NY State Senate Bill 2025-S7914

Senate Bill S7914

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Establishes an LGBTQ+ youth and young adult suicide prevention task force; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Mental Health Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 13, 2025	referred to mental health

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2025-S7914 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5197
Current Committee:: Senate Mental Health
Law Section:: Mental Hygiene
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S6315, A8306
2021-2022: S3083, A1548
2023-2024: S1250, A6599

2025-S7914 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes an LGBTQ+ youth and young adult suicide prevention task force; provides for the number of members, manner of appointment and the topics to be reviewed.

2025-S7914 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S7914

SPONSOR: SALAZAR
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to establish an LGBTQ+ youth and young adult suicide prevention
task force; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expira-
tion thereof

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

This bill would establish the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,
queer, plus (LGBTQ+) youth and young adult suicide prevention task force
to examine, evaluate, and determine how to improve mental health and
suicide prevention for New York's LGBTQ+ youth and young adults up to
the age of 24.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill establishes the LGBTQ+ youth and young adult task
force, which will consist of seven members appointed by the Governor
(1), the Senate Majority Leader (2), the Assembly Speaker (2), and the

Department of Health (2). The appointees will be required to have exper-
tise in issues related to LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. The task force
is charged with studying current mental health practices and suicide
prevention efforts in New York, recommending mental health practices and
suicide prevention efforts to increase effectiveness across the state,
and determining potential causes for the high number of LGBTQ+ youth and
young adult suicides.  The task force is required to make a preliminary
report to the Governor and Legislature within 13 months of the effective
date of the bill, and present a final report within 22 months along with
legislative proposals as it deems necessary to implement its recommenda-
tions.

Section 2 of the bill is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that youth and young
adults (age 10-24) account for 14% of all suicides, and in 2019 had a
higher rate of Emergency Department visits for self-inflicted harm
(342.5 per 100,000). Additionally in 2019, 9% of high school students
reported attempting suicide in the previous 12 months. In 2021, more
than a quarter (26.3%) of high school students identifying as lesbian,
gay, or bisexual reported attempting suicide in the prior 12 months.
This was five times higher than the prevalence among heterosexual
students (5.2%)

The Trevor Project reports alarming statistics on how this issue direct-
ly impacts LGBTQ+ youth. LGBTQ+ youth are more than 4 times as likely to
attempt suicide than their peers, and more than 1.8 million LGBTQ+ youth
seriously consider suicide each year in the United States. In 2022, 45%
of LGBTQ+ youth seriously considered attempting suicide, and more.. than
half of those individuals were transgender or nonbinary.

 
SOCIAL AND RACIAL JUSTICE IMPACT:



Establishing a task force is among the first steps in better understand-
ing the complex causes of mental illness in youth, particularly LGBTQ+
youth, and to better address ways to alleviate those causes.

The Trevor Project's 2023 national survey found that nearly all LGBTQ+
young people of color reported higher rates of attempting suicide than
their white peers in the past year. Among the more than 28,000 LGBTQ+
young people surveyed, 11% of white youth attempted suicide compared to
22% of Native/Indigenous youth, 18% of Middle Eastern/Northern African
youth, 16% of Black youth, 17% of multiracial youth, 15% of Latinx
youth, and 10% of Asian/Pacific Islander youth.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

SENATE:

2024: S1250 (Salazar) - Referred to Mental Health, Reported, Committed
to Finance

2023: S1250 (Salazar) - Referred to Mental Health, Reported, Passed
Senate

2021-2022: S3083 (Salazar)- Referred to Mental Health, Reported, Passed
Senate in 2021 and 2022

2020: Referred to Mental Health

2019: S6315 (Salazar)- Referred to Rules, Passed Senate.

