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Bill No.: Summary Actions Committee&nbspVotes Floor&nbspVotes Memo Text LFIN Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript S00056 Summary: BILL NO S00056B &nbsp SAME AS SAME AS A00808-C

&nbsp SPONSOR FERNANDEZ &nbsp COSPNSR CLEARE, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, MAY, RIVERA, SALAZAR, SANDERS &nbsp MLTSPNSR &nbsp Add §507, amd §3305, Pub Health L &nbsp Establishes through the department of health a drug checking services program to allow individuals to bring drugs or controlled substances and have them tested for contaminants, toxic substances, or hazardous compounds; requires the department to establish public health surveillance of the unregulated drug supply; provides exemptions for participants in the drug checking program from certain controlled substance offenses.

Go to top S00056 Text:

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

56--B

2025-2026 Regular Sessions

IN SENATE

(Prefiled)

January 8, 2025 ___________

Introduced by Sens. FERNANDEZ, CLEARE, JACKSON, MAY, RIVERA, SALAZAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing a drug checking program including requirements for enhanced drug check- ing service delivery and public health surveillance

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2 507 to read as follows: 3 § 507. Drug checking services program. 1. For purposes of this 4 section, the following terms shall have the following meanings: 5 (a) "Enhanced drug checking services" means the utilization of all 6 forms of drug testing equipment including complex technology or equip- 7 ment designed to analyze substances and provide results at point of 8 testing or point of care, which may include but is not limited to, chem- 9 ical screening devices such as infrared spectrophotometers, raman spec- 10 trophotometers, or ion mobility spectrometers. 11 (b) "Public health surveillance" means the continuous and systematic 12 collection, analysis, and interpretation of data needed for the plan- 13 ning, implementation, and evaluation of public health initiatives. 14 Public health surveillance may be used for the following purposes: 15 (i) as an early warning system for impending public health emergen- 16 cies; 17 (ii) to document the impact of an intervention; 18 (iii) to track progress towards specific goals; 19 (iv) to monitor and clarify the epidemiology of health outcomes; and 20 (v) to inform the public health policy and practices. 21 2. The department shall:

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00379-12-5

S. 56--B 2

1 (a) establish a program to authorize a county or municipality or other 2 entity to provide enhanced drug checking services to assist individuals 3 in determining whether a drug or controlled substance contains contam- 4 inants, toxic substances, or hazardous compounds; and 5 (b) establish public health surveillance of the unregulated drug 6 supply to monitor trends and the impact on health outcomes and increase 7 public awareness of new substances in the unregulated drug supply. 8 3. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations for the 9 provision of enhanced drug checking services which shall include but not 10 be limited to: 11 (a) providing information and harm reduction advice to help individ- 12 uals make informed decisions about drug use; 13 (b) testing any drug or substance that an individual presents for 14 checking to ascertain the composition and likely identity of such drug 15 or substance; 16 (c) advising the individual who presented a drug or substance for 17 checking of the results of the testing; 18 (d) disposing of, or arranging for the disposal of, any sample of a 19 drug or substance used in testing and any drug or substance surrendered 20 by any individual for disposal; and 21 (e) if necessary, arranging for a sample of a drug or substance to be 22 tested by a department approved laboratory. 23 4. The department shall develop policies and procedures to: 24 (a) utilize enhanced drug checking technology for public health 25 surveillance; 26 (b) develop requirements for technician training to ensure accurate 27 point-of-testing and point-of-care results; 28 (c) identify appropriate equipment to use; and 29 (d) establish reporting processes. 30 5. Employees, contractors, and volunteers of the department, direc- 31 tors, managers, employees, contractors, and volunteers of an entity 32 providing drug checking services, owners of properties where drug check- 33 ing services occur, counties, municipalities or other entities author- 34 ized by the department, and individuals presenting drugs or substances 35 for checking, acting in the course and scope of employment or engaged in 36 good faith in the provision of enhanced drug checking services, in 37 accordance with established protocols, shall not be subject to: 38 (a) arrest, charges, or prosecution pursuant to article thirty-three 39 of this chapter or any violation or misdemeanor, including for attempt- 40 ing, aiding and abetting, or conspiracy to commit a violation or misde- 41 meanor pursuant to article two hundred twenty of the penal law; or 42 (b) a civil or administrative penalty or liability of any kind, or 43 disciplinary action by a professional licensing board, for conduct 44 relating to the provision of authorized drug checking services unless 45 such conduct was performed in a negligent manner or in bad faith. 46 6. The department and entities authorized by the department shall not 47 collect, maintain, use, or disclose any personal information relating to 48 an individual from whom the department or other authorized entity 49 receives any drug or substance for checking or disposal. 50 7. The result of any test carried out by the department or an author- 51 ized entity in relation to any drug or substance presented for checking 52 shall not be admissible as evidence in any criminal or civil proceedings 53 against the individual from whom the drug or substance was received, 54 unless submitted by such individual. 55 8. The commissioner shall promulgate such rules and regulations as are 56 necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section.

