 Same-sex marriage was legalized in New York in 2011, and the "New York Daily News" described Duane as a "leader" in that legislative effort.Duane's signature legislative accomplishments in the New York State legislature included the passage of the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act (SONDA) (2002) and Timothy's Law, which requires mental health parity for patients by insurance companies (2006) which were subsequently signed into law by Governor George Pataki.Duane was the prime Senate sponsor of the state's Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), which became law in 2019 after he had left office.