BILL NUMBER:A9767
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the legislative law, in relation to
prohibiting the public presentation by legislators of certain funds
within twenty days of the date of an election in which the legislator is
a candidate and in relation to requiring public hearings prior to allo-
cation of member items
PURPOSE: To remove loopholes that may allow the presentation of a grant
for an incumbent's personal benefit and displace any misperceptions of
the misuse of taxpayers' money for an incumbent's personal gain. To make
public the merits and process and identities of organizations receiving
member item grants.
JUSTIFICATION: Member items are public monies spent on local activities.
Such member items are beneficial to communities. Currently, each state
legislator receives requests for financial grants from organizations
within their districts. The issue is not whether they are a good use of
public money, but rather, that the current law contains loopholes which
may inadvertently allow the presentation of the grant allocations for an
incumbent's use. This provides an unfair advantage for the incumbent,
and when displayed in close timing to one's election, may be an inad-
vertent use of taxpayers' monies for individual purposes.
Currently, there is also a mailing deadline for the distribution of
materials printed and produced by the Assembly during the years of any
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
9767
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 22, 2010
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MENG -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to prohibiting the
public presentation by legislators of certain funds within twenty days
of the date of an election in which the legislator is a candidate and
in relation to requiring public hearings prior to allocation of member
items
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "20/20
Member Items Real Reform Of Rules Act" or the "MIRROR Act".
S 2. The legislative law is amended by adding two new sections 31-a
and 31-b to read as follows:
S 31-A. PUBLIC PRESENTATION OF GRANTS OR AWARDS BEFORE AN ELECTION. NO
MEMBER OF THE ASSEMBLY OR THE SENATE SHALL, WITHIN TWENTY DAYS PRIOR TO
AN ELECTION IN WHICH THE MEMBER IS A CANDIDATE, PUBLICLY PRESENT OR
AWARD ANY LEGISLATIVE GRANTS OR FUNDS OR MONIES FROM PUBLIC FUNDS ALLO-
CATED THROUGH THE STATE BUDGET AS A MEMBER ITEM.
S 31-B. PUBLIC HEARINGS PRIOR TO THE ALLOCATION OF MEMBER ITEM FUNDS.
1. PRIOR TO THE ALLOCATION OF ANY LEGISLATIVE GRANTS OR PUBLIC MONIES
OR FUNDS DESIGNATED AS A MEMBER ITEM IN THE STATE BUDGET, THE MEMBER OF
THE ASSEMBLY OR THE SENATE TO WHOM THE MEMBER ITEM IS ALLOCATED SHALL
CONDUCT AND PRESIDE OVER A PUBLIC HEARING WITHIN THAT MEMBER'S DISTRICT
FOR THE PURPOSES OF ALLOWING INTERESTED ORGANIZATIONS TO PRESENT THEIR
REQUESTS FOR LEGISLATIVE GRANTS AND ALLOW THE PUBLIC TO VIEW THE PROCESS
IN WHICH TAXPAYERS' MONIES ARE DISTRIBUTED. EACH HEARING SHALL BE
CONDUCTED NO LATER THAN TWENTY DAYS PRIOR TO THE DEADLINE OF THE ALLO-
CATION OF MEMBER ITEMS AND SHALL BE PUBLICIZED IN GOOD-FAITH WITHIN THE
DISTRICT FOR ANY ORGANIZATIONS THAT MAY WISH TO APPLY FOR MEMBER ITEMS.
2. THE MEMBER OF THE ASSEMBLY OR SENATE, OR HIS OR HER AGENT, SHALL
MAKE GOOD FAITH EFFORTS TO PUBLICIZE THE TIME, DATE AND LOCATION OF THE
HEARING WITHIN THE DISTRICT THROUGH TELEVISION AND PRINT MEDIA, INCLUD-
ING THE PREDOMINANT NEWSPAPER OF THE DISTRICT, WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME
PRIOR TO THE DATE OF THE HEARING.
S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
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