S. 56--B 3

1 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 3305 of the public health law, as 2 amended by chapter 547 of the laws of 1981, paragraph (d) as amended by 3 chapter 635 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows: 4 1. The provisions of this article restricting the possession and 5 control of controlled substances and official New York state 6 prescription forms shall not apply: 7 (a) to common carriers or to [ warehousemen ] warehouse workers while 8 engaged in lawfully transporting or storing such substances, or to any 9 employee of the same acting within the scope of [ his ] their employment; 10 or 11 (b) to public officers or their employees in the lawful performance of 12 their official duties requiring possession or control of controlled 13 substances; or 14 (c) to temporary incidental possession by employees or agents of 15 persons lawfully entitled to possession, or by persons whose possession 16 is for the purpose of aiding public officers in performing their offi- 17 cial duties[ . ] ; or 18 (d) to employees, contractors, and volunteers of the department, 19 directors, managers, employees, contractors, and volunteers of an entity 20 providing drug checking services authorized under section five hundred 21 seven of this chapter, owners of properties where such authorized drug 22 checking services occur, counties, municipalities, or other entities 23 authorized by the department, and individuals presenting drugs or 24 substances for checking, acting in the course and scope of employment or 25 engaged in good faith in the provision of authorized drug checking 26 services, in accordance with established protocols; or 27 (e) to a duly authorized agent of an incorporated society for the 28 prevention of cruelty to animals or a municipal animal control facility 29 for the limited purpose of buying, possessing, and dispensing to regis- 30 tered and certified personnel, ketamine hydrochloride to anesthetize 31 animals and/or sodium pentobarbital to euthanize animals, including but 32 not limited to dogs and cats. The department shall, consistent with the 33 public interest, register such duly authorized agent and such agent 34 shall file, on a quarterly basis, a report of purchase, possession, and 35 use of ketamine hydrochloride and/or sodium pentobarbital, which report 36 shall be certified by the society for the prevention of cruelty to 37 animals or municipal animal control facility as to its accuracy and 38 validity. This report shall be in addition to any other record keeping 39 and reporting requirements of state and federal law and regulation. The 40 department shall adopt rules and regulations providing for the registra- 41 tion and certification of any individual who, under the direction of the 42 duly authorized and registered agent of an incorporated society for the 43 prevention of cruelty to animals, or municipal animal control facility, 44 uses ketamine hydrochloride to anesthetize animals and/or sodium pento- 45 barbital to euthanize animals, including but not limited to dogs and 46 cats. The department may also adopt such other rules and regulations as 47 shall provide for the safe and efficient use of ketamine hydrochloride 48 and/or sodium pentobarbital by incorporated societies for the prevention 49 of cruelty to animals and animal control facilities. Nothing in this 50 paragraph shall be deemed to waive any other requirement imposed on 51 incorporated societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals and 52 animal control facilities by state and federal law and regulation. 53 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 54 subdivisions four and eight of section 507 of the public health law, as 55 added by section one of this act, shall take effect on the ninetieth day 56 after it shall have become a law.

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