S 5397: Relates to certificates of honorable separation from or service in the armed forces of the United States; provides that such certificates shall be forwarded to the appropriate local veterans' service agency within 60 days of receipt.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5397 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 21, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Home- land Security and Military Affairs AN ACT to amend the veterans' services law, the military law and the civil rights law, in relation to certificates of honorable separation from or service in the armed forces of the United States The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 4 of the veterans' services law is amended by 2 adding a new subdivision 40 to read as follows: 3 40. To receive a certificate of release or discharge from active duty 4 which was issued by the United States government and delivered to the 5 department, and shall forward such certificate within sixty days of 6 receipt to the appropriate local veterans' service agency, based upon 7 the mailing address after separation noted on such certificate. Such 8 transmission may be made electronically. Information contained in such 9 certificates shall be protected as personal confidential information 10 under article six-A of the public officers law against disclosure of 11 confidential material, and used only for information and assistance with 12 regards to state benefits and entitlements under federal and state law. 13 § 2. Section 250 of the military law, as amended by chapter 298 of the 14 laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows: 15 § 250. Recording certificates of honorable discharge. Any certificate 16 issued after April sixth, nineteen hundred seventeen, of the honorable 17 separation from or service in the armed forces of the United States of 18 any veteran, may be recorded in any one county, in the office of the 19 county clerk, and when so recorded shall constitute notice to all public 20 officials of the facts set forth therein. It shall be the duty of the 21 county clerk to record the certificate upon presentation thereof without 22 the payment of any fee. For any purpose for which the original certif- 23 icate may be required in the state of New York, a certified copy of the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07624-01-5 
 S. 5397 2 1 record shall be deemed sufficient and shall be accepted in lieu thereof. 2 Notwithstanding any inconsistent provisions of law, it shall be the duty 3 of the county clerk of each county, to furnish without charge to any 4 veteran, or parent, spouse, dependent or child of the veteran, a certi- 5 fied copy of the certificate of the veteran so recorded in the office of 6 the county clerk. No filed certificate or any information contained 7 therein, shall be disclosed to any person except the veteran or parent, 8 spouse, dependent or child of the veteran, representative of the estate 9 of the deceased veteran, an authorized representative of a funeral firm, 10 as defined in section thirty-four hundred of the public health law, 11 which assists with the burial of a veteran, or a public official, acting 12 within the scope of [his or her] their employment, unless such disclo- 13 sure is authorized in writing by the veteran. The provisions of this 14 section also apply to the counties within the city of New York. 15 § 3. Section 79-g of the civil rights law is amended by adding a new 16 subdivision c to read as follows: 17 c. Notwithstanding any provision in this section to the contrary, such 18 certificate shall be made available for public inspection and copying in 19 accordance with the archival schedule adopted by the national archives 20 and record administration (NARA) together with the United States depart- 21 ment of defense (DOD), signed on July eighth, two thousand eight, making 22 the official military personnel files permanent records of the United 23 States. Such schedule mandates the legal transfer of such files from DOD 24 ownership to NARA ownership sixty-two years after the service member's 25 separation from the military. 26 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 27 section two of this act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth 28 day after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addi- 29 tion, amendment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations necessary for 30 the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to 31 be made and completed on or before such effective date.