What's happening
This bill requires New York City agencies to create teleworking policies, allowing employees to work remotely whenever possible.
Why it matters
Mandates all NYC agencies to create telework policies. , meaning there will be a coordinated, citywide shift toward enabling employees to work remotely whenever possible—potentially affecting thousands of workers and setting a precedent for other cities.
Requires each agency to appoint a "telework coordinator". , signaling that telework programs will have dedicated oversight and potentially greater accountability and consistency across government offices.
Defines "telework" broadly. , so any work that could be done outside the main office is included; this could lead to fundamental changes in how city services are delivered, the use of office space, and even long-term urban planning.
Intended to address multiple urban challenges. , not just congestion: the bill links telework expansion to improvements in public health, mass transit effectiveness, environmental quality, and economic vitality, suggesting far-reaching impacts beyond employee convenience.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Expand City Telework for Employees
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 14
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to cities
- Referred to cities
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.
Expand Telework for City Employees
In Assembly Committee · Cities · Sponsor Nily Rozic
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5650
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 9, 2019
Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to enacting the "New York city teleworking expansion act"
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 "New York city teleworking expansion act".
§ 2. Legislative findings. The legislature hereby finds and declares that the health and safety of the population living in and around the densely populated New York city metropolitan region is a matter of state concern, as is the economic vitality and the effectiveness of mass transit in that region, all of which are threatened by the amount of traffic congestion inside of, and into, New York city, and the overcrowded buses, subways and railroads within the region. Traffic congestion is particularly harmful to the mass transit bus systems run by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, creating delays and hindering the growth of essential surface mass transportation systems, and the entire mass transit system suffers from severe overcrowding. The negative impact of traffic congestion in New York city on the health, economy and mass transit systems of the downstate region, as well as the overcrowding of the region's mass transit systems, were established at legislative hearings in the spring of 2007, as well as during the hearings and reports of the legislatively created New York City Traffic Mitigation Commission. During these hearings, it was established that a very large number of New York city employees drive to work both from points within New York city and without, that New York city lacks a working and adequate telecommuting program for its employees, and that an effective telecommuting program would significantly reduce the number of such employees driving to work. Likewise, a telecommuting program for New York city employees would also allow employees who use mass transit to
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00799-01-9
S. 5650 2
work from home, thereby alleviating the current overcrowding in the region's mass transit systems. Such a program as established by this legislation would address the state's concern that the health, safety, economic vitality and mass transit operations of the downstate region be preserved and protected.
§ 3. The administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new section 12-140 to read as follows:
§ 12-140 Teleworking programs. a. Each agency shall establish a policy and program to allow employees to perform all or a portion of their duties through teleworking to the maximum extent possible without diminished employee performance. Each agency shall designate a "telework coordinator" to be responsible for overseeing the implementation of teleworking programs.
b. For the purposes of this section, the term "telework" shall mean to perform normal and regular work functions on a workday that ordinarily would be performed at the agency's principal location at a different location, thereby eliminating or substantially reducing the physical commute to and from such agency's principal location.
§ 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to enacting the "New York city teleworking expan- sion act"
Purpose
To increase teleworking in New York City agencies.
Summary of provisions
The bill amends the New York City Administrative Code by adding section 12-140 to require New York City agencies to establish teleworking programs.
Justification
Congestion is a problem in New York City, requiring thoughtful solutions that do not unnecessarily overburden New Yorkers. Teleworking offers an opportunity to reduce congestion and complement efforts to reduce government issued parking placards. The federal government and many states and municipalities have established teleworking policies to get workers out of their cars, and not merely to reduce congestion.
Teleworking has been shown to increase productivity and retention while reducing absenteeism. Private sector based strategies include tax cred- its for businesses against the cost of planning, training and capital purchases necessary to establish a teleworking program (i.e., Georgia), or merely free consulting and training for businesses interested in establishing teleworking programs (i.e., Connecticut).
Numerous jurisdictions have established successful teleworking programs for government employees. Arizona, for example, required (and achieved) 20% of state government workers in busy Maricopa County (including the City of Phoenix) to telework. Virginia has required that each state agency should have 25% of its employee's teleworking by 2010. The feder- al government requires its agencies to establish teleworking programs for its employees, and over 100,000 federal employees participate.
New York City should be required to establish a teleworking program for its employees, with appropriate goals for the percentage of city workers teleworking.
Legislative history
Assembly Bill 1134 of 2017-18 (Rozic).
Fiscal implications
Minimal.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.