New York State Legal Research: Legislative History

Legislative history attempts to discern the intent of the legislature when making law and is one of the more challenging areas of legal research. Fortunately, the New York State Library has produced a comprehensive guide. 

Bills

• Bills can be introduced in either legislative house. Bills arising in the New York State Assembly carry an "a" prefix. Bills arising in the New York State Senate carry an "s" prefix. Every bill is assigned a number (e.g., a2009 or s1509). Additional letters appended to the end of bills represent subsequent amendments (e.g., a2009a or s1509b).

Sponsor's Memoranda

• When bills are introduced, they are often accompanied by sponsor's memoranda (explanations of purpose). Sponsor's memoranda can contain summaries of provisions and justifications. When they are present, they are a valuable source of legislative intent.

Bill Jackets

• After bills have been passed by both houses, they are sent to the governor. Bill jackets can contain sponsor's memoranda, counsel's statements, state agency positions, comments, and opinions. However, they never contain transcripts of hearings. If the governor rejects a bill, a veto memorandum is often attached.

The New York State Legislature is composed of two houses:  the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate. The website contains bills and other legislative materials from 1995-present. The website is not very intuitive or aesthetically pleasing, but it can be searched the furthest back in time.

Bills

• To search for a bill, select "Bill No." from the dropdown menu. Along the top of the screen, you will see options for status, text, summary, sponsor's memo, and voting. Make sure to check the box for sponsor's memo.

Chapter Laws

• To search for a chapter law (an enacted bill), select "Chapter No." from the dropdown menu. Along the top of the screen, you will see options for status, text, summary, sponsor's memo, and voting. Make sure to check the box for sponsor's memo.

The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The website contains bills and other legislative materials from 1999-present. Although it does not go as far back in time as the Legislature's website, it is easier to use and contains more information (e.g., videos and transcripts).

Bills

• If you already know the bill number, enter it and click search. Along the top of the screen, you will see options for summary, actions, committee votes, floor votes, memo, text, LFIN, and chamber video/transcript. Make sure to check the box for memo. If you don't already know the bill number, click on the link for Advanced Search. You can narrow your search by term, keyword, committee, etc.

Videos and Transcripts

• You can narrow your search by session proceedings, committee hearings, events, or keyword.

The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature. The website contains bills and other legislative materials from 2009-present. One of its main advantages is that you can search for public hearing transcripts.

Bills

• To search for a bill, filter the content type by bills. If you already know the bill number, enter it in the box marked "print no" and click search. If you don't already know the bill number, you can narrow your search by session, keyword, committee, etc.

Public Hearing Transcripts

• To search for a public hearing transcript, filter the content type by public hearing transcripts. You can narrow your search by month, year, and keyword.

The New York State Archives is the official repository of bill jackets sent to the governor. It contains bill jackets from 1995-2020. For bill jackets prior to 1995, try emailing archref@nysed.gov.

Bill Jackets

• To search for a bill jacket, click "view all," and filter by year. You can narrow your search by bill, chapter law, or keyword.

The New York Legislative Service publishes the New York State Legislative Annual, a yearly compilation of legislative histories of each chapter law, veto, proposed constitutional amendment, and ballot proposal from 1946-present. However, the library only offers print access.

• New York State Legislative Annual

Call No. KFN5014 .N39

5th Floor