Assembly BillIntroduced
A 5855: Requires the administration for children's services and New York city public school employees provide a verbal and written warning to students of such student's right to refuse an interview and right to have a supportive adult during the interview.
What A 5855 does, verified January 9, 2026
The proposed law aims to protect the rights of students during interviews conducted by employees of the Administration for Children's Services (ACS) or the New York City Department of Education. When a student is interviewed on school grounds, the employee must provide both a verbal and written warning of the student's right to refuse the interview. The student must give their consent for the interview to take place. The student also has the right to have a supportive adult present during the interview. This law is intended to ensure that students are aware of their rights and have the support they need during these potentially sensitive interactions.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: referred to education (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about A 5855
- What is the current status of A 5855?
- As of January 9, 2026, A 5855 is recorded as "Introduced": it has been introduced and is waiting for its first committee hearing or floor vote. The last recorded action, on January 7, 2026, was "referred to education".
- Did A 5855 pass?
- Not yet. A 5855 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote A 5855, and where is it now?
- A 5855 was authored by Asm. Chantel Jackson. Its committee of record is Assembly Education.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions4 total · showing 4
| Jan. 07, 2026 | referred to education |
| Jun. 02, 2025 | print number 5855a |
| Jun. 02, 2025 | amend and recommit to education |
| Feb. 24, 2025 | referred to education |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 24, 2025 · 359 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5855 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 24, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. JACKSON -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Education AN ACT to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the administration for children's services and New York city public school employees provide a verbal and written warning of the student's right to refuse an interview and right to a supportive adult during the interview The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The New York city charter is amended by adding a new 2 section 619 to read as follows: 3 § 619. Rights of students during interviews. When a student is inter- 4 viewed by an employee of the administration for children's services, 5 such employee shall provide the student with both a verbal and written 6 warning that the student has the right to refuse the interview, the 7 student must consent to the interview for the interview to occur, and 8 the student has the right to have a supportive adult present at the 9 interview. 10 § 2. Title 21-A of the administrative code of the city of New York is 11 amended by adding a new chapter 11 to read as follows: 12 CHAPTER 11 13 STUDENT INTERVIEWS 14 § 21-973 Rights of students during interviews. When a student is 15 interviewed by an employee of the department, such employee shall 16 provide the student with both a verbal and written warning that the 17 student has the right to refuse the interview, the student must consent 18 to the interview for the interview to occur, and the student has the 19 right to have a supportive adult present at the interview. 20 § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 21 have become a law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03401-01-5
Text of A 5855 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions