Fund Local Governments

Section 1. a) The several amounts specified in this chapter for aid to localities, or so much thereof as shall be sufficient to accomplish the purposes designated by the appropriations, are hereby appropriated and authorized to be paid as hereinafter provided, to the respective public officers and for the several purposes specified.

b) Where applicable, appropriations made by this chapter for expenditures from federal grants for aid to localities may be allocated for spending from federal grants for any grant period beginning, during, or prior to, the state fiscal year beginning on April 1, 2020 except as otherwise noted.

c) The several amounts named herein, or so much thereof as shall be sufficient to accomplish the purpose designated, being the undisbursed

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

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and/or unexpended balances of the prior year's appropriations, are hereby reappropriated from the same funds and made available for the same purposes as the prior year's appropriations, unless herein amended, for the fiscal year beginning April 1, 2020. Certain reappropriations in this chapter are shown using abbreviated text, with three leader dots (an ellipsis) followed by three spaces (... ) used to indicate where existing law that is being continued is not shown. However, unless a change is clearly indicated by the use of brackets [ ] for deletions and underscores for additions, the purposes, amounts, funding source and all other aspects pertinent to each item of appropriation shall be as last appropriated.

For the purpose of complying with the state finance law, the year, chapter and section of the last act reappropriating a former original appropriation or any part thereof is, unless otherwise indicated, chapter 53, section 1, of the laws of 2019.

d) No moneys appropriated by this chapter shall be available for payment until a certificate of approval has been issued by the director of the budget, who shall file such certificate with the department of audit and control, the chairperson of the senate finance committee and the chairperson of the assembly ways and means committee.

e) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, if, on a cash basis of accounting, a General Fund imbalance has occurred during any Measurement Period, the budget director is hereby authorized to adjust or reduce any general fund and/or state special revenue fund appropriation contained herein and related cash disbursement by any amount needed to maintain a balanced budget for the 2020-2021 fiscal year. Provided however that such adjustments or reductions shall be done uniformly across-the-board to the extent practicable or by specific appropriations as needed. Notwithstanding any provision set forth in this appropriation bill or any other law to the contrary, to the extent any individual or entity is entitled to any cash disbursement which is reduced in accordance with this provision, such entitlement shall be adjusted or reduced commensurate with adjustments or reductions made by the budget director in accordance with this provision. The following types of appropriations shall be exempt from such reduction pursuant to this provision: (a) public assistance payments for families and individuals and payments for eligible aged, blind and disabled persons related to supplemental social security; (b) any reductions that would violate federal law; (c) payments of debt service and related expenses for which the state is constitutionally obligated to pay debt service or is contractually obligated to pay debt service, subject to an appropriation, including where the state has a contingent contractual obligation; and (d) payments the state is obligated to make pursuant to court orders or judgments. For purposes of this provision, the budget shall be deemed unbalanced for the fiscal year if, during any Measurement Period, Actual State Operating Funds Tax Receipts are less than ninety-nine percent of Estimated State Operating Funds Tax Receipts, or Actual State Operating Funds Disbursements are more than one-hundred and one (101) percent of Estimated State Operating Funds Disbursements, or both. Prior to any such adjustments or reductions, the director shall notify in writing the Chairs of the Senate Finance Committee and Assembly Ways and Means Committee. The legislature shall then have ten days following the receipt of such written notification to either prepare its own plan, which may be adopted by concurrent resolution passed by both houses and implemented by the division of the budget, or if after ten days the legislature fails to adopt its own plan, the reductions to the general

