New Year Brings New Laws

1/2/2013 (Updated 10:58:37 PM)

With a new year comes new hope for some local businesses and organizations.

New laws are now in effect in New York state aimed at protecting kids, abuse victims and helping to save energy and even assisting micro breweries with better distribution of their products.

Seth Weisel is opening up Galaxy Brewing Company in Binghamton this year and thanks to a new law he can break a contract with a wholesaler if they aren't doing their job to his satisfaction.

"If they didn't even sell any of your beer you were stuck with them.  You had a very heard time getting out of the contract and if you really wanted to, you have to fight a long expensive lengthy court battle," says Weisel. 

The law may also put small family owned wholesalers back in business.

"There are some good distributors out there, some small ones,  but there were also a lot of very big distributors who would quote 'gobble' up craft brew brands," says Weisel.

For the Crime Victims Assistance Center, new laws brings more hope to clients they serve who are victims of domestic abuse.

Victims who use their health insurance card to pay for medical assistance can now use an alternate address at which to receive correspondence--so that their physical location remains unknown to those who might harm or harass them.

"There's not a whole big point of a women going to a shelter if her information is going to continue to be sent to her abuser," says Raini Baudendistel, the executive director.

Also effective as of January first, a law that exempts taxes on the sale and installation of commercial solar energy systems and a law that will allow eligible private and public colleges and universities to self insure for their students health insurance needs-- to help reduce administrative costs.

For Fox 40 HD News I'm Ali Warner.