STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9832
IN SENATE
June 3, 2024
___________
Introduced by Sen. HOYLMAN-SIGAL -- read twice and ordered printed, and
when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the labor law, in relation to enacting the New York
state fashion workers act
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The labor law is amended by adding a new article 36 to read
2 as follows:
3 ARTICLE 36
4 NEW YORK STATE FASHION WORKERS ACT
5 Section 1030. Short title.
6 1031. Definitions.
7 1032. Registration required.
8 1033. Registration process.
9 1034. Duties of model management companies.
10 1035. Prohibitions on model management companies.
11 1036. Power of attorney.
12 1037. Duties of clients.
13 1038. Violations, penalties and procedures.
14 1039. Other legal requirements.
15 § 1030. Short title. This article shall be known and may be cited as
16 the "New York state fashion workers act".
17 § 1031. Definitions. As used in this article:
18 1. "Client" means a retail store, a manufacturer, a clothing designer,
19 an advertising agency, a photographer, a publishing company or any other
20 such person or entity that receives modeling services from a model,
21 directly or through intermediaries.
22 2. "Model" means an individual, regardless of the individual's status
23 as an independent contractor or employee, who performs modeling services
24 for a client and/or model management company or who provides showroom,
25 parts, or fit modeling services.
26 3. "Model management company" means any person or entity, other than a
27 person or entity licensed as an employment agency under article eleven
28 of the general business law, that:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02078-20-4
S. 9832 2
1 (a) is in the business of managing models participating in enter-
2 tainments, exhibitions or performances;
3 (b) procures or attempts to procure, for a fee, employment or engage-
4 ments for persons seeking employment or engagements as models; or
5 (c) renders vocational guidance or counseling services to models for a
6 fee.
7 4. "Modeling services" means the appearance by a model in photographic
8 sessions or the engagement of a model in live runway, live, filmed, or
9 taped performances, including on social media platforms, requiring the
10 model to pose, provide an example or standard of artistic expression or
11 to be a representation to show the construction or appearance of some
12 thing or place for purposes of display or advertising, including the
13 provisions of castings, fittings, photoshoots, showroom, parts or fit
14 modeling services. "Modeling services" includes the use of a digital
15 replica.
16 5. "Exclusive representation" means an agreement, or a clause
17 contained in an agreement, entered into between a model management
18 company and a model that restricts such model from performing work for
19 another party not subject to such agreement for a specified period of
20 time or in a specified geographical area, that is similar to such
21 model's work for the model management company.
22 6. "Deal memo" means a summary written in plain language which identi-
23 fies the key components of any employment, engagement, entertainment,
24 exhibition, or performance, including but not limited to the scope of
25 work, rate of pay, payment term, usages, incurred expenses, and expecta-
26 tions of the model. A deal memo shall be provided in the language
27 requested by the model.
28 7. "Digital replica" means a significant, computer-generated or arti-
29 ficial intelligence-enhanced representation of a model's likeness,
30 including but not limited to, their face, body, or voice, which substan-
31 tially replicates or replaces the model's appearance or performance,
32 excluding routine photographic edits such as color correction, minor
33 retouching, or other standard post-production modifications.
34 § 1032. Registration required. A model management company shall not
35 engage in business in this state or enter into any arrangement with a
36 client or model for the purpose of providing model management company
37 services in this state unless the model management company is registered
38 under this article. A model management company that does not comply with
39 the provisions of this article shall not be a registered model manage-
40 ment company in this state.
41 § 1033. Registration process. 1. Except as otherwise provided in this
42 section, a model management company required to be registered under this
43 article shall provide the department with information required by the
44 department on forms that the department specifies.
45 2. Two or more model management companies that are majority owned by
46 the same ultimate parent, entity or persons may be registered as a model
47 management group. A model management group may satisfy any reporting and
48 financial requirements of this article on a consolidated basis. As a
49 condition of registration as a model management group, each company that
50 is a member of the group shall guarantee payment of all financial obli-
51 gations of each other member. At a minimum, a model management company
52 or model management group shall provide the following information:
53 (a) all names under which it conducts business;
54 (b) the address of the principal place of business of the model
55 management company or model management group and the address of each
56 office it maintains in New York state;
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1 (c) the model management company or model management group's taxpayer
2 or employer identification number;
3 (d) a list by jurisdiction of each name under which the model manage-
4 ment company or model management group has operated in the preceding
5 five years, including any alternative names, names of predecessors and,
6 if known, successor business entities; and
7 (e) in the event the model management company or the ultimate parent
8 of a model management group is a privately or closely held company, the
9 model management company or model management group shall file a list of
10 all persons or entities that beneficially own a five percent or greater
11 interest in the model management company at the time of application and
12 a list of persons who formerly beneficially owned a five percent or
13 greater interest in the model management company or its predecessors in
14 the preceding five years. In the event the model management company or
15 the ultimate parent of a model management group is a publicly traded
16 company, the model management company or model management group shall
17 file a list of all persons or entities that beneficially own a fifty
18 percent or greater interest in the model management company or the ulti-
19 mate parent of the model management group at the time of application.
