S 4844: Requires each agency to develop and implement a five-year accessibility plan, to include: the steps the agency is taking and will be taking over the next 5 years to ensure accessibility to the agency's facilities, services, and programs for persons with disabilities, and information on ongoing projects and projects planned over the next 5 years related to improving physical, digital and programmatic access, and effective communications for persons with disabilities.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4844 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 13, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern- ment Operations AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to requiring agencies to develop a five-year accessibility plan providing full and equal access to the physical facilities, services, programs, and activities of any state agency or department for persons with disabilities The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 2 40-h to read as follows: 3 § 40-h. Right of equal access; five-year accessibility plan. All 4 persons within the jurisdiction of this state shall be entitled to the 5 full and equal access to the physical facilities, services, programs, 6 and activities of any state agency or department, subject only to the 7 conditions and limitations established by law and applicable alike to 8 all persons. 9 1. Definitions. As used in this section: 10 (a) "five-year accessibility plan" means an accessibility plan 11 required by subdivision two of this section, utilizing a template to be 12 created by the chief disability officer; and 13 (b) "officer" means the chief disability officer described in section 14 four-b of the executive law. 15 2. Requirements of five-year accessibility plan. Each state agency, in 16 consultation with the officer, shall develop and implement a five-year 17 accessibility plan ensuring that the agency's physical facilities, 18 services, programs, and activities are accessible to and accommodating 19 and inclusive of persons with disabilities. Such plan shall include, at 20 a minimum: 21 (a) the steps the agency is currently taking and will be taking over 22 the next five years to ensure that the agency's facilities, services, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD09559-01-5 
 S. 4844 2 1 programs, and activities are accessible to and accommodating and inclu- 2 sive of persons with disabilities; and 3 (b) information regarding ongoing projects and projects planned over 4 the next five years that are related to improving physical, digital, and 5 programmatic access, and effective communications for persons with disa- 6 bilities, including, but not limited to: any alterations or structural 7 changes to facilities or premises that are owned and operated by the 8 agency or contracted for use by the agency or otherwise under the agen- 9 cy's jurisdiction; any planned upgrades or investments in technology or 10 tools that will improve accessibility within the agency or access to 11 such agency's services and programs; and any other steps the agency is 12 taking or plans to take to make its programs and services more accessi- 13 ble to and inclusive of persons with disabilities. Budgetary information 14 and timelines relating to such projects shall be included where practi- 15 cable. 16 3. Posting of five-year accessibility plan. (a) No later than Decem- 17 ber thirty-first, two thousand twenty-six, each agency shall post a 18 proposed five-year accessibility plan on its website and circulate such 19 proposed plan for public comment. In circulating the proposed plan for 20 public comment, each agency, in consultation with the officer, shall 21 ensure that stakeholders, community-based organizations, providers, and 22 all other appropriate individuals or entities have an adequate opportu- 23 nity to provide input on the content of the plan. 24 (b) No later than March fifteenth, two thousand twenty-seven, each 25 agency shall post its five-year accessibility plan on its website and 26 provide a copy of such plan to the officer. 27 (c) No later than March thirtieth, two thousand twenty-seven, the 28 officer shall post online and submit all received five-year accessibil- 29 ity plans to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the 30 speaker of the assembly. 31 4. Posting of additional information. (a) No later than March 32 fifteenth, two thousand twenty-six, each agency shall post on its 33 website a statement regarding web accessibility and a mechanism for 34 receiving complaints about web accessibility. 35 (b) No later than May first, two thousand twenty-six, each agency 36 shall submit to the officer the name of the office within each agency 37 that shall be responsible for ensuring that the agency's five-year 38 accessibility plan is completed by the deadline, and such office name 39 shall also appear on each agency's respective website. 40 5. Outreach to the metropolitan transportation authority. The office 41 shall invite the metropolitan transportation authority to develop and 42 submit a five-year accessibility plan. 43 6. Agency non-completion of five-year accessibility plans. (a) If any 44 agency or entity, including, but not limited to the metropolitan trans- 45 portation authority does not develop a five-year accessibility plan, the 46 officer shall conduct outreach with such agency or entity to share best 47 practices and recommendations regarding accessibility with such agency 48 or entity. 49 (b) No later than ninety days after the outreach required by paragraph 50 (a) of this subdivision, if an agency or entity does not develop a five- 51 year accessibility plan, the officer shall post on the officer's website 52 a statement that such agency or entity did not develop such plan and a 53 summary of the best practices and recommendations that the officer 54 shared with such agency or entity pursuant to paragraph (a) of this 55 subdivision. 
 S. 4844 3 1 7. Annual reporting. Beginning May first, two thousand twenty-seven, 2 and annually thereafter, each agency shall post on its website a report 3 of the progress such agency has made in the previous fiscal year towards 4 achieving the goals of the agency's five-year accessibility plan. Such 5 reports shall also be submitted to the officer, who shall submit such 6 reports to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the 7 speaker of the assembly on or before June thirtieth, two thousand twen- 8 ty-seven and annually thereafter. 9 8. Triennial reporting. Beginning May first, two thousand twenty-nine, 10 and triennially thereafter, each agency shall post on its website an 11 updated five-year accessibility plan. Such updated plans shall also be 12 submitted to the officer, who shall submit such updates to the governor, 13 the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly on 14 or before May fifteenth, two thousand twenty-nine and triennially there- 15 after. 16 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.