Bill > A03995

This bill amends the New York State Defense Emergency Act to update the list of state officials who can succeed the governor in the event of an emergency where the governor, lieutenant governor, temporary president of the senate, and speaker of the assembly are unable to discharge their duties or are absent from the state. Specifically, the bill makes several minor changes to the existing succession order, including replacing "commerce" with "economic development", removing "industrial" before "commissioner", changing "chairman" to "chairperson", and correcting a spelling error from "secertary" to "secretary". The updated succession list now includes the following officials in order: attorney general, comptroller, commissioner of transportation, commissioner of health, commissioner of economic development, commissioner of labor, chairperson of the public service commission, and secretary of state. These changes aim to ensure a clear and updated chain of command during potential state emergencies or disasters, providing a systematic approach to maintaining governmental leadership if top officials are incapacitated.

Government Affairs

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A3995