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fund and state special revenue fund aid to localities appropriations and related disbursements identified in the division of the budget plan will go into effect automatically. Any reductions to general fund and state special revenue fund aid to localities appropriations and related cash disbursements made pursuant to this provision may be paid in full or in part if one or both of the following events occur: Actual State Operating Funds Tax Receipts through February 28, 2021, are not less than ninety-eight percent of Estimated State Operating Funds Tax Receipts through February 28, 2021; or the federal government provides aid that the director of the budget deems sufficient to reduce or eliminate the imbalance in the General Fund for fiscal year 2020-2021 and does not adversely impact the budget gap in fiscal year 2021-2022. No such payments shall be made in part or in full unless and until the director of the budget certifies that: the general fund has resources sufficient to make all planned payments anticipated in the 2020-21 financial plan including tax refunds, without the issuance of deficit bonds or notes or extraordinary cash management actions; the balances in the tax stabilization reserve and rainy day reserve (together, the "rainy day reserves") have been restored to a level equal to the level as of the start of the fiscal year; and other designated balances have been maintained, as provided by law. For purposes of this provision: "Actual State Operating Funds Tax Receipts" shall mean the State Operating Fund tax receipts, reported by the State Comptroller in the monthly Report to the Legislature on the State Fund Cash Basis of Accounting, prepared in accordance with subdivision 9-a (a) of section 8 of the state finance law, immediately following the measurement period; "Actual State Operating Funds Disbursements" shall mean the State Operating Funds disbursements, reported by the State Comptroller in the monthly Report to the Legislature on the State Fund Cash Basis of Accounting, prepared in accordance with subdivision 9-a (a) of section 8 of the state finance law, immediately following the measurement period. Such disbursements shall be adjusted to include any amounts withheld pursuant to provision F or any other payment reduction authority authorized in this bill making aid-to-localities appropriations; "Estimated State Operating Funds Tax Receipts" shall mean the State Operating Funds tax receipts estimated to be received during the measurement period by the division of the budget in the Financial Plan; "Estimated State Operating Funds Disbursements" shall mean the State Operating Funds disbursements, estimated to be made during the measurement period by the division of the budget in the Financial Plan. "Financial Plan" shall mean a financial plan prepared by the division of the budget pursuant to sections 22 and 23 of the state finance law and used for the Measurement Period; and "Measurement Period" shall mean the period in which the difference between Actual State Operating Funds tax receipts and "Estimated State Operating Funds tax receipts" shall be measured for purposes of this section. The first measurement period shall begin on April 1, 2020 and end on April 30, 2020. Financial Plan estimates for this period shall be the Executive Financial Plan as Updated for Governor's Amendments and Forecast Revisions issued in February 2020. The second measurement period shall begin on May 1 and end on June 30, 2020. The third measurement period shall begin on July 1, 2020 and end on December 31, 2020. The Financial Plan for the second and third measurement periods shall be the Enacted Budget Financial Plan for FY 2021 issued pursuant to section 23 of the state finance law.

f) Notwithstanding any provision contained herein or any other law to the contrary, if, during the 2020-21 fiscal year, the budget is deemed

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unbalanced, the budget director is hereby authorized to withhold all or some of the amounts appropriated herein, including amounts that are to be paid on specific dates prescribed in law or regulation if, in his or her sole discretion, such action is necessary to respond to the direct and indirect economic, financial, and social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to withholding any amounts, the director shall consider whether other means are available for accomplishing the purposes of this provision, and the impact of such withholding on the affected aid recipient. To the extent the State is obligated to make payment to any individual or entity pursuant to any appropriation contained herein, such obligation shall be reduced commensurate with such payments withheld by the director of the budget. No later than five days prior to the beginning of each month, the director of the budget shall provide notification of payments that are expected to be withheld in such month pursuant to this provision to the president pro tempore of the senate and the speaker of the assembly. No later than seven days after month end, the director of the budget shall provide notification of payments that have been withheld pursuant to this provision to the president pro tempore of the senate and the speaker of the assembly. For purposes of this provision, the budget shall be deemed unbalanced if Actual State Operating Funds Tax Receipts are less than ninety-nine percent of Estimated State Operating Funds Tax Receipts, or Actual State Operating Funds Disbursements are more than one-hundred and one (101) percent of Estimated State Operating Funds Disbursements, or both. Additionally, for purposes of this provision: "Actual State Operating Funds Tax Receipts" shall mean the State Operating Fund tax receipts, reported by the State Comptroller in any monthly Report to the Legislature on the State Fund Cash Basis of Accounting, prepared in accordance with subdivision 9-a (a) of section 8 of the state finance law; "Actual State Operating Funds Disbursements" shall mean the State Operating Funds disbursements, reported by the State Comptroller in any monthly Report to the Legislature on the State Fund Cash Basis of Accounting, prepared in accordance with subdivision 9-a (a) of section 8 of the state finance law; "Estimated State Operating Funds Tax Receipts" shall mean the State Operating Funds tax receipts estimated to be received during any period within the 2020-21 Fiscal Year by the division of the budget in the Financial Plan; "Estimated State Operating Funds Disbursements" shall mean the State Operating Funds disbursements, estimated to be made during any period within the 2020-21 Fiscal Year by the division of the budget in the Financial Plan; and "Financial Plan" shall be the Executive Financial Plan as Updated for Governor's Amendments and Forecast Revisions issued in February 2020 for the period April 1, 2020 through April 30, 2020 and the enacted budget financial plan for the 2020-21 fiscal year issued pursuant to sections 22 and 23 of the state finance law for the period May 1, 2020 through March 31, 2021.

g) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, prior to the expenditure of any funds received by the Federal government in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency pursuant to the authority granted in any appropriation set forth herein, the director of the budget may require that the agency or public authority making such expenditures submit an allocation plan to the director of the budget for approval. Approved allocation plans shall be provided to the president pro tempore of the senate and the speaker of the assembly within 30 days of approval. Such allocation plan must comport with any minimum Federal requirements for the expenditure of such funds.

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