New York lawmakers will convene Thursday, just two days after a statewide primary, to consider a package of gun law changes meant to respond to a landmark Supreme Court ruling that struck down the state's conceal carry law.
The state Legislature is expected to approve measures that will limit where concealed weapons can be carried, such as on mass transit, as well as set permitting standards for New Yorkers who want licenses to do so.
But while the session will be held a week after the ruling, state lawmakers and advocates will also be pushing for the first passage of an amendment meant to enshrine equality rights into the New York state constitution in response to the court's other landmark decision last week: An overturning of Roe v. Wade, and sending abortion policy back to state governments.
Whether lawmakers can get the amendment over the finish line remains an open question: Democrats failed to reach an agreement on language for the amendment before the legislative session drew to a close. At the time, discussions surrounding religious concerns in the amendment were raised, and lawmakers could not reach a deal on how narrow or broad the amendment should be written.
Gov. Kathy Hochul is not directly involved in the amendment process: Lawmakers must approve the amendment twice in separately elected sessions of the Legislature and then voters have a final say in a referendum.
To get a proposed amendment on the ballot by next year, lawmakers would have to grant initial passage by Aug. 10.
New York lawmakers and Hochul did agree to a package of measures that are meant to provide legal protections for women from outside the state who come here seeking abortion services as well as for abortion providers themselves. Those measures were swiftly signed into law by Hochul.
Still, Hochul has campaigned on a pledge to enshrine equality rights in the state constitution, and the overturning of Roe v. Wade could spur Democrats forward.
"A women’s right to make a decision about their own bodies must be protected and included as a constitutional right," said Assemblywoman Anna Kelles. "While we fight for that day to arrive, we have that very opportunity here in New York and should return to session as soon as possible to pass the Equal Rights Amendment."
At the same time, some Democrats are reviving calls for a fund to aid low-income women seeking abortions from states that have or are on the verge of passing measures outlawing the termination of a pregnancy.
That effort has garnered Republican pushback, including from outgoing Long Island Sen. Phil Boyle. He proposed a measure that would outlaw the use of state money to fund the abortions of out-of-state residents.
"Regardless of any Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, New York will remain a pro-choice state. Women will have the ability to travel from other states to New York to exercise their reproductive rights, but this does not mean that New York taxpayers should have to pay for these abortions," he said.