A 5159: Waives application fees for individuals who certify to the state civil service department that they are unemployed; removes provisions requiring an individual also be primarily responsible for the support of a household or receiving public assistance.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5159 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY February 12, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. CHANG -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Employees AN ACT to amend the civil service law, in relation to waiving applica- tion fees for individuals who certify they are unemployed The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 5 of section 50 of the civil 2 service law, as amended by section 1 of part EE of chapter 55 of the 3 laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows: 4 (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi- 5 sion, the state civil service department, subject to the approval of the 6 director of the budget, a municipal commission, subject to the approval 7 of the governing board or body of the city or county, as the case may 8 be, or a regional commission or personnel officer, pursuant to govern- 9 mental agreement, may elect to waive application fees, or to abolish 10 fees for specific classes of positions or types of examinations or 11 candidates, or to establish a uniform schedule of reasonable fees 12 different from those prescribed in paragraph (a) of this subdivision, 13 specifying in such schedule the classes of positions or types of exam- 14 inations or candidates to which such fees shall apply; provided, howev- 15 er, that fees shall be waived for candidates who certify to the state 16 civil service department, a municipal commission or a regional commis- 17 sion that they are unemployed [and primarily responsible for the support 18 of a household, or are receiving public assistance]. Provided further, 19 the state civil service department shall waive the state application fee 20 for examinations for original appointment for all veterans. Provided 21 further, the state civil service department shall, and a municipal 22 commission may, subject to the approval of the governing board or body 23 of the city or county, as the case may be, or a regional commission or 24 personnel officer, pursuant to governmental agreement, waive application 25 fees for all examinations held between July first, two thousand twenty- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07652-01-5 
 A. 5159 2 1 three and December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-five. Notwithstand- 2 ing any other provision of law, for purposes of this section, the term 3 "veteran" shall mean a person who has served in the armed forces of the 4 United States or the reserves thereof, or in the army national guard, 5 air national guard, New York guard, or the New York naval militia, and 6 who (1) has been honorably discharged or released from such service 7 under honorable conditions, or (2) has a qualifying condition, as 8 defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a 9 discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, or 10 (3) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one of the 11 veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than bad 12 conduct or dishonorable from such service. The term "armed forces" shall 13 mean the army, navy, air force, marine corps, and coast guard. 14 § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 5 of section 50 of the civil service 15 law, as amended by section 35 of part PP of chapter 56 of the laws of 16 2022, is amended to read as follows: 17 (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi- 18 sion, the state civil service department, subject to the approval of the 19 director of the budget, a municipal commission, subject to the approval 20 of the governing board or body of the city or county, as the case may 21 be, or a regional commission or personnel officer, pursuant to govern- 22 mental agreement, may elect to waive application fees, or to abolish 23 fees for specific classes of positions or types of examinations or 24 candidates, or to establish a uniform schedule of reasonable fees 25 different from those prescribed in paragraph (a) of this subdivision, 26 specifying in such schedule the classes of positions or types of exam- 27 inations or candidates to which such fees shall apply; provided, howev- 28 er, that fees shall be waived for candidates who certify to the state 29 civil service department, a municipal commission or a regional commis- 30 sion that they are unemployed [and primarily responsible for the support 31 of a household, or are receiving public assistance]. Provided further, 32 the state civil service department shall waive the state application fee 33 for examinations for original appointment for all veterans. Notwith- 34 standing any other provision of law, for purposes of this section, the 35 term "veteran" shall mean a person who has served in the armed forces of 36 the United States or the reserves thereof, or in the army national 37 guard, air national guard, New York guard, or the New York naval mili- 38 tia, and who (1) has been honorably discharged or released from such 39 service under honorable conditions, or (2) has a qualifying condition, 40 as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has 41 received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such 42 service, or (3) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one 43 of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than 44 bad conduct or dishonorable from such service. The term "armed forces" 45 shall mean the army, navy, air force, marine corps, and coast guard. 46 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend- 47 ments to paragraph (b) of subdivision 5 of section 50 of the civil 48 service law made by section one of this act shall be subject to the 49 expiration and reversion of such paragraph pursuant to section 2 of part 50 EE of chapter 55 of the laws of 2023, as amended, when upon such date 51 the provisions of section two of this act shall take effect.