2016 New York Laws
LAB - Labor
Article 25-B - (Labor) THE NEW YORK STATE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY FAIR PLAY ACT
861-A - Legislative finding and intent.

 861-a. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature hereby finds
  and declares that New York state's construction industry is experiencing
  dangerous  levels  of  employee  misclassification  fraud.  Unscrupulous
  employers  are  intentionally   reporting   employees   as   independent
  contractors  to  state  and federal authorities or workers' compensation
  carriers in record numbers. In addition, there has been an explosion  of
  employers  who operate in the underground economy and fail to report all
  or a sizable portion of their workers.
The legislature hereby finds and declares that recent studies  of  New
  York  city's  construction industry alone suggests that as many as fifty
  thousand New York city construction workers -- nearly one in four -- are
  either misclassified as  independent  contractors  or  are  employed  by
  construction contractors completely off the books. Construction industry
  fraud  reduces  government revenue, shifts tax and workers' compensation
  insurance costs to law-abiding employees, lowers working conditions  and
  steals jobs from legitimate employers and their employees.
Therefore,  the  legislature hereby finds and declares that government
  has  an  obligation  to   curb   this   underground   economy,   enforce
  long-standing  employment  laws, ensure compliance with essential social
  insurance protections and eliminate  the  unfair  competitive  advantage
  from contractors in the underground economy by and through the enactment
  of the New York state construction industry fair play act.