S6987 • 2025

Relates to workplace safety equipment for social services employees

Labor

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Pete Harckham
Last action: 2026-06-04
Official status: Senate Floor Calendar
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Relates to workplace safety equipment for social services employees

Relates to workplace safety equipment for social services employees Requires every city or county social services district to provide a wearable or mobile phone-based panic button to each employee whose job responsibilities necessitate direct interaction with clients in a client's home.

What This Bill Does

Relates to workplace safety equipment for social services employees Requires every city or county social services district to provide a wearable or mobile phone-based panic button to each employee whose job responsibilities necessitate direct interaction with clients in a client's home.

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-06-04 Senate
COMMITTEE DISCHARGED AND COMMITTED TO RULES
2026-06-04 Senate
ORDERED TO THIRD READING CAL.1795
2026-06-04 Senate
SUBSTITUTED BY A7833A
2026-01-09 Senate
AMEND AND RECOMMIT TO SOCIAL SERVICES
2026-01-09 Senate
PRINT NUMBER 6987A
2026-01-07 Senate
REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES
2025-03-27 Senate
REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES

Official Summary Text

Relates to workplace safety equipment for social services employees
Requires every city or county social services district to provide a wearable or mobile phone-based panic button to each employee whose job responsibilities necessitate direct interaction with clients in a client's home.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6987

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                                    I N  S E N A T E

                                     March 27, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services

        AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to providing  panic
          buttons  to  certain  employees  of  city  and  county social services
          districts

          THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
        BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

     1    Section  1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section
     2  63 to read as follows:
     3    § 63. WORKPLACE SAFETY EQUIPMENT FOR  SOCIAL  SERVICES  EMPLOYEES.  1.
     4  EVERY CITY OR COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT, AS CONSTITUTED BY SECTION
     5  SIXTY-ONE  OF THIS TITLE, SHALL BE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE A PANIC BUTTON TO
     6  EACH EMPLOYEE WHOSE JOB RESPONSIBILITIES NECESSITATE DIRECT  INTERACTION
     7  WITH  CLIENTS  IN  EXTERNAL  SETTINGS,  INCLUDING  BUT  NOT LIMITED TO A
     8  CLIENT'S HOME, A HOSPITAL OR MEDICAL FACILITY,  A  SCHOOL,  A  CHILDCARE
     9  CENTER,  A  COMMUNITY  CENTER,  OR  ANOTHER  LOCATION WHERE SERVICES ARE
    10  PROVIDED.
    11    2. SUCH PANIC BUTTON SHALL BE A WEARABLE OR MOBILE PHONE-BASED BUTTON.
    12  MOBILE PHONE-BASED PANIC BUTTONS MAY ONLY BE INSTALLED ON  EMPLOYER-PRO-
    13  VIDED EQUIPMENT, AND WEARABLE AND MOBILE PHONE-BASED PANIC BUTTONS SHALL
    14  NOT  BE USED TO TRACK EMPLOYEE LOCATIONS EXCEPT WHEN THE PANIC BUTTON IS
    15  TRIGGERED. EMPLOYEES SHALL BEAR NO COST FOR THIS EQUIPMENT.
    16    3. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, "PANIC BUTTON" SHALL MEAN A PHYS-
    17  ICAL BUTTON THAT WHEN  PRESSED  IMMEDIATELY  CONTACTS  THE  LOCAL  9-1-1
    18  PUBLIC SAFETY ANSWERING POINT ("PSAP"), PROVIDES THAT PSAP WITH EMPLOYEE
    19  LOCATION  INFORMATION,  AND  DISPATCHES  LOCAL  LAW  ENFORCEMENT TO THAT
    20  LOCATION.
    21    4. THE COMMISSIONER OF THE OFFICE  OF  CHILDREN  AND  FAMILY  SERVICES
    22  SHALL  PROMULGATE  RULES  AND  REGULATIONS  NECESSARY  TO  IMPLEMENT THE
    23  PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION.
    24    § 2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become  a
    25  law.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11369-01-5