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Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 61
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.1329
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
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 authorizing the authorities budget office to suspend local authority board members and executive staff
In Assembly Committee · Codes · Sponsor James F. Brennan
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to authorizing the authorities budget office to suspend local authority board members and executive staff
Purpose or general idea of bill
To authorize the Authorities Budget Office to suspend local authority board members and chief executive officers that fail to comply with Public Authorities Law ("PAL")
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1- authorizes the Authorities Budget Office (ABO) to suspend local authority board members or chief executive officers that fail to comply with PAL.
Section 2 - establishes the procedures the ABO must follow in order to issue a suspension which include notification and an explanation of the facts and circumstances that led to non-compliance of the PAL.
The notification procedures would include:
*the issuance of a notice of intent to suspend, informing the board member(s) or CEO that the local authority has 30 days to remedy the non-compliance; and *in the event the board member(s) or CEO fails to respond to the notice, the issuance of a notice of suspension, which shall give the local authority 180 days to comply prior to suspension.
Section 3 - authorizes the appointing authority, typically a local municipal official or legislative body, to reinstate a suspended board member. This section also authorizes the chairperson of a local authority to reinstate a suspended chief executive officer. In both instances, the facts and circumstances by how this decision was reached would be available to the public.
Justification
This bill would authorize the ABO to suspend local authority board members and chief executive officers (CEOs) that fail to comply with the PAL. Currently, the ABO is only authorized to make recommendations and issue a public censure letter. This lack of strong enforcement measures has led some local authorities to ignore certain requirements of the PAL. By closing this gap in the ABO's enforcement powers, local authority board members and CEOs could be held directly accountable for failures to follow the PAL. Importantly, this bill would require the suspension process to take place in public and allows for reinstatement of suspended members or officers.
As of January 20, 2015, 131 local authorities failed to file reports with the ABO required by the PAL; as of January 20, 2016, 134 local authorities failed to file. This includes annual reports and audit reports which are important public documents to assure the public that a local authority is fulfilling its mission and remains accountable to the public they serve.
Prior legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
None to the state.
Effective date
30 days after enactment into law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.