Senate BillIntroduced
S 5405: Requires hate crime awareness curriculum or instruction for school districts.
What S 5405 does, verified March 4, 2026
The proposed law aims to require school districts to implement hate crime awareness curriculum or instruction. This curriculum will cover topics such as recognizing discrimination and religious intolerance, including anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, and promote acceptance, inclusion, and diversity in communities. The content of the curriculum will be age-appropriate and developed according to the needs and abilities of pupils at successive grade levels. Schools can incorporate the required curriculum into their social studies curriculum or other relevant programs. The law will take effect on July 1st, and schools must implement the required curriculum by this date.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: REFERRED TO EDUCATION (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about S 5405
- What is the current status of S 5405?
- As of March 4, 2026, S 5405 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 EDUCATION".
- Did S 5405 pass?
- Not yet. S 5405 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 5405, and where is it now?
- S 5405 was authored by Sen. Peter Harckham with 10 coauthors. Its committee of record is Senate Education.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions4 total · showing 4
| Jan. 07, 2026 | REFERRED TO EDUCATION |
| Feb. 25, 2025 | AMEND (T) AND RECOMMIT TO EDUCATION |
| Feb. 25, 2025 | PRINT NUMBER 5405A |
| Feb. 21, 2025 | REFERRED TO EDUCATION |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 21, 2025 · 363 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5405 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 21, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. HARCKHAM, MAYER, ADDABBO, CLEARE, MARTINEZ, PARKER, WEBER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing model hate crime materials for school districts The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 804-e 2 to read as follows: 3 § 804-e. Model hate crime awareness materials. 1. The commissioner, in 4 consultation with the division of human rights and any other appropriate 5 agency, shall establish model materials on hate crime awareness for 6 elective adoption by schools or school districts. The model hate crime 7 awareness materials shall include, but are not limited to, instruction 8 on what discrimination and religious intolerance, including anti-Semi- 9 tism and Islamophobia, might look like as well as the positive actions 10 students can take to promote acceptance, inclusion, and the diversity of 11 their communities. The content of such materials shall be age appropri- 12 ate and shall be developed according to the needs and abilities of 13 pupils at successive grade levels in order to provide skills, informa- 14 tion, and guidance to aid in hate crime awareness. 15 2. Schools and school districts may adopt the model hate crime aware- 16 ness materials created by this section, or any component thereof, in any 17 manner the school or school district deems appropriate. 18 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding 19 the date upon which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, 20 the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation neces- 21 sary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are 22 authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective date. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01604-02-5
Text of S 5405 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions