BILL NUMBER: S1049
SPONSOR: SALAZAR
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the correction law, in relation to enacting the "gender
identity respect, dignity and safety act"
 
PURPOSE:
To allow for the appropriate placement and treatment of transgender,
gender nonconforming, nonbinary, and intersex individuals in state and
local correctional facilities in a manner aligned with their gender
identities.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill states that the title of the act shall be the
"gender identity respect, dignity, and safety act".
Section 2 amends section 137 of the correction law by adding a new
subdivision 7 that would require correctional officers and staff in
state prisons to address incarcerated individuals in a manner aligned
with their gender identity; sets standards of treatment for searches,
medical and mental health care, and accessing gender-aligned items and
programming; requires routine training on and notice of the law's
protections; and provides a private right of action.
Section 3 amends correction law by adding a new section 72-d to address
placement of incarcerated individuals based on gender identity in state
prisons, to establish limits on length of time in involuntary protective
custody, and to require the New York State Department of Corrections and
Community Supervision to provide notice of the law to incarcerated
people and to annually publicly report on compliance.
Section 4 amends section 500-b of the correction law by adding a new
subdivision 14 to address placement of incarcerated individuals based on
gender identity in local jails, to establish limits on length of time in
involuntary protective custody, and to require local_corrections agen-
cies to provide notice of the law to incarcerated people and to annually
publicly report on compliance.
Section 5 amends section 500-b of the correction law by adding a new
subdivision 15 requiring local corrections agencies to follow the same
standards as state prisons set forth in Section 2.
Section 6 sets forth the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, there are often no statutory standards in New York State and
local county correctional facilities allowing for the placement and
treatment of incarcerated transgender, gender nonconforming, intersex,
and nonbi- nary individuals in a manner that aligns with their gender
identity. In the absence of such standards, transgender, gender noncon-
forming, inter- sex, and nonbinary people are routinely subjected to
discriminatory and harmful placement decisions and other treatment.
Studies consistently find, for example, that transgender women face
extraordinarily high rates of sexual abuse and assault in male prisons.
This bill would require that transgender, gender nonconforming, inter-
sex, and nonbinary people are presumptively housed in a facility with
people most closely aligned with their gender identity unless the person
opts out of such placement.
In addition to housing, this bill would also require correctional offi-
cers and staff to address individuals by the name and pronouns the
person uses, ensure they have the right to be searched by correctional
officers or staff members aligned with their gender identity, have
access to commissary items, clothing, personal property, and programming
and educational materials consistent with gender identity, and receive
affirming medical and mental health care.
It will also limit the use of involuntary protective custody, a practice
that is harmful to people's physical and mental well-being. The bill
also requires that corrections agencies provide annual training to staff
on the protections provided by the law and give notice to all incarcer-
ated people about their rights. Finally, it requires correctional agen-
cies to routinely and publicly report on their compliance with the law's
provisions.
Similar measures have passed in California and have been implemented as
a result of litigation around the country, including in Broome, Jeffer-
son, and Steuben Counties in New York State. While New York State has
made strides in pushing back against discrimination based on gender
identity and expression, it has turned its back on providing those same
protections to transgender, gender nonconforming, intersex, and nonbina-
ry New Yorkers in correctional facilities across the state.
This bill is an important step to ensure New York State respects the
dignity and safety of incarcerated transgender, gender nonconforming,
intersex, and nonbinary New Yorkers.
The policies included in this bill respond to numerous studies of the
experiences of incarcerated transgender or nonbinary individuals,
including, for example, Vera Institute, "Advancing Transgender Justice,
Illuminating Trans Lives Behind and Beyond Bars", February 20,
2024,https://vera-institute.files.svdcdn.com/
production/downloads/publications/ advancing-transgender-justice.pdf
which found transgender individuals face a high level of harassment and
violence behind bars and a lack of input into their appropriate place-
ment, and "Coming Out of Concrete Closets: A Report on Black and Pink's
National LGBTQ Survey", published in 2015,
https://www.blackandcink.orgiwo-content/uploads/2020/03/Coming-Out-ofCon
crete-Closets-incorcporated-Executive-summarv102115.pdf , which made
similar findings.
This bill is supported by numerous civil rights and LGBTQ+ advocacy
organizations, including: NY Civil Liberties Union, New Pride Agenda,
Lambda Legal, Equality NY, Legal Action Center, neighborhood Defender
Services, Osborne Association, Fortune Society, Sylvia Rivera Law
Project, Legal Aid Society, Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund,
Bronx Defenders, the Pride Center of the Capital Region, and the NYS
Nurses Association.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
SENATE:
2023-2024: S2860 (Salazar) - referred to Crime Victims, Crime &
Correction
2021-2022: S6677A (Salazar) - referred to Crime Victims, Crime &
Correction
2019-2020: S4702A (Sepulveda) - referred to Crime Victims, Crime &
Correction Committee
ASSEMBLY:
2024: A709A (Rozic) - Referred to Correction
2023: A709A (Rozic) - Referred to Correction, Amended
2021-2022: A7001B (Rozic) - reported out of Corrections Committee,
referred to Codes
2019-2020: A5257 (Rozic) - referred to Corrections Committee
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately; provided however, that the
amendments to section 500-b of the correction law made by section three
of this act shall not affect the repeal of such section and shall be
deemed repealed therewith.

Statutes affected:
S1049: 137 correction law, 500-b correction law