ALBANY, N.Y. — New York veterans could soon have their existing rights and benefits spelled out in one place under legislation awaiting its next step in Albany, as lawmakers in Washington consider a similar proposal at the federal level.
The New York Veterans’ Bill of Rights would require the state Department of Veterans’ Services to establish, publish and distribute a document outlining rights veterans already have under current law.
Those include the right to apply for benefits they may be eligible for, receive assistance navigating state veterans services, get an explanation of available state and federal benefits, receive written notice of certain benefit decisions and appeal certain denials.
The proposal comes amid longstanding concerns about how difficult the veterans benefits system can be to navigate.
A 2024 RAND study commissioned by the New York Health Foundation surveyed more than 1,100 recently separated veterans living in New York. Three out of four said they did not know what benefits they were eligible for. The same share said they did not know where to get information about those benefits.
Derek Coy, a Marine Corps veteran and senior program officer at the New York Health Foundation, said he experienced that confusion himself after leaving the military.
“It was not easy at all. It was incredibly difficult to, I think, one, understand what was available. Two, have also an understanding of what would be best for you. And then three would be figure out how to kind of meet in the middle of it and access those benefits,” Coy said.
New York’s legislation would not establish a new slate of veterans benefits. Instead, the bill specifically calls for the state to describe veterans’ existing rights under current law and make that information available through the Department of Veterans’ Services.
“I think anything at this point that would just further put this information in front of veterans, it is beneficial. And again, because there’s so many resources out there and a lot of veterans aren’t sure about what they rate, what they qualify for, or how to access them,” Coy said.
The Assembly passed the legislation in February. The Senate approved it 61-0 on June 2.
A separate effort is underway in Washington.
Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee introduced the Veterans’ Bill of Rights Act of 2026 in January. The federal proposal would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to inform veterans of rights involving VA healthcare, benefits and services.
“I think it really speaks to how universal a lot of these issues are,” Coy said.
The federal proposal received a hearing before the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee in April but has not passed Congress.
In New York, the state legislation has passed both chambers but has not yet been formally delivered to Gov. Kathy Hochul. The state’s legislative record lists its latest action as being returned to the Assembly following the June 2 Senate vote.
Once formally delivered, Hochul would have the opportunity to act on the legislation. If it becomes law, the measure would take effect 90 days later.