Citing the ongoing impact of the 9/11 attacks on New York City, Assemblyman William Colton (D—Gravesend, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach and Dyker Heights) is calling for the state to designate the anniversary of the attacks as a public holiday.

Legislation introduced by the assemblyman along with several other colleagues last month (A03171) would amend the general construction law, the transportation law, the vehicle and traffic law and the personal property law – in all of which the roster of public holidays is mentioned – to designate September 11^th Remembrance Day in New York State.

“It’s hard to imagine, given the lives that were lost and the damage that was done to New York City and to the country as a whole, that we have not yet designated the anniversary of 9/11 as a public holiday, officially making it a time of remembrance and mourning,” said Assemblyman William Colton. “While 25 years have passed since that fateful day, and many of today’s New Yorkers were not yet born when the heinous attacks occurred, it is important that we do everything we can to remember what happened, to pay tribute to the heroes and victims of that day, and to make sure that, no matter how much time has gone by, we never forget.”

In all, nearly 2,800 victims died in the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 – including not only those who simply went to work, that day, as they always did, but also the hundreds of first responders who perished trying to save lives. In addition, approximately 4,300 have died since of diseases brought on by the toxins in the air at Ground Zero. An additional 224 people died on September 11 in contemporaneous attacks at other locations, specifically, the Pentagon and the plane that crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

“Even though the attack was a quarter of a century ago, it continues to impact our city and state,” said Assemblyman Colton, “as an increasing number of those exposed to the toxins at Ground Zero continue to sicken and die. Making 9/11 a public holiday across the state will help ensure that, into the future, we continue to remember what happened on that terrible day, allowing us to recognize all those who were directly impacted that day, and in the years since.”

If signed into law, 9/11 Remembrance Day would join New Year’s Day, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, George Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day, as well as Election Day in November, as a public holiday across the state. All of the public holidays in New York State are business holidays except Lincoln’s Birthday, Flag Day and Juneteenth. If enacted, September 11^th Remembrance Day would also be a business holiday.