What's happening
This bill requires New York state agencies to annually report and post permit processing times and refund fees for late decisions.
Why it matters
Increases accountability and transparency. by requiring state agencies to publicly report detailed statistics on how long it takes to process each type of permit, license, certification, or registration—including averages, minimums, and maximums—making it easier to identify bottlenecks or inefficiencies.
Empowers applicants with clearer expectations. by mandating that up-to-date processing time data be posted both online and on the application cover pages themselves, helping individuals and businesses make more informed decisions and plan accordingly.
Creates a financial incentive for timely processing. by forcing agencies to refund all permit-related fees if they take more than 134% of the prior year's average processing time, directly benefiting applicants and putting fiscal pressure on agencies to improve performance.
May drive improvements in government operations. as agencies are required to track, review, and justify their own permit processing workflows annually, potentially leading to modernization and streamlining of administrative practices.
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Who cares
State permitting agencies
Agencies processing and issuing at least 100 permits in a calendar year would have to publish annual processing-time reports by February 15 and put permit-specific figures on application cover pages.
Permit and license applicants
Applicants would receive refunds of all application charges and fees if an agency takes longer than 134 percent of the prior year's average processing time for that permit type.
Governor and state legislators
They would receive annual reports showing average, shortest and longest processing times for each permit type, providing a basis for oversight of agency performance.
Headline styles
Require Permit Processing Transparency
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to governmental operations
- Referred to governmental operations
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2094
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 22, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to requiring state agencies which issue licenses, registrations, permits and/or certifications to annually report on the periods of time taken to process each application therefor
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "honesty in permit processing act".
§ 2. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 164-e to read as follows:
§ 164-e. License and permit application processing; annual reports. 1. For the purposes of this section:
(a) "Permit" shall mean any permit, license, certification, registration or approval issued by a state agency, which is required by law, rule or regulation.
(b) "State agency" shall mean any department, board, bureau, commission, division, authority, office, council or agency of the state.
2. Every state agency, which processes and issues one hundred or more permits during a calendar year, shall, on or before February fifteenth each year, issue and publish a report on its permit processing time periods during the preceding calendar year, which shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) the average time it took to process applications for each specific type of permit from the receipt of the application therefor until the issuance or denial of such permit; and
(b) the shortest and longest periods of time it took to process an application for each specific type of permit.
3. The report required by subdivision two of this section shall be submitted to the governor and the legislature, and be published and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01205-01-9
A. 2094 2
distributed, in both written and electronic forms, for access by the public. Each state agency shall post, on its internet homepage, the most recent report it has issued pursuant to subdivision two of this section.
4. The information compiled pursuant to subdivision two of this section, for each specific permit shall be printed on the cover page of the application for such permit.
5. Each state agency shall annually process applications for permits within a time period which is equal to or less than one hundred thirtyfour percent of the average time period for processing applications for that type of permit during the preceding calendar year. In any instance in which a state agency fails to process an application within such time period, such agency shall immediately refund to the permit applicant all charges and fees imposed as a condition of submitting such permit application.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.