New York A 8396: Enacts the student suicide prevention act

Bill Text

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A08396 Summary:

BILL NOA08396B

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SAME ASSAME AS S10249-A

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SPONSORWoerner

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COSPNSRLevenberg, Rozic, Shimsky, Torres, Bronson

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MLTSPNSR

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Amd Ed L, generally

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Enacts the student suicide prevention act; requires the governing board or body of every local educational agency serving students in grades seven to twelve, to adopt policies, procedures and guidelines on student suicide prevention, intervention and postvention for students in such grades.

Go to top A08396 Actions:

BILL NOA08396B

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05/13/2025referred to education

01/07/2026referred to education

02/06/2026amend and recommit to education

02/06/2026print number 8396a

05/12/2026amend and recommit to education

05/12/2026print number 8396b

Go to topA08396 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topA08396 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topA08396 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 8396--B

 2025-2026 Regular Sessions

 IN ASSEMBLY

 May 13, 2025
 ___________

 Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER, LEVENBERG, ROZIC, SHIMSKY, TORRES, BRON-
 SON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education -- recom-
 mitted to the Committee on Education in accordance with Assembly Rule
 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
 amended and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said
 committee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommit-
 ted to said committee

 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to enacting the student
 suicide prevention act

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 2 the "student suicide prevention act".
 3 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new article 2-B to read
 4 as follows:
 5 ARTICLE 2-B
 6 STUDENT SUICIDE PREVENTION
 7 Section 24. Legislative intent.
 8 25. Definitions.
 9 26. Policies, procedures, and guidelines.
 10 27. Reporting.
 11 28. Application.
 12 29. Severability and construction.
 13 § 24. Legislative intent. The legislature finds and declares the
 14 following: 1. According to data from the National Center for Health
 15 Statistics, suicide remains a critical issue. In two thousand twenty-
 16 three, suicide was the second leading cause of death for youth and young
 17 adults ten to twenty-four years of age, inclusive, in both the United
 18 States and in New York state.
 19 2. As children and teens spend a significant amount of their young
 20 lives in school, the personnel who interact with them on a daily basis

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD06148-16-6

 A. 8396--B 2

 1 are essential gatekeepers for recognizing warning signs of suicide and
 2 making the appropriate referrals for help.
 3 3. In a national survey conducted by the Jason Foundation, a teacher
 4 was identified as the number one person to whom a student would turn to
 5 help a friend who might be suicidal. It is imperative that when a young
 6 person comes to a teacher for help, such teacher has the knowledge,
 7 tools, and resources to respond correctly.
 8 4. In the year two thousand twenty-three, the federal Centers for
 9 Disease Control and Prevention found in its Youth Risk Behavior Survey
 10 that lesbian, gay, bisexual and questioning plus (LGBQ+) high school
 11 students are more than three times more likely to seriously consider
 12 attempting suicide than their heterosexual peers and one in five
 13 attempted suicide. Moreover, more than three in five LGBQ+ students
 14 experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness. In the two
 15 thousand twenty-four Trevor Project National Survey, two in five of
 16 lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning plus (LGBTQ+)
 17 youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, and
 18 twelve percent attempted suicide.
 19 5. There are national hotlines available to help adults and youth,
 20 including LGBTQ youth, who are experiencing suicidal ideation or who are
 21 worried about a family member or peer who may be at risk, including the
 22 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, the Crisis T