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A05602 Summary:

BILL NOA05602
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORRaga
 
COSPNSREpstein, Alvarez, Reyes
 
MLTSPNSR
 
 
Directs the chief administrative judge of the New York unified court system to conduct a study on the office of court administration's housing court guardian ad litem program and to publish a report on such study.
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A05602 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A5602
 
SPONSOR: Raga
  TITLE OF BILL: An act directing the chief administrative judge of the New York unified court system to conduct a study on the office of court administration's housing court guardian ad litem program   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: The bill directs a study of the current state-wide Guardian Ad Litem program utilized by parties in landlord-tenant civil actions, including the quantity of Guardian Ad Litem appointments and costs associated with appointment.   SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Section 1 provides instructions on the content of the report, including(1) the total amount of Guardians Ad Litem appointed in New York State for fiscal years ending in 2024 and 2025; (2) the number of Guardian Ad Litem appointments which have been reimbursed, whether by municipal,state, or federal agencies or charitable private or religious organizations; (3) an accounting of all funding streams and budget allo- cations specifically identified for the Guardian Ad Litem program; (4) an analysis of current Guardian Ad Litem compensation and proposals for Guardian Ad Litem compensation structure to better incentivize Guardian Ad Litem recruitment and retention. Section 2 provides the timeline of the report and the entities that should receive a copy of the report. Section 3 provides the effective date.   JUSTIFICATION: New York State courts face many difficulties in guaranteeing access to justice to vulnerable litigants, particularly those with mental impair- ment. To help address these unique difficulties and aid impaired liti- gants in advocating for themselves in housing court proceedings, the Access to Justice Program of the New York State Courts has instituted a Guardian Ad Litem program. By aiding impaired litigants in advocating for themselves, accessing social services for which they qualify, and facilitating the resolution of litigation, Guardians Ad Litem offer an invaluable service to vulnerable New Yorkers. With the steady increase of both eviction proceedings and mental health disorders, Guardians Ad Litem will continue to serve a necessary role in New York's housing courts. This study and report will aid in understanding the full extent to which the Access to Justice's Guardian Ad Litem program serves New Yorkers state-wide, and the identification of funding streams which keep this vital program running.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2024 - Referred to Judiciary   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
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A05602 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          5602
 
                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    February 18, 2025
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by M. of A. RAGA, EPSTEIN, ALVAREZ -- read once and referred
          to the Committee on Judiciary
 
        AN ACT directing the chief administrative judge of the New York  unified
          court  system  to  conduct  a  study  on  the office of court adminis-
          tration's housing court guardian ad litem program

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  The  chief  administrative  judge of the New York unified
     2  court system, in consultation with  New  York  state  courts  access  to
     3  justice  program,  the  unified  court  system's  guardian and fiduciary
     4  services office, the housing part of the New York city civil court,  New
     5  York city human resources administration and any other department, divi-
     6  sion, board, bureau, commission, agency or public authority of the state
     7  or any political subdivision thereof deemed necessary by the commission-
     8  ers,  shall  prepare  a  comprehensive study and report on the access to
     9  justice program's housing court guardian ad litem  program.  Such  study
    10  shall include an analysis of: (1) the total amount of guardians ad litem
    11  appointed in New York state during fiscal years ending in 2025 and 2026;
    12  (2)  the  number of guardian ad litem appointments which have been reim-
    13  bursed, whether by municipal, state, or federal agencies  or  charitable
    14  private  or  religious  organizations;  (3) an accounting of all funding
    15  streams and budget allocations specifically identified for the  guardian
    16  ad  litem  program; (4) an analysis of current guardian ad litem compen-
    17  sation and proposals for guardian ad  litem  compensation  structure  to
    18  better incentivize guardian ad litem recruitment and retention.
    19    §  2.  The  chief  administrative  judge of the New York unified court
    20  system shall publish such report to the governor, the  temporary  presi-
    21  dent  of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority leader of
    22  the senate, and the minority leader of the assembly, no later  than  the
    23  first  day  of  July  of  the year succeeding the date on which this act
    24  shall have become a law.
    25    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02550-01-5
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