Relates to the membership and duties of the board of trustees and the oversight of the executive director and key library executive personnel of the Queens Borough Public Library

Summary of specific provisions

Section 1 of the bill amends Section 3 of chapter 164 of the laws of 1907 relating to the Queens Borough Public Library altering the length of term per trustee to three years to any newly appointed trustee on or after January 1, 2015 and creating a process whereby a trustee can be removed from the board for misconduct, incapacity, neglect of duty, or where it appears to the satisfaction of the appointing party that the Trustee has failed or refused to carry into effect its educational purpose. This section is further amended to require that any trustee appointed to a new term or filling a vacancy on or after June 1, 2014 must be either a resident of Queens or own or operate a business in Queens. This section also clarifies that the Queens Borough Public Library is subject to and has always been subject to Article 6 of the Public Officers Law.

Chapter 164 of the laws of 1907 is also amended by adding sections 3-a and 3-b, 4-a, 9-b, and 9-c. Section 3-a requires the Board of Trustees to hold annual public budget hearings and further requires that they provide a thirty day public comment period prior to the adoption of the budget and report all revenue sources of funding for the budget. 3-b requires at least a thirty day notice of annual budget hearings prior to the scheduled hearing date.

Section 9-a and 9-b require the alteration of the committee structure by which the board of trustees oversees the Queens Borough Public Library. These sections require the creation of an audit committee to oversee the library's accounting and financial reporting process, the creation of a labor committee to address labor issues and the contracting out of services, the abolishment of the administrative committee, and the creation of an executive committee to take on the essential functions or duties of the administrative committee.

Justification

Recently, a number of issues have come to light regarding the Queens Borough Public Library's ("QBPL") executive director's salary, gaudy spending and the lack of proper oversight by the Board of Trustees. Good governance and a well administered Board of Trustees is crucial to an efficient and transparent library system. The reforms detailed in this bill will improve the Board's oversight and governance of the institution moving forward by restructuring the

board of trustees and its main governing committee. The bill also requires several "best practice" reforms that include the creation of an audit committee and a labor relations committee, the requirement that key QBPL staff file financial disclosure forms, limiting the outside employment of key QBPL staff and requiring QBPL Board of Trustee approval of key QBPL staff before they are hired.

Prior legislative history

New Bill.

Fiscal implications

None to the State.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.