ASSEMBLY:

2023-2024: A6599A (Reyes)- referred to Mental Health

2021-2022: No same as

2019-2020: A8306 (Reyes)- Referred to Mental Health

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become a law and shall expire 2 years after such effective date when
upon such date the provisions of this act shall be deemed repealed.
1 https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/disparities/?CDC_AAref_Val-
https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/facts/disparities-in-suicide.html
2 https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/article/facts- about-lgbtq-
youthsuicide/
3 https://www.thetrevorproject.org/survey-2023/

2025-S7914 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7914
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 13, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  SALAZAR,  ADDABBO,  BRISPORT,  CLEARE, FERNANDEZ,
   GONZALEZ, HARCKHAM, HINCHEY, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, LIU, MAY,  MYRIE,
   RAMOS, SEPULVEDA, SKOUFIS, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and
   when printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health
 
 AN  ACT  to establish an LGBTQ+ youth and young adult suicide prevention
   task force; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expi-
   ration thereof
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. LGBTQ+ youth and young adult suicide prevention task force.
 (a) There is hereby created the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and
 queer+  (LGBTQ+)  youth and young adult suicide prevention task force to
 examine, evaluate and determine how to improve mental health and suicide
 prevention for New York's LGBTQ+ youth and young adults up  to  age  24,
 consisting  of  seven  members,  each to serve until two years after the
 effective date of this act.
   (b)(1) Such members shall be appointed as follows: one member shall be
 appointed by the governor; two members shall be appointed by the  tempo-
 rary  president  of  the  senate;  two members shall be appointed by the
 speaker of the assembly; and two  members  shall  be  appointed  by  the
 commissioner  of health. Appointments shall be made within sixty days of
 the effective date of this act. Vacancies in the  task  force  shall  be
 filled in the same manner provided for original appointments.
   (2)  All  appointees  shall  have  expertise  in fields or disciplines
 related to mental health and knowledge related to LGBTQ+ youth and young
 adults. All appointments  shall  be  coordinated  to  ensure  geographic
 representation from the entire state.
   (3)  The  task force shall be chaired by the governor's appointee. The
 task force shall elect a vice-chair and other  necessary  officers  from
 among all appointed members.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03013-01-5
 S. 7914                             2

 
   (4)  A  majority  of  the  members  of  the task force in office shall
 constitute a quorum for the transaction of business or the  exercise  of
 any  power or function of the task force. An act, determination or deci-
 sion of the majority of the members present during  the  presence  of  a
 quorum  shall  be  held to be the act, determination, or decision of the
 task force.
   (5) The task force shall meet at least quarterly at the  call  of  the
 chair.  Meetings may be held via teleconference. Special meetings may be
 called by the chair at the request of a majority of the members  of  the
 task force.
   (6)  Members of the task force shall receive no compensation for their
 services but shall be reimbursed for their actual expenses  incurred  in
 the performance of their duties in the work of the task force.
   (c) The task force shall:
   (1)  study  current  mental  health  practices  and suicide prevention
 efforts;
   (2) recommend mental health practices and suicide  prevention  efforts
 to increase effectiveness across the state; and
   (3)  determine  potential  reasons for the high number of LGBTQ+ youth
 and young adult suicides.
   (d) The task force may establish such advisory committees as it  deems
 appropriate  on  matters  relating to the task force's functions, powers
 and duties. Such committees shall be chaired by a task force member, but
 may be composed of task force  members  as  well  as  other  individuals
 selected  by the task force to provide expertise of interest specific to
 the charge of such committees.
   (e) The task force may, as it deems appropriate, request that studies,
 surveys, or analyses relating to the task force's powers and  duties  be
 performed by any state department, commission, agency or public authori-
 ty.  All  state departments, commissions, agencies or public authorities
 shall provide information and advice in a timely  manner  and  otherwise
 assist the task force with its work.
   (f)  The  task  force  shall submit a request for any appropriation as
 shall be necessary to enable the task force to perform its functions and
 duties to the governor, director of the division of budget,  and  chair-
 persons  of the senate finance committee and the assembly ways and means
 committee.
   (g) The task force may hold public hearings, take testimony  and  make
 investigations at such places as it deems necessary.
   (h) The task force shall make a preliminary report to the governor and
 the legislature of its findings, conclusions, recommendations and activ-
 ities  already  undertaken  by  the  task force, not later than thirteen
 months after the effective date of this act, and a final report  of  its
 findings, conclusions, recommendations and activities already undertaken
 by  the task force, not later than 22 months after the effective date of
 this act and shall submit with its reports legislative proposals  as  it
 deems necessary to implement its recommendations.
   §  2.  This  act  shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
 have become a law and shall expire 2 years  after  such  effective  date
 when upon such date the provisions of this act shall be deemed repealed.

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