientation of a person, regardless of whether the 16 belief or perception is correct; or 17 (b) commits a specified offense or a violation of section 140.05 of 18 this chapter in or on the grounds of a church, synagogue, mosque or 19 other house of worship. 20 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 485.10 of the penal law, as added by 21 chapter 107 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 22 2. When a person is convicted of a hate crime pursuant to this article 23 and the specified offense is a violation, a misdemeanor or a class C, D EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD03472-01-5

S. 1943 2 1 or E felony, the hate crime shall be deemed to be one category higher 2 than the specified offense the defendant committed, or one category 3 higher than the offense level applicable to the defendant's conviction 4 for an attempt or conspiracy to commit a specified offense, whichever is 5 applicable. 6 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

Expands the criteria for a hate crime

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