What's happening
This bill prohibits state or municipal agencies from using county official seals without prior consent.
Why it matters
Protects county identity and authority. by ensuring that official county seals are not used by state or municipal agencies without explicit permission, which helps prevent misrepresentation or unauthorized association with county government.
Could impact intergovernmental collaboration. by requiring agencies to seek formal consent before using county seals on documents, websites, or programs, potentially adding administrative steps or slowing down joint initiatives.
Reduces risk of confusion or misuse. of official county seals in public communications, legal documents, or promotional materials, helping maintain public trust in the authenticity of county-issued information.
Empowers counties with control over their symbols. , reinforcing local governance and safeguarding the integrity of county branding and legal authority.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Protect County Seal Usage
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to local government
- Referred to local government
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2865
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 30, 2019
Introduced by Sen. JORDAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the county law, in relation to use of official seals
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 404 of the county law, as amended by chapter 961 of the laws of 1966, is amended to read as follows:
§ 404. Official seals. The official seals of boards of supervisors of the several counties, county seal, county treasurer's seal and the seal of the register of deeds shall continue to be the official seals, respectively, of such boards, county treasurer, surrogate and register of deeds and used as such, respectively, when authorized by law and may not be used by any state or municipal agency without prior consent. When any such seal shall be lost, destroyed, or become unfit for use, the board of supervisors of the county interested therein or not having such seal, shall cause a new seal or seals to be made at the expense of the county. A description of each of such seals, together with the impressions therefrom, shall be filed in the office of the county clerk and in the office of the secretary of state. In counties having two county seats, a duplicate of the county seal shall be procured and kept at the county seat where the county clerk's office is not situated, at some place to be designated by the county clerk and may be used by him the same as at his office. In counties having but one court house and which is located more than five miles from the county clerk's office, a duplicate of the county seal shall be procured and kept at such court house and the county clerk may use the same at such court house. The seal kept by the county clerk in each county, as prescribed in the judiciary law, shall continue to be the seal of the county, and must be used by him where he is required to use an official seal.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09083-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the county law, in relation to use of official seals
Purpose
Prohibits the use of County Seals without prior consent of the County.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends section 404 of the County Law to add language prohibit- ing the use of County Seals, including, Seal of the Board of Supervi- sors, County Seal, Seal of the County Treasurer, Surrogate and Register of Deeds, without prior consent of the County or official authorized to issue consent for use of the seals.
Section 2 contains the effective date.
Justification
This legislation is in response to the overwhelming number of Counties across the state who have voiced opposition to the use of their County seals being used by the state or its agencies in conjunction with the recertification of pistol licenses under the SAFE Act. This bill would prohibit the use of county seals by the state police or any other state or municipal agency without the consent of the county.
Legislative history
2017-18: Passed Senate 2015-16: Passed Senate 2013-14: Referred to Local Government
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.