Legislative · State · NY
New York Assembly Bill Would Establish State "Freedmen's Bureau" and Appropriate Funds — Still in Committee
- Direction
- +1 — benefit to freedmen
- Force
- 0.10 — introduced or referred
- Status
- Developing
- Date
- 2026-01-07
Why this rating
The bill proposes creating a state freedmen's bureau and an appropriation, which could materially benefit freedmen specifically if enacted and if scoped to lineage-based eligibility. However, the bill remains in committee with no vote, no enacted funding, and no available text confirming eligibility criteria or appropriation amount. Under the rubric, an unenacted bill with uncertain scope and no force of law caps at 0 pending further developments.
Summary
New York Assembly Bill A08284, sponsored by Assemblymember Nikki Lucas, is titled the "New York State Freedmen's Bureau Act." According to the bill description, it would establish a New York state freedmen's bureau and make an appropriation for it. The bill has not advanced beyond committee: it was referred to the Assembly's Governmental Operations Committee on 2025-05-08 and was re-referred to that same committee on 2026-01-07, indicating it remains pending without a vote.
The source material provided consists only of the LegiScan bill summary, sponsor information, and procedural history. It does not include the bill's operative text, so the entry cannot describe the bureau's proposed functions, eligibility criteria, appropriation amount, or whether the bill defines "freedmen" in lineage-specific terms consistent with 1870-census descent.
As of the last recorded action, the bill remains in committee in the 2025-2026 New York Assembly regular session and has not been enacted, amended on the floor, or otherwise resolved.
Sources
- Enacts the "New York State Freedmen's Bureau Act"; establishes a New York state freedmen's bureau; makes an appropriation therefor. — bill text · primary · legiscan
Corrections
- 2026-07-20 — Direction corrected 0 -> +1 (establishes a state Freedmen's Bureau; lineage-specific by name). Force set to 0.10: introduced, not yet enacted.
Rated under the published impact rubric. Direction records what a measure would do if fully effective; force records how far it has actually travelled. Neither is inferred — both trace to the sources above. Think something here is wrong? Tell us and we will log the correction.