No funeral-specific bills moved this week. The New York State Budget is now nine days past its April 1 deadline, and the legislature remains in negotiation mode. Until the governor signs a budget, standalone legislation does not move.
That said, the situation is shifting. Budget deals tend to land in a rush, and when this one closes, the spring session sprint begins immediately. Based on the current calendar, you should expect the real action to start within the next one to three weeks.
Why this matters right now:
The spring session runs through June. Once the budget clears, there are approximately eight weeks of active session left. Every week that passes is a week off the clock for the bills your business depends on.
The bill that is best positioned when the sprint opens:
S7690 (Residency Overhaul, Senate), sponsored by Senator Michael Gianaris (D-Queens). It already cleared the Health Committee and landed in Finance -- which is currently occupied with budget negotiations. The moment Finance shifts back to standalone legislation, S7690 is at the top of the calendar.
This bill would restructure residency requirements for NY funeral directors. If Finance votes it out, it goes to the Senate floor. From there, the timeline compresses fast.
What to do this week:
1. If you have a relationship with your senator or assembly member, reach out now -- before the sprint begins. A phone call or brief email expressing your position on S7690 is most effective before a bill is scheduled for a vote, not after.
2. Check in with your NYSFDA regional director. They track committee movements in real time and will know when a hearing is scheduled before it appears in the public calendar.
3. If you haven't pulled your General Price List since July 2024, do it this week. The FTC's July 2024 Funeral Rule amendments added new transparency requirements. Inspections do not pause for budget season.
If you read last week's issue, you know the FTC is seeking public comment on a three-year extension of its information collection authority under the Funeral Rule. The deadline is May 31, 2026.
This is not a minor procedural matter. OMB clearance is what authorizes the FTC to require your itemized price lists. The comment period is the formal mechanism for the industry to shape how those requirements are applied going forward.
If your state association (NYSFDA) has not announced plans to file a comment, ask them about it. An association comment carries significantly more weight than individual submissions. The May 31 deadline is far enough away that planning a coordinated response is still feasible.
One housekeeping note from the Federal Register: a separate FTC notice published on January 23, 2026 about CFPB shared-enforcement authority initially mis-referenced the Funeral Rule. The FTC issued a correction on February 6, 2026 removing that reference. The Funeral Rule remains FTC-enforced, not jointly enforced with CFPB. Some trade-press coverage from January conflated the two notices. The take-away: the Funeral Rule comment deadline is real, but the regulator is still the FTC alone.
| Bill | Title | Status | Committee | Last Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S9112 | Licensed Funeral Arranger Act | In Senate Committee | Health | Referred to Health (Feb 3) |
| A10095 | Licensed Funeral Arranger Act (Assembly) | In Assembly Committee | Health | Referred to Health (Jan 30) |
| S8152 | 4-Year Apprenticeship (Senate) | STRICKEN | -- | Enacting clause stricken (Jun 9, 2025) |
| A5172 | 4-Year Apprenticeship (Assembly) | In Assembly Committee | Health | Referred to Health (Jan 7) |
| A7630 | Residency Overhaul (Assembly) | In Assembly Committee | Health | Referred to Health (Jan 7) |
| S7690 | Residency Overhaul (Senate) | In Senate Committee | Finance | Reported and committed to Finance (Feb 24) |
On S8152: Dead. The Senate apprenticeship bill had its enacting clause stricken in June 2025. The Assembly companion, A5172 (Marianne Buttenschon), is still active. If the four-year apprenticeship pathway matters to how you hire and train staff, A5172 is what to watch -- not S8152.
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