Each year, New York’s budget process becomes a vehicle for unrelated policy issues that carry tremendous implications with little transparency. Debate time is limited, and stakeholders and concerned citizens have few opportunities to weigh in. This year, that dynamic is playing out with a deeply flawed proposal that raises serious constitutional questions and carries significant consequences for privacy, youth safety, and the future of free expression in the Empire State.

In her State of the State address, Gov. Kathy Hochul made clear that she wants to strengthen protections for kids online. While that’s a goal we can all agree on, it’s clear that the crowded budget process risks shutting out valuable input from the very communities she aims to protect.

Under restrictive bill language included in the fiscal year 2027 Executive Budget, digital platforms would be required to conduct “age assurance” without allowing users to self-declare their age. In practice, that likely means requiring users to submit sensitive personal data — such as government-issued IDs or biometric data — to access online services. The bill would also link minors’ online activity to parental scrutiny and oversight, which sounds good in principle but could have real consequences for youth in unsupportive homes.

These restrictions will create significant challenges for communities that are already vulnerable, including immigrants, refugees, people seeking reproductive health care, and LGBTQ+ youth.

Supporters may point to language requiring that collected data be used only for age assurance and then deleted. But that misses the point. Age assurance chills free speech, and the moment sensitive data is collected, it becomes a target for breaches, leaks, and misuse. We’ve seen this happen before, and the risk of it happening again is very real.

Beyond data privacy concerns and the security risks of age assurance at mass scale, lawmakers should also consider the impact on anonymous and encrypted communication — tools vulnerable and marginalized New Yorkers rely on to access information, seek help, and communicate freely. This opens the door for government to weaken encryption for all communications.

Lawmakers should start from a basic reality: not every home is safe — and supportive of their children’s authentic self.

For LGBTQ+ youth, this is especially true. Many queer and transgender young people — especially those in small towns or in non-affirming homes — turn to online spaces to make sense of who they are, access health care information, and find support in moments of crisis. Digital communities are life-saving for transgender and gender diverse youth. Anonymous access to these online spaces is critical for their safety.

This troubling proposal risks outing LGBTQ+ youth to their parents and guardians without consent. These outing mechanisms can lead to rejection, homelessness, or violence. Even where it doesn’t escalate that far, forced parental involvement can cut off access to the communities and resources that help them stay grounded.

In a moment of rising censorship nationwide, hostilities toward free speech, and federal efforts to silence the LGBTQ+ community altogether, a bill like this has to potential to pile on and further threaten constitutional rights and undermine access to online resources.

If the goal is to keep young people safe, legislation with this many potential unintended consequences should not be rushed through the opaque budget process. New York’s community leaders deserve the opportunity to voice their concerns and debate the details.

Where are the public hearings, the forums, and the town halls?

This lack of public input is why Equality New York is in a coalition alongside civil rights groups and advocates from across the state in urging Gov. Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx), and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Mount Vernon) to reject this bill. Albany should take these concerns seriously and return to this issue through a process that allows for full debate — and consider solutions that protect both safety and civil liberties.

Amanda Babine is executive director at Equality New York, a grassroots advocacy organization focused on advancing equality and justice for all LGBTQ+ New Yorkers and their families.

Jared Trujillo is Equality New York’s policy and law counsel. He is an associate professor at City University of New York School of Law and a civil rights attorney.