Hochul calls special session for Thursday in response to U.S. Supreme Court gun ruling

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins says lawmakers are discussing where guns should be banned.

New York state lawmakers will return to Albany next week to take up a series of gun-control bills in response to a Supreme Court decision making it easier to legally carry a firearm in public.

Gov. Kathy Hochul issued a proclamation late Friday setting an extraordinary session for Thursday, June 30th, where lawmakers will be asked to take up measures that could dull the decision's potential effects.

Earlier in the day, Hochul told reporters she was hoping to squeeze the session in before the July 4th holiday. By the end of the day, she finalized it, calling the session for two days after Tuesday's primary elections.

"Since the decision was released, I have been working around the clock with our partners in the legislature to craft gun safety legislation in response to this ruling that will protect New Yorkers," Hochul said in a statement.

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision invalidated a 1911 state law that required gun owners to show “proper cause” – basically a heightened need for self-defense – in order to obtain a concealed carry permit, which allows them to legally carry their weapon in public. The ruling will make it far easier for New York residents to obtain such a permit.

The specific agenda for Thursday's session has not yet been set. In her proclamation, Hochul said she will send the Legislature bills related to firearm safety and the Supreme Court decision.

Hochul has laid out a number of possibilities for a legislative response in the past 24 hours, including a plan to ban concealed weapons in “sensitive places” like schools, houses of worship, high-capacity events and possibly the New York City subway system.

On Thursday, Hochul said she wants to approve a bill that would allow businesses and private property owners “protect themselves” in the event someone tries to bring a gun onto their property.

She elaborated Friday, saying her team is considering a system where guns would be prohibited in businesses unless they proactively allow them in their establishment.

“There could be a presumption that businesses, unless they put a sign welcoming someone with a concealed carry weapon, would be automatically excluded,” Hochul said. “So, we’re looking at a number of ways. Our judgment now is that those would be sound, but we’re just going to verify that.”

Speaking Friday on WNYC’s The Brian Lehrer Show, state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) said lawmakers did anticipate returning to the Capitol soon to take up firearm-related measures, which would be on top of a suite of 10 gun-control bills they approved earlier this year.

At the time, the timing of the session was still being worked out.

"It's up to (Hochul), but I think it will happen very soon — I would say in the next week or two," Stewart-Cousins said before Hochul issued her proclamation. "It could be next week."

Hochul’s comments Friday morning came just minutes before the Supreme Court issued a separate decision overruling the historic Roe v. Wade decision, which had the effect of overturning federal abortion rights.

In New York, abortion rights remain established in state law. But an effort to bolster those rights by enshrining a clause in the state constitution by explicitly banning discrimination based on sex, gender identity or pregnancy outcomes has stalled in Albany.

In a statement, Hochul called the court’s abortion decision a “grave injustice.”

“Our state will always be a safe harbor for those seeking access to abortion care,” she said. “To anyone who is working to deny abortion access, our message is clear: not here, not now, not ever."

By Friday afternoon, the sponsors of the Equality Amendment — Assemblymember Rebecca Seawright and Sen. Liz Krueger — had both called for the measure to be added to the agenda for the extraordinary session. Ultimately, it wasn't included on Hochul's initial agenda, but the Legislature could easily decide to take it up on its own.

The story has been updated to show Hochul has scheduled a special session.