Senate BillIntroduced
S 5217: Directs the MTA to establish a half fare rate program for veterans.
What S 5217 does, verified January 9, 2026
The proposed law would establish a half fare rate program for veterans in the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This program would provide discounted transportation rates to honorably discharged veterans who are residents of the state of New York. The program would be funded by state appropriations, not the MTA's operating or capital budgets. To be eligible, veterans must present an authorized veteran identification card and meet the definition of a veteran, which includes those who served honorably in the US Armed Forces. The program would take effect immediately.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about S 5217
- What is the current status of S 5217?
- As of January 9, 2026, S 5217 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 TRANSPORTATION".
- Did S 5217 pass?
- Not yet. S 5217 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 5217, and where is it now?
- S 5217 was authored by Sen. Jessica Scarcella-Spanton. Its committee of record is Senate Transportation.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions2 total · showing 2
| Jan. 07, 2026 | REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION |
| Feb. 19, 2025 | REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 19, 2025 · 284 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5217 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 19, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to a half fare rate program in the metropolitan transportation authority for veterans The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 1266 of the public authorities law is amended by 2 adding a new subdivision 20 to read as follows: 3 20. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority and any 4 of its subsidiary corporations shall establish and implement a half fare 5 rate program for veterans, provided, however, the authority shall not 6 pay any costs or expenses related to the half fare rate program from its 7 operating or capital budgets and may only implement the half fare rate 8 program with funds appropriated to it by the state of New York for such 9 purpose. For purposes of this subdivision "veteran" shall mean a member 10 of the armed forces of the United States who served and was honorably 11 discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable from 12 such service, and presents an authorized veteran identification card, 13 and who is a resident of the state of New York at the time of applica- 14 tion for the half fare rate program. 15 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00893-01-5
Text of S 5217 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions