The following is an excerpt of a blog post that was originally published on the Albany Times Union’s Capitol Confidential
Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed on Monday legislation that provides government employees and first responders from outside New York City who were part of rescue, recovery or cleanup efforts at the World Trade Center and subsequently developed a covered medical condition access to sick leave benefits.
The bill extends the benefits to any employee of a municipality, public authority or state employer outside of New York City who develop illnesses, such as cancer, as a result of response efforts at the World Trade Center.
Those individuals would be eligible for unlimited paid leave at 100 percent of their regular salary dating back to the time of their diagnosis.