20 3. Each model management company or model management group operating
21 within this state shall complete its initial registration within one
22 year after the effective date of this article.
23 4. Upon application for registration, a model management company or
24 model management group with more than five employees that either work
25 from a location in this state or perform work relating to models in this
26 state shall deposit with the department a surety bond in the sum of
27 fifty thousand dollars.
28 5. Every model management company or model management group registered
29 pursuant to the provisions of this article shall pay to the commissioner
30 a registration fee before the certificate of registration is issued. The
31 registration fee for a model management company or model management
32 group operating with five or less employees shall be five hundred
33 dollars, and for a model management company or model management group
34 operating with more than five employees, the registration fee shall be
35 seven hundred dollars. If the application for registration is denied or
36 withdrawn, one-half of the registration fee provided herein shall be
37 returned to the applicant.
38 6. A model management company shall be exempt from the registration
39 requirements specified in this section if such model management company:
40 (a) submits a properly executed request for an exemption from regis-
41 tration on a form provided by the department;
42 (b) is domiciled outside this state and is licensed or registered as a
43 model management company in another state that has the same or greater
44 requirements as this article; and
45 (c) does not maintain an office in this state or solicit in any manner
46 clients located or domiciled within this state.
47 7. The registration or exemption from registration of a model manage-
48 ment company shall be valid for two years; the department shall also
49 establish a registration renewal process.
50 8. The department shall maintain a list of model management companies
51 registered under this article and shall issue a certificate of registra-
52 tion to each model management company duly registered.
53 9. The department shall prescribe forms necessary to promote the effi-
54 cient administration of this section.
55 § 1034. Duties of model management companies. A model management
56 company shall:
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1 1. be deemed to have a fiduciary duty to the models they represent and
2 shall be required to act in good faith, with the utmost honesty and
3 integrity, in the best interests of the models. This fiduciary duty
4 shall encompass all aspects of the model management company's represen-
5 tation, including, but not limited to, negotiations, contracts, finan-
6 cial management, and the protection of the models' legal and financial
7 rights;
8 2. conduct due diligence to ensure that any employment or engagement
9 procured through the model management company does not pose an unreason-
10 able risk of danger to the model. An unreasonable risk of danger shall
11 include, but not be limited to, failing to establish and communicate a
12 zero tolerance policy for abuse, harassment, or any other form of inap-
13 propriate behavior;
14 3. use its best efforts to procure employment, engagements, enter-
15 tainments, exhibitions or performances for remuneration for the models
16 signed to the model management company;
17 4. ensure that any employment, engagement, entertainment, exhibition
18 or performance which requires nudity or other sexually explicit material
19 shall comply with the requirements of subdivision three of section
20 fifty-two-c of the civil rights law, as added by chapter three hundred
21 four of the laws of two thousand twenty;
22 5. provide models with written physical or digital copies of the final
23 agreements the model management company has negotiated with clients and
24 any deal memos memorializing such agreements at least twenty-four hours
25 prior to the commencement of a model's services pertaining to each
26 agreement in the language requested by the model;
27 6. clearly specify all items that may be initially paid for by the
28 model management company but will ultimately be deducted from the
29 compensation due to the model at the time of payment or settlement,
30 together with an itemized recitation as to how each item is to be
31 computed, provided such charges are not otherwise prohibited by this
32 article. On a quarterly basis, a model shall also be given copies of any
33 and all documentation held by or available to the model management
34 company necessary to determine the validity of each charge;
35 7. disclose any financial relationship, contractual or otherwise,
36 that may exist between the model management company and the client,
37 other than the agreement relating specifically to modeling services;
38 8. notify former models in writing, including electronic notification,
39 if the model management company collects royalties due to a model whom
40 the management company no longer represents;
41 9. post a physical copy of the model management company's certificate
42 of registration in a conspicuous place in the office of the model
43 management company and a digital copy on the model management company's
44 website;
45 10. include, in clear and legible type, the registration number of the
46 model management company in any advertisement, including social media
47 profiles for the model management company, for the purpose of the solic-
48 itation of models for the model management company and in any contract
49 with a model or client; and
50 11. obtain clear written consent for the creation or use of a model's
51 digital replica, detailing the scope, purpose, rate of pay, and duration
52 of such use. This consent must be obtained separately from the represen-
53 tation agreement.
