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Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 38
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to commerce, economic development and small business
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Relates to small business regulation guides
In Assembly Committee · Governmental Operations · Sponsor Kenneth Zebrowski
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S6258
Title of bill
An act to amend the state administrative procedure act, in relation to providing information on the prevention of common regulatory violations in small business regulation guides
Purpose
This bill would enhance the State's business climate by providing effective oversight and coordination of the process of preparing small business regulation guides and by highlighting information on how small businesses can avoid common violations.
Read the full memo (686 words)
Summary of provisions
Bill § 1 amends § 102-a of the State Administrative Procedure Act to vest the Division for Small Business (within DED) with responsibility for overseeing the process of agency issuance of small business regulation guides -- this duty had been assigned to the now-disbanded Governor's Office of Regulatory Reform (GORR). The bill provides that such guides shall "identify any sources of information and assistance available to facilitate small business regulatory compliance" and where appropriate, shall also include information on how to avoid the most common regulatory violations small businesses are cited for by the agency.
The Division for Small Business would activate the inclusion of information on avoiding common violations by requesting agencies to provide (i) statistical information on the frequency of violations of various regulations by small businesses and (2) information and analysis regarding actions that small publishing and using enforcement results for management and control of agency resources so long as enforcement results tabulations are not used as the primary criterion to evaluate enforcement staff or to impose or suggest enforcement quotas. Also, agency managers could raise questions with an officer or employee about the number of cases processed or inspections performed by the officer or employee, the amount of time the officer or employee has been spending on individual enforcement activities, or the kind of results the officer or employee has been obtaining, and may use similar standards in evaluating the performance of a supervisor of such officers or employees.
"Enforcement quota" is defined as a quantitative standard for evaluating or measuring enforcement activities, including but not limited to (a) a specific number of enforcement cases in Which citations for violations are made within a specified period of time; (b) the total number of violations found within a specified period; (c) the total dollar amount of penalties associated with enforcement activities within a specified period of time; or (d) any comparison of the enforcement activities of an officer, employee or supervisors with other officers, employees or supervisors, with an average or such activities or with other quantitative standards, when used to penalize or reward officers, employees or supervisors for attaining or failing to attain a specific number of citations for violations and/or penalties within a specified period of time.
Existing law
Currently, the Labor Law bans quotas for traffic tickets and the Tax Law prohibits using records of tax enforcement results as a basis for evaluating employee performance, This bill would establish similar restrictions on enforcement of regulatory violations.
Justification
Regulatory programs perform important and necessary functions that protect public health and safety, preserve our natural environment and neighborhoods, and ensure an orderly marketplace. Monetary penalties are useful as a means of promoting compliance as well as defraying the cost of regulatory oversight. However, penalties should always be used as a means to an end - incentivizing compliance - and should never come to be viewed as a guaranteed source of revenue.
The increasing use of performance metrics in public organizations brings many benefits, but also the risk of creation of inappropriate numerical standards by which employee performance can be judged. This has long been recognized for some types of enforcement. For example, Labor Law § 215-a was enacted in 1978 to prevent discrimination against police officers for failing to meet pre-ordained quotas for the number of traffic tickets issued or arrests or stops made within a specified time period. More recently, Tax Law § 3012 was enacted as part of the "Taxpayers' Bill of Rights" to bar imposition of quotas in tax collection efforts. This bill establishes similar safeguards against the establishment of regulatory enforcement quotas.
Legislative history
2011-12 - S.6441/A.9275
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.