Senate BillIntroduced
S 5490: Allows persons in recovery to have a distinguishing mark printed on their driver's license for cases of medical emergencies.
What S 5490 does, verified January 8, 2026
The bill allows individuals in recovery from medical emergencies, such as drug or alcohol addiction, to have a distinctive mark ("r") printed on their driver's license. This mark will indicate that the individual is in recovery and may be helpful in emergency situations. The bill also waives the standard fees for issuing or renewing licenses with this distinctive mark. The purpose of this bill is to provide a way for individuals in recovery to easily identify themselves as such, and to make it easier for emergency responders to provide assistance.
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 5490
- What is the current status of S 5490?
- As of January 8, 2026, S 5490 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 5490 pass?
- Not yet. S 5490 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote S 5490, and where is it now?
- S 5490 was authored by Sen. Jacob Ashby. 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. 21, 2025 | REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 21, 2025 · 277 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5490 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 21, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. ASHBY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to allowing persons in recovery to have a distinguishing mark printed on their driver's license for cases of medical emergencies The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 504 of the vehicle and traffic law 2 is amended by adding a new paragraph (a-2) to read as follows: 3 (a-2) Every license or renewal thereof issued to an applicant who opts 4 to distinguish as a person in recovery shall, upon the applicant's 5 request and submission of an application for renewal or issuance of such 6 license, contain a distinguishing mark of "R" indicating that the appli- 7 cant is a person in recovery. The commissioner shall not require fees 8 for the issuance of such licenses or renewals thereof to persons 9 requesting an "R" distinguishing mark which are different from fees 10 otherwise required. For the purposes of this section, a "person in 11 recovery" shall mean any person who would like their license to specify 12 for cases of medical emergencies that such person is in some form of 13 drug or alcohol recovery. 14 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02995-01-5
Text of S 5490 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions