New York Assembly Bill A06001

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/25/25
• Refer: 2/25/25
• Report Pass: 5/28/25
• Refer: 5/28/25
• Refer: 1/7/26
• Report Pass: 4/28/26
• Engrossed: 5/4/26
• Refer: 5/4/26

Caption

Requires that the state university of New York's board of trustees and the city university of New York's board of trustees shall each adopt a policy requiring all state university of New York, city university of New York, college, and community college campuses that offer membership programs to the general public for the use of fitness and aquatic facilities, to permit disabled veterans to obtain a membership for the use of fitness and aquatic facilities upon the same terms and conditions as apply to the general public, but without payment of any fees or other charges, or at a discounted rate; defines "disabled veteran".

Summary

A06001 would require the SUNY and CUNY boards of trustees to adopt policies allowing disabled veterans to obtain memberships for fitness and aquatic facilities at campuses that already offer membership programs to the general public. Those memberships must be offered on the same terms and conditions as the public, but with no fees or other charges, or at a discounted rate. The bill also defines “disabled veteran” by reference to federal veterans’ disability certification. In practical terms, the bill creates a statewide policy mandate for public university campuses that operate pools, gyms, or similar recreational facilities and sell memberships to non-students or the general public. It would affect SUNY and CUNY governance policies and could reduce membership revenue at affected campuses, while expanding access for qualifying veterans. The bill takes effect 60 days after becoming law.

Impact

The bill would amend the operating policies of SUNY and CUNY by requiring their boards of trustees to ensure that campuses offering public membership programs for fitness and aquatic facilities provide free or discounted access to disabled veterans. It does not create a new criminal or tax provision, but it would impose a new administrative obligation on public higher education institutions and could affect campus fee schedules, membership rules, and revenue from recreational facilities. The affected parties are disabled veterans and the campuses that currently charge for these memberships.

Sentiment

The available voting history shows strong, unanimous support for the measure at every stage recorded: it passed the Assembly Higher Education Committee 26-0, the Assembly Ways and Means Committee 33-0, and the Assembly floor 132-0. That pattern suggests broad bipartisan approval and little visible opposition in the legislative record provided. The bill appears to be viewed as a veterans’ access and benefits measure with favorable reception.

Contention

No direct committee transcript is provided, and the recorded votes show no opposition, so there is little evidence of active contention in the materials available. Any potential concerns would likely center on the fiscal and operational impact to SUNY and CUNY campuses, including lost membership revenue or administrative changes needed to implement free or discounted access. However, those concerns are not reflected in the vote totals or any recorded debate here.