Talking Points & Resources | NY Emerging Technologies Amendments to the UCC

OUTCOME

Signed by the Governor, Chp. 579 – December 5, 2025

BILL INFORMATION

A.3307-A (AM Alex Bores) / S.1840-A (Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal)

STATUS

• Signed into law by the Governor – December 5, 2025
• Passed both houses of the Legislature
  • Passed Assembly unanimously (146-0)
  • Passed Senate (58-1)
• The NY UCC Modernization Bill has strong support from a wide range of stakeholders and has faced no opposition.
• While the NY UCC Modernization Bill is lengthy, the primary changes focus on modernizing the text to account for advances in technology by, among other things:
  • introducing a new Article 12 (Controllable Electronic Records) to address emerging technologies and digital assets;
  • providing for electronic promissory notes and bills of exchange to facilitate trade finance; and
  • revising the current language to replace words such as “writing” or “written” with “record” and “authenticate” with “sign.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP

• Contact Governor Hochul and urge her to swiftly sign the bill. You can send an online form or call her office with the simple message that you support A.3307-A/ S.1840-A, the New York Emerging Technologies Amendments to the UCC, and urge her to swiftly sign it into law.
  • Your organization could alternatively issue a memo or letter in support of the bill. A sample letter can be downloaded for customization here. Memos/letters should be conveyed to Governor Kathy Hochul, copying the bill sponsors (Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assembly Member Alex Bores).
  • See below for relevant contact information and talking points for further points to highlight. 
• Add your organization’s name to the list of supporters of the Amendments (see here) by contacting Elizabeth Kocienda at ekocienda@nycbar.org. This list will be posted on the City Bar’s website and provided to the Governor’s Office as part of related advocacy materials.
• Share information about your advocacy efforts. Please contact Elizabeth Kocienda at ekocienda@nycbar.org with the below information / materials:
  • A copy of your support memo/letter when it is issued.
  • Updates on your outreach to the Governor’s office.
  • Your contact information so she can keep you updated on the bill and future opportunities to help support the legislation. Sign up to receive advocacy alerts and updates about the bills by filling out this form.

WHO TO CONTACT

Governor Kathy Hochul
Online contact form | 518-474-8390

Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, bill sponsor and Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee
hoylman@nysenate.gov | 518-455-2451

Assembly Member Alex Bores, Bill Sponsor
boresa@nyassembly.gov | 518-455-4794

TALKING POINTS

Why New York Needs to Modernize its Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) Now

• Stay Competitive in Digital Technology: Until New York modernizes the NY UCC, New York will not be a leader in digital technologies or be the preferred law for digital technologies related transactions.
• Loss of Revenue & Reputation: Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have already modernized their UCCs, including Delaware and California. Further delays by New York could mean loss of revenue from digital technologies related transactions and damage New York’s reputation as a leader in commerce and finance.
• Outdated Laws: New York has not updated its UCC since 2014. There is a trending narrative that New York may not be a welcoming location for digital technologies transactions because its laws are outdated. With new technological advances influencing finance and commerce, it’s crucial for New York to keep pace.
• Competition: Other states and countries are proactively promoting their modernized UCC framework, positioning themselves as more favorable environments for innovation and digital commerce. Some are already challenging New York’s standing as a leader in digital commerce and digital technologies related transactions.

Immediate Benefits of New York Modernizing the NY UCC During the 2025 Legislative Session

• Promoting Technological and Commercial Advancement: Modernizing New York’s UCC will decrease transactional costs and enhance the certainty and security of commercial and financial transactions. These are major factors that are considered when market participants decide whether to choose New York law as the governing law and New York as the jurisdiction to resolve disputes and whether businesses will decide to locate to New York.
• Maintain New York’s Leadership in Commerce and Finance: Modernizing the UCC will help maintain New York’s leadership in commerce and finance and will disincentivize migration of digital commerce to other jurisdictions. This is critically important. When other states adopt the Model UCC Amendments, market participants will most likely view those states, and not New York, as leaders in modern commerce and finance.
• Strengthen New York’s Global Competitiveness: Updating the New York UCC will help persuade multinational and international market participants to continue to choose New York law and jurisdiction over the law and jurisdiction of other countries, such as England, which are rapidly reforming their commercial laws to accommodate emerging technologies and electronic transactions. New York must act expeditiously to preserve and strengthen its attractiveness to multinational and international businesses. The preference of multinational and international businesses for New York law and New York jurisdiction is one of the reasons New York City remains the world’s financial capital. As digital transactions replace paper-based ones, New York must modernize its law to retain its leading position in Fintech rankings.
• Retain New York’s Reputation for Dispute Resolution: Modernizing New York’s UCC will help ensure New York’s courts remain attractive as a preferred venue for resolving disputes involving commerce, finance and technology matters.
  • A recently adopted proposal expands the definition of “commercial cases” within the Commercial Division’s jurisdiction to include “technology transactions and/or commercial disputes involving or arising out of technology” but does not provide define these terms.
  • If New York’s law remains outdated and hostile to the use of technology in transactions and if its commercial courts lack experience in applying the most modern frameworks such as those embodied in the New York UCC bill, it is unlikely that litigants in matters involving technology would voluntarily submit to the jurisdiction of New York courts.
  • Modernizing the New York UCC particularly the addition of new UCC Article 12 and amendments to UCC Article 9 embodied in the New York UCC bill will strengthen the policy decision embodied in the recent rule changes, making New York a more attractive venue for technology litigation in the Commercial Division.

Contact: Elizabeth Kocienda, Director of Advocacy, ekocienda@nycbar.org