Gov. Cuomo signs several bills into law; protects kids from cyber-bullies and honors local heroes

July 13, 2012

By Lauren Rodgers

ALBANY, New York: Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed several interesting pieces of legislation into law in the past few days.

• Cyber-bullying: Under a new state law, the response of New York schools to harassment, cyberbullying and discrimination will be improved through "increased reporting, investigation, intervention, training and prevention." The law, which goes into effect on July 1, 2013, requires schools to act in cases of cyberbullying whether it occurs on or off school property and sets training standards for current school employees and new teachers or administrators who apply for certification.
• Fallen Firefighter Memorial: Any firefighter who is killed performing services in the line of duty will now have their names included on the Fallen Firefighter Memorial in Albany. The new legislation expands the law which previously restricted inclusion in the memorial to those who were killed as a "direct and proximate result of a line of duty injury." Cuomo's office cited the 2006 death of Paul Brady, a firefighter who died after falling from a fire engine that had been accidentally moved, as one example of a firefighter whose name will now be included on the memorial.
• Honoring Devin Snyder: A portion of Interstate 390 in Steuben County has been officially designated the "Sergeant Devin Snyder Memorial Highway." Snyder, a native of Cohocton in Steuben County, was the first female soldier from western New York to die in the war. She was killed on June 4, 2011 while serving in Afghanistan.

References

Propositions •	Recall	• Law