S8089

The New York State Senate passed legislation Tuesday to establish a task force aimed at improving dyslexia screening and remediation in schools, with all 60 senators voting in favor. Senate Print 8089, sponsored by Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, addresses what supporters characterized as a critical gap in early identification of the learning disability, which affects an estimated 10 percent of New York's population. Hoylman-Sigal noted that many students, including his own daughter, go unscreened until third grade or later, delaying essential intervention. The bill directs the task force to develop best practices for screening across all school districts. Sen. Cathleen Helming, voting in support, used the occasion to call for passage of complementary legislation—Senate Bill 4463—that would expand diagnosing privileges for mental health counselors, family therapists, and psychoanalysts. Hoylman-Sigal thanked colleagues including Sens. Maria Morrissey and Amanda Godkin for negotiating the underlying chapter amendment, and credited Governor Hochul's emphasis on phonics-based literacy instruction as complementary to the effort.