New York Assembly Bill A08919

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 7/16/25
• Refer: 7/16/25
• Refer: 1/7/26

Caption

Permits enrollment in the address confidentiality program for members of the state legislature.

Summary

This bill amends New York’s address confidentiality program in the Executive Law to make members of the state legislature eligible to enroll. The program currently allows certain protected individuals—such as victims of domestic violence, human trafficking, kidnapping, sexual offenses, and stalking, as well as reproductive health care services providers and related persons—to use a designated address instead of their actual residence information. The bill adds legislators to that list and makes conforming changes throughout the eligibility and application provisions. Under the bill, a legislator could apply for address confidentiality without needing to show that they left their residence because of violence or similar acts, which is already an exception for reproductive health care providers and related persons. The measure also updates the statutory language to refer to “their” residence and expands references to protected actual addresses to include legislators facing threats of violence. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Impact

The bill would amend section 108 of the Executive Law, expanding the scope of the address confidentiality program administered by the Secretary of State. As a result, members of the state legislature would be able to substitute a designated address for their real address in state records and related disclosures, similar to other protected participants in the program. This would affect state administrative procedures for enrollment, address handling, and confidentiality protections, but it does not create a new criminal penalty or alter legislative duties beyond eligibility for the program.

Sentiment

The available record shows no committee transcript or vote history, so there is no documented debate or recorded opposition in the materials provided. Based on the bill text and caption, the measure appears to be framed as a protective, security-oriented expansion of an existing confidentiality program. The overall sentiment in the available materials is neutral to supportive, with the bill presented as a straightforward eligibility expansion for a group that may face heightened privacy and safety concerns.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas of concern, if raised in future debate, could include whether legislators should receive the same confidentiality protections as victims and other covered groups, how eligibility would be verified, and whether expanding the program could affect administrative workload or the scope of address secrecy. However, none of these issues are reflected in the supplied transcripts or votes.