What's happening
This bill requires that each legislative bill in New York addresses only a single subject, except for budget bills.
Why it matters
Prevents "omnibus" or "logrolling" bills. By requiring each bill to contain only one subject, the legislation aims to stop the practice of combining unrelated provisions into a single bill, which can obscure controversial measures or force legislators to accept unwanted policies to pass desired ones.
Increases transparency and accountability. Legislators and the public will be able to more clearly understand the purpose and content of each bill, making it easier to track legislative intent and hold lawmakers accountable for their votes on specific issues.
May slow down the legislative process. Requiring single-subject bills could lead to a larger number of separate bills, potentially increasing the workload for lawmakers and committees, but also ensuring more focused debate on each topic.
Exempts budget bills. The exception for budget and appropriations bills acknowledges the complexity and interconnected nature of state finances, while still applying the single-subject rule to all other types of legislation.
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Who cares
Headline styles
One Subject Per Bill
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to investigations and government operations
- Referred to investigations and government operations
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3800
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 14, 2019
Introduced by Sen. RANZENHOFER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations
AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to requiring bills to include a single object or purpose
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The legislative law is amended by adding a new section 49 to read as follows:
§ 49. Bills to include a single object or purpose. No bill, with the exception of budget bills for appropriation or reappropriation submitted by the governor pursuant to article seven of the constitution and amendments thereto, shall be introduced or passed by the legislature which embraces more than one subject.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01793-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the legislative law, in relation to requiring bills to include a single object or purpose
Purpose
To require that all bills other than appropriation and reappropriation budget bills submitted pursuant to Article VII of the Constitution contain only one subject
Summary of provisions
Section 1 - adds a new section 49 of the Legislative Law. Section 2 - Effective date.
Justification
Currently, legislative bills are submitted from time to time, partic- ularly during the budget process, that cover a number of different and totally unrelated subjects. Such. bills often deal with policies and issues that have no relationship to each other and that should be reviewed and considered on their own individual merits. Such multi-sub- ject bills are confusing to members of the public, and often lead to confusion or misinterpretation by the people who will be affected by the changes envisioned in the legislation. This bill will provide more tran- sparency and clarity to the legislative process so that the residents of our state can better understand and comment on proposals before the Legislature.
Legislative history
2017-18 - S.6857 - RULES/INVESTIGATIONS
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act will take effect on the first of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.