54 § 1035. Prohibitions on model management companies. A model management
55 company shall not:
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1 1. require or collect any fee or deposit from a model upon the signing
2 of, or as a condition to entering into, any contract or agreement
3 between the model management company and the model;
4 2. procure any accommodation for which payment shall be provided or
5 reimbursed by the model in any way, without providing a written disclo-
6 sure of the rate charged for the accommodation to the model in advance
7 of such model's stay at the accommodation;
8 3. deduct or offset from a model's payment or compensation any fee or
9 expense other than the agreed upon commission as set forth in the
10 contract and any items advanced pursuant to subdivision six of section
11 one thousand thirty-four of this article. Such prohibited fees and
12 expenses include but are not limited to website fees, accommodation
13 fees, delivery fees, and interest on payment of the model's earnings;
14 4. advance the cost of travel or visa-related costs without informed
15 written consent from the model;
16 5. require a model to sign a model management company contract that
17 contains a term greater than three years;
18 6. require a model to sign a model management company contract that
19 renews without the model's affirmative written consent;
20 7. impose a commission fee greater than twenty percent of the model's
21 payment or compensation;
22 8. take any retaliatory action against any model who files or attempts
23 to file a complaint pursuant to this article or declines or discontinues
24 participation in any casting or booking on account of reasonable, good
25 faith concerns regarding an actual or potential violation of this arti-
26 cle;
27 9. engage in discrimination or harassment of any kind against a model
28 because of any protected status covered under paragraph (a) of subdivi-
29 sion one of section two hundred ninety-six of the executive law; or
30 10. create, alter, or manipulate a model's digital replica using arti-
31 ficial intelligence without clear, conspicuous and separate written
32 consent from the model.
33 § 1036. Power of attorney. 1. Any power of attorney agreement between
34 a model management company and a model shall:
35 (a) be presented as an optional component of the model management
36 company's representation agreement;
37 (b) not be presented as a necessary condition of entering into an
38 agreement with the model management company;
39 (c) be subject to termination by the model at any time and for any
40 reason;
41 (d) not violate the provisions of subdivision one of section one thou-
42 sand thirty-four of this article and extend only to matters directly
43 related to the provision of modeling services, with the exclusion of the
44 use of the model's digital replica.
45 2. Any power of attorney agreement that violates this section shall be
46 considered void as a matter of public policy.
47 § 1037. Duties of clients. A client shall:
48 1. compensate models at an hourly rate at least fifty percent higher
49 than the contracted hourly rate for any employment, engagement, enter-
50 tainment, exhibition or performance that exceeds eight hours in any
51 twenty-four hour period;
52 2. provide at least one thirty minute meal break for any employment,
53 engagement, entertainment, exhibition or performance that exceeds eight
54 hours in any twenty-four hour period;
55 3. only offer an employment or engagement to a model that does not
56 pose an unreasonable risk of danger to the model. An unreasonable risk
S. 9832 6
1 of danger shall include, but not be limited to, failure to establish and
2 communicate a zero tolerance policy for abuse, harassment, or any other
3 form of inappropriate behavior;
4 4. ensure that any employment, engagement, entertainment, exhibition
5 or performance which requires nudity or other sexually explicit material
6 shall comply with the requirements of subdivision three of section
7 fifty-two-c of the civil rights law, as added by chapter three hundred
8 four of the laws of two thousand twenty;
9 5. allow the model to be accompanied by their agent, manager, chaper-
10 one, or other representative to any employment, engagement, enter-
11 tainment, exhibition or performance;
12 6. provide adequate levels of liability insurance to cover and safe-
13 guard the health and safety of models; and
14 7. obtain clear and conspicuous prior written consent for any creation
15 or use of a model's digital replica, detailing the scope, purpose, rate
16 of pay, and duration of such use.
17 § 1038. Violations, penalties and procedures. 1. Any model management
18 company that has failed to comply with the registration requirements of
19 section one thousand thirty-two of this article shall be deemed to have
20 violated this article.
21 2. Any model management company that has failed to comply within the
22 time specified by law with an order issued by the commissioner to comply
23 with the registration requirements of section one thousand thirty-two of
24 this article shall be deemed to have violated this article.
25 3. (a) The commissioner may impose a civil penalty upon a model
26 management company that has been deemed to have violated this article,
27 for no more than three thousand dollars for the initial violation, and
28 for no more than five thousand dollars for a second or subsequent
29 violation.
