Law new refers to changes in the laws of the City, State or country. These include statutes, regulations and case law. The Laws of the City of New York (Public Access Portal) and NYC Rules are the best places to find the latest changes to City law.
Lawmakers often propose changes to existing laws in the form of a bill. Depending on the political environment, these bills can be approved by the entire House of Representatives or Senate, or they may be passed by a small group of elected officials known as a committee. After a bill is introduced, it can be amended and then returned to the larger legislative body for approval.
The City Council and other legislative bodies approve changes to the law through a process called “voting by title.” This means that each bill is assigned a number, and its status is indicated by a colored flag next to the name. The colors indicate whether the bill is currently being considered by the Council, if it has been passed by the Council and sent to the Mayor, or if it has been vetoed by the Mayor and the Council has overridden that veto with a 2/3 vote of its membership.
A number of bills have recently passed both the City Council and the Mayor’s office. Some of them relate to public safety and others deal with housing, business and finance issues.
For example, Mayor Kathy Hochul signed a law that makes it a crime to remove or threaten to remove a person’s religious clothing, such as a yarmulke or hijab. Another law enables district attorneys to work together to consolidate shoplifting and petty theft charges.
Other bills that have passed or been vetoed include one to make it illegal to use a drone in the City, and another that requires anyone who wants to create an automated employment decision tool to conduct a bias audit before using it. It also requires employers to provide employees and job applicants with information about student loan forgiveness programs. DCWP is preparing rules to implement this law, which will begin on July 5, 2023.