Bill > A07215

This bill, known as the "False Reporting Survivors Act," establishes new crimes of aggravated falsely reporting an incident in the first, second, and third degrees, which occur when someone falsely reports an incident with the intent to harass, annoy, threaten, or alarm another person based on their race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or ethnicity, regardless of whether that belief is accurate. These new offenses are classified as felonies, with the first degree being the most serious. The bill also mandates that police officers must arrest individuals if they have reasonable cause to believe these aggravated false reporting crimes, or the underlying false reporting crimes, have been committed, preventing officers from attempting to reconcile parties or mediate. Furthermore, it amends existing laws to include these aggravated false reporting offenses as hate crimes, meaning they are considered bias-motivated crimes, and allows for civil lawsuits for damages related to these offenses, with expanded timeframes for victims to file such suits under certain hardship conditions. The bill also requires the Attorney General to create a public, searchable database of individuals convicted of these aggravated false reporting crimes, including their names and photos, and mandates that prosecutors notify individuals whose criminal actions for aggravated false reporting are terminated with detailed explanations and the accuser's identity. Finally, it clarifies that prosecutions for these aggravated false reporting felonies can be commenced at any time.

Housing and Urban Affairs

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A7215