30 (b) The order imposing such civil penalty may be served personally or
31 by certified mail at the last known mailing address of the person being
32 served. Such order shall be in writing and shall describe the nature of
33 the violation, including reference to the provisions of subdivisions
34 one, two and three of this section alleged to have been violated.
35 4. An order issued under this section shall be final and not subject
36 to review by any court or agency unless a review is had pursuant to
37 section one hundred one of this chapter. Provided that no proceeding for
38 administrative or judicial review as provided in this chapter shall then
39 be pending and the time for initiation of such proceeding shall have
40 expired, the commissioner may file with the county clerk of the county
41 where the person against whom the penalty has been imposed has a place
42 of business the order of the commissioner or the decision of the indus-
43 trial board of appeals containing the amount of the civil penalty. The
44 filing of such order or decision shall have the full force and effect of
45 a judgment duly docketed in the office of such clerk. The order or deci-
46 sion may be enforced by and in the name of the commissioner in the same
47 manner, and with like effect, as that prescribed by the civil practice
48 law and rules for the enforcement of a money judgment.
49 5. If any model management company has failed to comply within twenty
50 days of an order by the commissioner to register or renew registration,
51 the commissioner may seek to enjoin such unlawful activity, pursuant to
52 the civil practice law and rules.
53 6. The attorney general may bring and maintain an action in a court of
54 competent jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of this article when
55 the attorney general has determined there is reasonable cause to believe
56 that a model management company has engaged in repeated fraudulent or
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1 illegal acts or otherwise demonstrates persistent fraud or illegality in
2 the carrying on, conducting, or transacting of business.
3 7. (a) A model who is aggrieved by a violation of this article may
4 file a complaint with the commissioner within six years after the acts
5 alleged to have violated this article occurred. The commissioner shall
6 prescribe the form of the complaint, which shall include, at a minimum:
7 (i) the name and mailing address of the model and of the person or
8 entity alleged to have violated this article;
9 (ii) a statement detailing the terms of the model's contract, includ-
10 ing a copy of such contract if available;
11 (iii) the model's occupation;
12 (iv) a statement detailing the alleged violations of this article; and
13 (v) a signed affirmation that all facts alleged in the complaint are
14 true.
15 (b) (i) Within twenty days of receiving a complaint alleging a
16 violation of this article, the commissioner shall send the person or
17 entity named in the complaint a written notice of complaint. The
18 commissioner shall send such notice by certified mail and shall bear the
19 cost of sending such notice.
20 (ii) Notice shall include:
21 (1) a copy of the complaint;
22 (2) materials of remedies available to the model for the violations of
23 said article by the person or entity named in the complaint;
24 (3) materials informing the person or entity that twenty days after
25 receiving the notice of complaint, the person or entity identified in
26 the complaint must answer; and
27 (4) materials informing the person or entity that failure to respond
28 to the complaint will create a rebuttable presumption in any civil
29 action commenced pursuant to this article that such person or entity
30 committed the violations alleged in the complaint.
31 (c) The response shall include:
32 (i) a written statement that the model has been paid in full and proof
33 of such payment; or
34 (ii) a written statement that the model has not been paid in full and
35 the reasons for the failure to provide such payment.
36 (d) (i) Within twenty days of receiving the written response, the
37 commissioner shall send the model a copy of:
38 (1) the response;
39 (2) any enclosures submitted to the commissioner with the response;
40 and
41 (3) any other information about the status of the complaint.
42 (ii) If the commissioner receives no response from the person or enti-
43 ty alleged to have violated this article to the notice of complaint
44 within the time provided by this subdivision, then there shall be a
45 rebuttable presumption that such person or entity committed the
46 violations alleged in the complaint. The commissioner shall mail a
47 notice of non-response to both the model and the person or entity named
48 in the complaint by regular mail and shall include with such notice
49 proof that the commissioner previously mailed the notice of complaint to
50 the person or entity named in the complaint by certified mail.
51 8. An aggrieved model may bring and maintain an action in a court of
52 competent jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of sections one thou-
53 sand thirty-four and one thousand thirty-five of this article. A model
54 management company that violates these sections shall be liable for
55 actual damages to any model that has suffered damages due to such
56 violation, reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, and, unless the employ-
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1 er proves a good faith basis to believe that its actions were in compli-
2 ance with the law, an additional amount as liquidated damages in an
3 amount of no more than one hundred percent of the total amount of actual
4 damages, except such liquidated damages may be up to three hundred
5 percent if found that the actions were willful.
6 § 1039. Other legal requirements. Nothing in this article shall dimin-
7 ish the rights, privileges, wages, working conditions or remedies of any
8 employee under any applicable collective bargaining agreement.
9 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
10 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
11 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
12 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
13 completed on or before such effective date.
