S 3542: Prohibits the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to search for, scout, locate, hunt, detect, or otherwise aid in the taking of a wild animal to which the hunting season applies.
What S 3542 does, verified January 8, 2026
The bill aims to prohibit the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to aid in hunting in New York State. It defines an unmanned aerial vehicle as any aircraft that operates without direct human intervention. The bill prohibits using UAVs to search for, scout, locate, hunt, detect, or aid in the taking of wild animals during hunting seasons. However, individuals may use UAVs with infrared capabilities to recover legally taken animals, but only with the permission of the property owner. The bill takes effect immediately.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about S 3542
- What is the current status of S 3542?
- As of January 8, 2026, S 3542 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 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION".
- Did S 3542 pass?
- Not yet. S 3542 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 3542, and where is it now?
- S 3542 was authored by Sen. George Borrello. Its committee of record is Senate Environmental Conservation. It is filed under ENV, alongside 57 other New York ENV bills this session.
Author and sponsors
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| Jan. 07, 2026 | REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION |
| Jan. 28, 2025 | REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, January 28, 2025 · 276 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 3542 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 28, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. BORRELLO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to prohibiting the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to aid in hunting The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 11-0103 of the environmental conservation law is 2 amended by adding a new subdivision 33 to read as follows: 3 33. "Unmanned aerial vehicle" means any aircraft that is operated 4 without the possibility of direct human intervention from within or on 5 the aircraft. 6 § 2. Section 11-0901 of the environmental conservation law is amended 7 by adding a new subdivision 18 to read as follows: 8 18. a. No person shall use an unmanned aerial vehicle to search for, 9 scout, locate, hunt, detect, or otherwise aid in the taking of a wild 10 animal to which the hunting season applies. 11 b. A person may operate an unmanned aerial vehicle with infrared abil- 12 ities to recover a legally taken animal, but no person shall be author- 13 ized to enter the property of another person or recover a legally taken 14 animal from the property of another person without the permission of the 15 property owner. 16 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08069-01-5
Text of S 3542 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions