STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6264 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 27, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. STERN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs AN ACT to amend the economic development law, the public officers law and the military law, in relation to expanding the definition of veteran to include members of the commissioned corps of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration and the commissioned corps of the public health service The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 6 of section 210 of the economic development 2 law, as amended by section 33 of part PP of chapter 56 of the laws of 3 2022, is amended to read as follows: 4 6. "Veteran" shall mean a person who served in the United States army, 5 navy, air force, marines, coast guard, the commissioned corps of the 6 national oceanic and atmospheric administration, the commissioned corps 7 of the public health service, and/or reserves thereof, and/or in the 8 army national guard, air national guard, New York guard and/or the New 9 York naval militia and who (a) has received an honorable or general 10 discharge from such service, or (b) has a qualifying condition, as 11 defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a 12 discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, or 13 (c) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one of the 14 veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than bad 15 conduct or dishonorable from such service. 16 § 2. Section 63 of the public officers law, as amended by section 80 17 of part PP of chapter 56 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as 18 follows: 19 § 63. Leave of absence for veterans on Memorial day and Veterans' day. 20 It shall be the duty of the head of every public department and of every 21 court of the state of New York, of every superintendent or [foreman] 22 foreperson on the public works of said state, of the county officers of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08914-01-5
A. 6264 2 1 the several counties of said state, of the town officers of the various 2 towns in this state, of the fire district officers of the various fire 3 districts in this state, and of the head of every department, bureau and 4 office in the government of the various cities and villages in this 5 state, and the officers of any public benefit corporation or any public 6 authority of this state, or of any public benefit corporation or public 7 authority of any county or subdivision of this state, to give leave of 8 absence with pay for twenty-four hours on the day prescribed by law as a 9 public holiday for the observance of Memorial day and on the eleventh 10 day of November, known as Veterans' day, to every person in the service 11 of the state, the county, the town, the fire district, the city or 12 village, the public benefit corporation or public authority of this 13 state, or any public benefit corporation or public authority of any 14 county or subdivision of this state, as the case may be, (i) who served 15 on active duty in the armed forces of the United States during world war 16 I or world war II, or who was employed by the War Shipping Adminis- 17 tration or Office of Defense Transportation or their agents as a 18 merchant seaman documented by the United States Coast Guard or Depart- 19 ment of Commerce, or as a civil servant employed by the United States 20 Army Transport Service (later redesignated as the United States Army 21 Transportation Corps, Water Division) or the Naval Transportation 22 Service; and who served satisfactorily as a crew member during the peri- 23 od of armed conflict, December seventh, nineteen hundred forty-one, to 24 August fifteenth, nineteen hundred forty-five, aboard merchant vessels 25 in oceangoing, i.e., foreign, intercoastal, or coastwise service as such 26 terms are defined under federal law (46 USCA 10301 & 10501) and further 27 to include "near foreign" voyages between the United States and Canada, 28 Mexico, or the West Indies via ocean routes, or public vessels in ocean- 29 going service or foreign waters and who has received a Certificate of 30 Release or Discharge from Active Duty and a discharge certificate, or an 31 Honorable Service Certificate/Report of Casualty, from the Department of 32 Defense, or who served as a United States civilian employed by the Amer- 33 ican Field Service and served overseas under United States Armies and 34 United States Army Groups in world war II during the period of armed 35 conflict, December seventh, nineteen hundred forty-one through May 36 eighth, nineteen hundred forty-five, and who (a) was discharged or 37 released therefrom under honorable conditions, or (b) has a qualifying 38 condition, as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and 39 has received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from 40 such service, or (c) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section 41 one of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other 42 than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service or who served as a 43 United States civilian Flight Crew and Aviation Ground Support Employee 44 of Pan American World Airways or one of its subsidiaries or its affil- 45 iates and served overseas as a result of Pan American's contract with 46 Air Transport Command or Naval Air Transport Service during the period 47 of armed conflict, December fourteenth, nineteen hundred forty-one 48 through August fourteenth, nineteen hundred forty-five, and who (d) was 49 discharged or released therefrom under honorable conditions, or (e) has 50 a qualifying condition, as defined in section one of the veterans' 51 services law, and has received a discharge other than bad conduct or 52 dishonorable from such service, or (f) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as 53 defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a 54 discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service or 55 during the period of the Korean conflict at any time between the dates 56 of June twenty-seventh, nineteen hundred fifty and January thirty-first,
A. 6264 3 1 nineteen hundred fifty-five, or during the period of the Vietnam 2 conflict from the first day of November, nineteen hundred fifty-five to 3 the seventh day of May, nineteen hundred seventy-five, or (ii) who 4 served on active duty in the armed forces of the United States and who 5 was a recipient of the armed forces expeditionary medal, navy expedi- 6 tionary medal or marine corps expeditionary medal for participation in 7 operations in Lebanon from June first, nineteen hundred eighty-three to 8 December first, nineteen hundred eighty-seven, in Grenada from October 9 twenty-third, nineteen hundred eighty-three to November twenty-first, 10 nineteen hundred eighty-three, or in Panama from December twentieth, 11 nineteen hundred eighty-nine to January thirty-first, nineteen hundred 12 ninety, or (iii) who served in the armed forces of a foreign country 13 allied with the United States during world war I or world war II, or 14 during the period of the Korean conflict at any time between June twen- 15 ty-seventh, nineteen hundred fifty and January thirty-first, nineteen 16 hundred fifty-five, or during the period of the Vietnam conflict from 17 the first day of November, nineteen hundred fifty-five to the seventh 18 day of May, nineteen hundred seventy-five, or during the period of the 19 Persian Gulf conflict from the second day of August, nineteen hundred 20 ninety to the end of such conflict, or (iv) who served on active duty in 21 the army or navy or marine corps or air force or coast guard or the 22 commissioned corps of the national oceanic and atmospheric adminis- 23 tration or the commissioned corps of the public health service of the 24 United States, and who (a) was honorably discharged or separated from 25 such service under honorable conditions, or (b) has a qualifying condi- 26 tion, as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has 27 received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such 28 service, or (c) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one 29 of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than 30 bad conduct or dishonorable from such service except where such action 31 would endanger the public safety or the safety or health of persons 32 cared for by the state, in which event such persons shall be entitled to 33 leave of absence with pay on another day in lieu thereof. All such 34 persons who are compensated on a per diem, hourly, semi-monthly or 35 monthly basis, with or without maintenance, shall also be entitled to 36 leave of absence with pay under the provisions of this section and no 37 deduction in vacation allowance or budgetary allowable number of working 38 days shall be made in lieu thereof. A refusal to give such leave of 39 absence to one entitled thereto shall be neglect of duty. 40 § 3. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 243 of the military 41 law, as amended by section 71 of part PP of chapter 56 of the laws of 42 2022, is amended to read as follows: 43 (b) The term "military duty" shall mean military service in the mili- 44 tary, naval, aviation or marine service of the United States subsequent 45 to July first, nineteen hundred forty, or service under the selective 46 training and service act of nineteen hundred forty, or the national 47 guard and reserve officers mobilization act of nineteen hundred forty, 48 or any other act of congress supplementary or amendatory thereto, or any 49 similar act of congress hereafter enacted and irrespective of the fact 50 that such service was entered upon following a voluntary enlistment 51 therefor or was required under one of the foregoing acts of congress, or 52 service with the United States public health service as a commissioned 53 officer, or service with the national oceanic and atmospheric adminis- 54 tration as a commissioned officer, or service with the American Red 55 Cross while with the armed forces of the United States on foreign 56 service, or service with the special services section of the armed forc-
