STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10678
IN SENATE
August 14, 2026
___________
Introduced by Sen. GONZALEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to establishing
the literary lifecycle management or LLM act which prohibits the
destruction of rare books
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new article
2 48 to read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 48
4 LITERARY LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT OR LLM ACT
5 Section 1800. Prohibition against the destruction of rare books.
6 § 1800. Prohibition against the destruction of rare books. 1. For the
7 purposes of this section, the term "destroy" shall mean the irreversible
8 removal of pages from the book's binding or to otherwise render the book
9 permanently incapable of practical usage by a human reader.
10 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, business, association,
11 non-profit organization, or corporation to intentionally destroy for
12 commercial purposes any book published before the year nineteen seventy
13 or that was part of a print run consisting of less than two hundred
14 copies.
15 3. (a) Any person, firm, business, association, non-profit organiza-
16 tion, or corporation or agent or employee thereof who engages in any of
17 the acts or practices stated in this article to be unlawful shall be
18 liable to a civil penalty as follows:
19 (i) five hundred dollars for a first violation;
20 (ii) two thousand dollars for a second violation; or
21 (iii) five thousand dollars for a third or subsequent violation and an
22 injunction from a court of competent jurisdiction.
23 (b) A court shall also allow for an additional penalty of up to the
24 market value of such book. Violations shall accrue to the state of New
25 York and may be recovered in a civil action brought by the attorney
26 general. Whenever the attorney-general shall believe from evidence
27 satisfactory to them that any person, firm, business, association, non-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16263-01-6
S. 10678 2
1 profit organization, or corporation operating as an online retailer has
2 engaged in or is engaged in any of the acts stated in this article, the
3 attorney general may bring an action in the name and on behalf of the
4 people of the state of New York.
5 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
