1. Bills Signed into Law
This week, Governor Hochul signed several CSEA-supported bills into law, including:
- A.779 (Pheffer Amato): This bill ensures collective bargaining agreements remain in effect when they contain provisions that provide layoff rights that exceed the requirements in law. CBAs with layoff rights that exceed what is required by law will now prevail.
- S.5254 (Chris Ryan): This bill changes the public employee Workplace Violence Prevention law to clarify that time spent by an employee on an inspection, including a risk evaluation and determination inspection or annual program review, is compensable time.
- S.8034-A (Ramos): This bill allows the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) to certify unions and resolve contract impasses in the private sector when the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has declined or is unable to exercise its authority.
2. Changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in New York
Governor Hochul has announced that the state will be forced to scrap a program that offers zero-premium health coverage for low-income New Yorkers under the Essential Plan. This is due to the roughly $7.5 billion in cuts to the Essential Plan that were included in the federal reconciliation package. To help mitigate the impact, the state will revert back to the ACA’s basic health program, which allows states to draw down federal funding to cover residents with incomes between 138% and 200% of the federal poverty level. About 450,000 New Yorkers will lose health care coverage, but shifting to basic health program will allow 1.3 million to retain low-cost health coverage from the state.
3. Remembering September 11, 2001
Yesterday marked the 24th anniversary of September 11, 2001, a day that forever changed our nation. We honor the memory of those who lost their lives, including CSEA members Yvette Anderson, Florence Cohen, Harry Goody, Marian “Marty” Hrycak, and Dorothy Temple. We also remember the first responders who showed remarkable courage and resilience in the face of unimaginable tragedy. We will never forget the loss and sacrifices of that day.
4. CSEA Legislative Toolkit
We’re encouraging members to get the word out about our legislative successes. Click the icons below for informational documents that you can print, share, and post on social media to spread the news. You can also check out our summary of the 2025-2026 New York State Budget.
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