2023 New York Laws › GBS - General Business › Article 26 - Miscellaneous › 396-F - Sale of Blind Made Products.

§  396-f.  Sale  of blind made products. (1) Declaration of policy and
statement of purpose. The protection of blind persons and  organizations
established  to aid blind persons in the sale of blind made products and
the prevention of misrepresentations in  connection  with  the  sale  of
blind made products are declared to be a matter of state concern.
(2)  Definitions.  The  following  words  or  phrases, as used in this
section shall have the following meanings, unless the context  otherwise
requires:
(a)  "Blind"  shall  mean a person having central visual acuity not to
exceed 20/200 in the better  eye,  with  correcting  lenses,  or  visual
acuity  greater  than  20/200,  but  with  a  limitation in the field of
vision, such that the widest diameter of the visual  field  subtends  an
angle no greater than twenty degrees.
(b)  "Blind made products" shall mean the goods, wares and merchandise
in the manufacture of which not less than seventy-five per cent  of  the
total hours of direct labor is performed by a blind person or persons.
(c)   "Manufacture"   shall   mean  the  preparation,  processing  and
assemblying of goods, wares or merchandise intended for resale and shall
include the manufacture of component materials.
(d) "Direct labor" shall mean all work required for the manufacture of
blind  made  products,  but  shall  not  include  time  spent   in   the
supervision,  administration,  inspection  and shipping of such product,
nor shall it include work by blind  persons  consisting  solely  of  the
packaging  of  goods,  wares  and  merchandise not manufactured by blind
persons. However, nothing in this section shall preclude  preferred  bid
status  for the value added portion of any product that has been in part
or solely packaged or assembled by blind or other  severely  handicapped
persons.
(e)  "Commission"  shall  mean  the  New York State commission for the
visually handicapped.
(3) Registration requirement. Any person engaged in the manufacture or
distribution of blind made products shall apply  to  the  commission  on
forms  provided  by  it  for  a registration and authorization to use an
official imprint, stamp, symbol or label, designed or  approved  by  the
commission, to identify goods and articles as being blind made products.
The  commission  shall investigate each application, to assure that such
person is actually engaged in the manufacture or distribution  of  blind
made  products.  The  commission  may  register,  without investigation,
nonresident persons upon proof that they are recognized and approved  by
the  state  of their residence or organization pursuant to a law of such
state imposing requirements substantially similar  to  those  prescribed
pursuant to this section.
(4)  Identification  of blind made products. No goods or articles made
in this or any other state shall be displayed, advertised,  offered  for
sale or sold in this state upon a representation that the same are blind
made  products unless the same are identified as such by label, imprint,
stamp or symbol designed or approved by the commission.
(5) Violations. Any person who shall willfully either:
(a) use or employ an imprint,  stamp,  symbol  or  label  designed  or
approved  by  the  commission  or  an  imitation  thereof without having
registered with the commission or
(b) who shall directly or indirectly by any means represent  that  the
goods, wares or merchandise are blind made products when in fact such is
not the case, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.