New legislation signed to combat hate crimes

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)--Governor Kathy Hochul signed a new bill into law that will strengthen hate crime reporting on college campuses.

"This legislation mandates that any college that receives state aid will have to implement a plan to effectively investigate hate crimes, has to inform incoming students about the procedures on campus for how they investigate hate crimes, and also report any incident of hate or bias that happens on campus that they have to put it on to their websites," explained Assemblyman Dan Rosenthal, who sponsored the bill.

According to Governor Hochul’s Office, law enforcement agencies reported 947 hate crimes to the state in 2022, the most reported in the past 5 years, and a 20% increase as compared to 2021.

"Last year, the statewide number of anti-Semitic acts hit numbers we haven’t not seen in decades. And I’m not proud to say, it was the highest number in the nation," said Hochul.

Scott Richman, Anti-Defamation League's Regional Director for New York and New Jersey, said this new law is timely and hopes transparency will make colleges take more preventative measures.

"When it comes to college campuses, ADL has seen a 41% increase in incidents of antisemitism on campus from 2021 to 2022," said Richman.

He pointed to social media, extremism, and a polarized society as reasons why hate is on the rise, noting there is a difference between hate crimes and hate incidents.

"Maybe you see a swastika. Maybe there’s been some sort of terrible hate speech—those are not necessarily crimes, but we track all of that and we respond to all of that," explained Richman. "But this particular piece of legislation is focused specifically on hate crimes."

The governor also announced $51 million dollars will be going towards improving the safety of organizations at risk of hate crimes such as religious institutions, day cares, and cultural museums.