A. 6264 4 1 es of the United States on foreign service, or service in the merchant 2 marine which shall consist of service as an officer or member of the 3 crew on or in connection with a vessel documented under the laws of the 4 United States or a vessel owned by, chartered to, or operated by or for 5 the account or use of the government of the United States, or service by 6 one who was employed by the War Shipping Administration or Office of 7 Defense Transportation or their agents as a merchant seaman documented 8 by the United States Coast Guard or Department of Commerce, or as a 9 civil servant employed by the United States Army Transport Service 10 (later redesignated as the United States Army Transportation Corps, 11 Water Division) or the Naval Transportation Service; and who served 12 satisfactorily as a crew member during the period of armed conflict, 13 December seventh, nineteen hundred forty-one, to August fifteenth, nine- 14 teen hundred forty-five, aboard merchant vessels in oceangoing, i.e., 15 foreign, intercoastal, or coastwise service as such terms are defined 16 under federal law (46 USCA 10301 & 10501) and further to include "near 17 foreign" voyages between the United States and Canada, Mexico, or the 18 West Indies via ocean routes, or public vessels in oceangoing service or 19 foreign waters and who has received a Certificate of Release or 20 Discharge from Active Duty and a discharge certificate, or an Honorable 21 Service Certificate/Report of Casualty, from the Department of Defense, 22 or who served as a United States civilian employed by the American Field 23 Service and served overseas under United States Armies and United States 24 Army Groups in world war II during the period of armed conflict, Decem- 25 ber seventh, nineteen hundred forty-one through May eighth, nineteen 26 hundred forty-five, and who (i) was discharged or released therefrom 27 under honorable conditions, or (ii) has a qualifying condition, as 28 defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a 29 discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, or 30 (iii) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one of the 31 veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than bad 32 conduct or dishonorable from such service, or who served as a United 33 States civilian Flight Crew and Aviation Ground Support Employee of Pan 34 American World Airways or one of its subsidiaries or its affiliates and 35 served overseas as a result of Pan American's contract with Air Trans- 36 port Command or Naval Air Transport Service during the period of armed 37 conflict, December fourteenth, nineteen hundred forty-one through August 38 fourteenth, nineteen hundred forty-five, and who (iv) was discharged or 39 released therefrom under honorable conditions, or (v) has a qualifying 40 condition, as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and 41 has received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from 42 such service, or (vi) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in 43 section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge 44 other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service; or service in 45 police duty on behalf of the United States government in a foreign coun- 46 try, if such person is a police officer, as defined by section 1.20 of 47 the criminal procedure law, and if such police officer obtained the 48 prior consent of [his or her] their public employer to absent [himself 49 or herself] themself from [his or her] their position to engage in the 50 performance of such service; or as an enrollee in the United States 51 maritime service on active duty and, to such extent as may be prescribed 52 by or under the laws of the United States, any period awaiting assign- 53 ment to such service and any period of education or training for such 54 service in any school or institution under the jurisdiction of the 55 United States government, but shall not include temporary and intermit- 56 tent gratuitous service in any reserve or auxiliary force. It shall
A. 6264 5 1 include time spent in reporting for and returning from military duty and 2 shall be deemed to commence when the public employee leaves [his or her] 3 their position and to end when [he or she is] they are reinstated to 4 [his or her] their position, provided such reinstatement is within nine- 5 ty days after the termination of military duty, as hereinafter defined. 6 Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this paragraph, the term 7 "military duty" shall not include any of the foregoing services entered 8 upon voluntarily on or after January first, nineteen hundred forty-seven 9 and before June twenty-fifth, nineteen hundred fifty; and, on or after 10 July first, nineteen hundred seventy, the term "military duty" shall not 11 include any voluntary service in excess of four years performed after 12 that date, or the total of any voluntary services, additional or other- 13 wise, in excess of four years performed after that date, shall not 14 exceed five years, if the service in excess of four years is at the 15 request and for the convenience of the federal government, except if 16 such voluntary service is performed during a period of war, or national 17 emergency declared by the president. 18 § 4. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding 19 the date on which it shall have become a law.