A 7611: Enacts the "New York State Digital Government Modernization Act"; establishes the digital government modernization initiative and the digital government enhancements pilot program.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7611 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY April 1, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. SLATER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations AN ACT to amend the state technology law, in relation to establishing the digital government modernization initiative and the digital government enhancements pilot program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "New York State Digital Government Modernization Act". 3 § 2. Legislative intent. The legislature finds and declares that: 4 Modernizing the state's digital infrastructure is crucial for improving 5 the efficiency, accessibility, and responsiveness of government 6 services. A unified digital portal can significantly reduce wait times, 7 streamline processes, and enhance user satisfaction. Therefore, it is 8 the intent of the legislature to establish a digital government modern- 9 ization initiative to achieve these goals through innovation and strate- 10 gic investment in technology. 11 § 3. The state technology law is amended by adding a new article 5 to 12 read as follows: 13 ARTICLE V 14 NEW YORK STATE DIGITAL GOVERNMENT MODERNIZATION ACT 15 Section 501. Definitions. 16 502. The digital government modernization initiative. 17 503. Digital government enhancements pilot program. 18 § 501. Definitions. For the purpose of this article: 19 1. "Initiative" shall mean the digital government modernization initi- 20 ative established under section five hundred two of this article. 21 2. "Pilot program" shall mean the digital government enhancements 22 pilot program established under section five hundred three of this arti- 23 cle. 24 3. "Office" means the office of information technology services. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD11294-01-5 
 A. 7611 2 1 § 502. The digital government modernization initiative. 1. There is 2 hereby established within the office the digital government moderniza- 3 tion initiative. 4 2. The initiative shall: 5 (a) improve the accessibility and efficiency of online government 6 services. 7 (b) reduce wait times for resident inquiries and applications for 8 governmental services. 9 (c) ensure secure, user-friendly, and mobile-optimized digital experi- 10 ences for governmental services. 11 § 503. Digital government enhancements pilot program. 1. The office, 12 through the initiative, shall conduct a two year pilot program to assess 13 the feasibility and effectiveness of certain digital government enhance- 14 ments. 15 2. The pilot program shall include: 16 (a) Department of motor vehicle services, including, but not limited 17 to, online driver's license renewals, vehicle registrations, and permit 18 applications. 19 (b) Tax payments and filings, including, but not limited to, stream- 20 lining digital payment processing for state taxes. 21 (c) Business licensing and permits, including but not limited to, 22 streamlining applications for business certifications. 23 (d) Public assistance and benefits, including but not limited to, 24 automating applications for Medicaid, the supplemental nutrition assist- 25 ance program, and the home energy assistance program. 26 (e) A centralized digital government portal to provide residents with 27 a single, secure login through a digital identification system. Such 28 portal shall integrate artificial intelligence-powered virtual assist- 29 ants capable of providing around-the-clock support for common questions 30 and requests. All digital services offered through the portal shall be 31 designed to function seamlessly on smartphones, tablets, and other 32 mobile devices. Additionally, the portal shall deploy artificial intel- 33 ligence to assist with processing applications, permits, and inquiries, 34 with human oversight to ensure accuracy, fairness, and compliance with 35 all applicable laws. Accessibility shall be a core component of the 36 initiative, with real-time translation available in at least ten 37 languages and full compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, 38 including support for screen readers, voice navigation, and text resiz- 39 ing. 40 (f) A unified payment system that accepts widely used digital payment 41 platforms, including, but not limited to, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo, 42 PayPal, and major credit and debit cards. Such payment system shall 43 reduce the need for physical paperwork and in-person visits for routine 44 government transactions. Such payment system shall also implement tools 45 to gather feedback from users and shall publicly display key performance 46 metrics, such as processing times and user satisfaction, through a real- 47 time digital dashboard. 48 3. The pilot program shall be implemented within one year of the 49 effective date of this section and shall end two years after such date. 50 The pilot program shall be continuously evaluated over such period. 51 4. Throughout the pilot program, the office shall provide reports to 52 the governor, the majority and minority leaders of the senate, and the 53 speaker and minority leader of the assembly every six months. Such 54 reports shall include, but not be limited to, data on service usage, 55 user satisfaction, processing times, and cost savings achieved through 56 modernization efforts. Such reports shall also include feedback from 
 A. 7611 3 1 residents and businesses regarding the usability of the new digital 2 systems. Upon completion of the pilot program, a final report shall be 3 submitted assessing the success of the initiative and providing recom- 4 mendations as to whether the program should be expanded or made perma- 5 nent. 6 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.