Establishes a voluntary veterans' registry for the purpose of providing information on federal, state, and local governmental benefits, programs, and services available to veterans, and to link veterans with resources that can provide assistance.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9602
IN ASSEMBLY
January 21, 2026
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BRONSON -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Veterans' Affairs
AN ACT to amend the veterans' services law, in relation to establishing
a voluntary veterans' registry
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The veterans' services law is amended by adding a new
2 section 29-f to read as follows:
3 § 29-f. Voluntary veterans' registry. 1. The department shall estab-
4 lish a voluntary veterans' registry for the purpose of providing infor-
5 mation on federal, state, and local governmental benefits, programs, and
6 services available to veterans, and to link veterans with resources that
7 can provide assistance.
8 2. For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall have
9 the following meanings:
10 (a) "State agency" means any department, board, bureau, division,
11 commission, council, or committee within the executive branch, the state
12 university of New York, the city university of New York, or any public
13 authority under control of the executive branch of the state of New
14 York.
15 (b) "Voluntary veterans' registry" or "registry" means the voluntary
16 veterans' registry established pursuant to subdivision one of this
17 section.
18 (c) "State veterans' service agency" means a state veterans' service
19 agency established pursuant to section thirteen of this article.
20 (d) "Local veterans' service agency" means a local veterans' service
21 agency established pursuant to section fourteen of this article.
22 3. Upon a veteran's registration with the registry, if permission is
23 granted by such veteran, such veteran's information shall be shared with
24 other state agencies, state veterans' service agencies, and local veter-
25 ans' service agencies.
26 4. The department shall coordinate with other state agencies that have
27 contact with veterans to establish a paper and online voluntary veter-
28 ans' registry form to enable state agencies to assist the department in
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14495-01-6
A. 9602 2
1 registering veterans who wish to be included in the registry. The
2 department shall provide access to such paper and online voluntary
3 veterans' registry form which shall contain a statement indicating the
4 purpose of the registry and that filling out such form does not guaran-
5 tee that a veteran is eligible for any benefits. Such form shall include
6 but not be limited to the following information:
7 (a) name;
8 (b) address;
9 (c) gender;
10 (d) branch of military service;
11 (e) dates of military service;
12 (f) contact information, including phone or email;
13 (g) a signed statement, or for the online version, a box that is
14 checked, indicating that the veteran grants permission to the department
15 to store and share such veteran's information with the local veterans'
16 service agencies' directors and with the other state agencies to ensure
17 that the state provides such veteran assistance in receiving earned
18 benefits; and
19 (h) any other information that the department may request.
20 5. Each state agency shall:
21 (a) utilize the paper or online voluntary veterans' registry form to
22 develop a mechanism to identify veterans the agency serves for the
23 purpose of expanding the registry;
24 (b) for each veteran who wishes to be included in the voluntary veter-
25 ans' registry, the agency shall provide assistance in filling out the
26 paper or online registry form for the department to add each such veter-
27 an to the registry; and
28 (c) submit a veteran's paper registry form to the department within
29 sixty days from the date the veteran opts in to the voluntary veterans'
30 registry.
31 6. Information collected under this section shall not be sold or used
32 for commercial purposes or used for purposes not specified under this
33 section. Information regarding a veteran's status shall be protected as
34 personal confidential material and shall only be used to assist in
35 providing information about benefits and entitlements for veterans
36 residing in the state on the federal, state, and local government level.
37 Data collected under this section may be used by the department to
38 assist in formulating future policy initiatives and shared with the
39 veterans' services commission pursuant to section three of this article
40 in its role of assisting the commissioner in the formulation of policies
41 affecting veterans.
42 7. On or before December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-seven, and
43 annually thereafter, the commissioner shall submit a report to the
44 governor, the speaker of the assembly, and the temporary president of
45 the senate. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, the total
46 number of voluntary veterans' registry forms that were completed for the
47 calendar year and a breakdown of registered veterans by gender and
48 location.
49 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 3 of the veterans' services law is
50 amended to read as follows:
51 5. The commission shall have power, and it shall be its duty, to
52 assist the state commissioner in the formulation of policies affecting
53 veterans, including using data collected pursuant to section twenty-
54 nine-f of this article, and in the coordination of all operations of
55 state agencies relating to veterans' services.
A. 9602 3
1 § 3. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
2 law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any
3 rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its
4 effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such
5 effective date.
