NY State Senate Bill 2009-S4697

Senate Bill S4697

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Relates to prohibiting funding of terrorist activities through donations to not-for-profit organizations

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Veterans, Homeland Security And Military Affairs Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2010	referred to veterans, homeland security and military affairs
Apr 27, 2009	referred to veterans, homeland security and military affairs

2009-S4697 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Veterans, Homeland Security And Military Affairs
Law Section:: Penal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §115, N-PC L; amd §490.15, Pen L

2009-S4697 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to prohibiting funding of terrorist activities through donations to not-for-profit organizations.

2009-S4697 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S4697

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the penal law and the not-for-profit corporation law,
in relation to prohibiting funding and support of terrorist activities
and organizations

 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :

This bill would specifically prohibit not-for-profit corporations, and
their officers, directors and employees from soliciting contributions
for, or transferring monies to organizations that support terrorism.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :

Specifically, this bill would amend the not-for-profit corporation
law, to provide that:

1. Not-for-profit corporations shall not solicit contributions for, or
transfer any monies to, any person or organization which assists,
funds or supports terrorism or terrorist activities;

2. Terrorism and terrorist activities would be defined to include any
act, or threat of an act, of violence directed against the United
States, any state, or local government, or against any person or

property within the United States, if such act, or threat of an act,
of violence is motivated by religious, cultural or political ideology;

3. Assistance, funding or support of terrorism would be defined to
include any activity which could assist the advancement, planning,
opera1 ion, conduct or advocacy' of terrorism or terrorist activities,
Including the assistance, funding or supporting or any educational,
religious, cultural or political organization, or person officially
affiliated with such organization, which advocates the advancement,
planning, operation, conduct or advocacy of terrorism or terrorist
activities;

4. The attorney general and/or the comptroller, upon probable cause,
may audit and investigate any not-for-corporation suspected soliciting
contributions for, or transferring monies to any person or
organization which assists, funds or supports terrorism or terrorist
activities, and upon the conduct of such audit or investigation, the
attorney general and comptroller shall be permitted full and
unrestricted access to all records, papers and accounts of such
corporation, and shall also be empowered to depose under oath, any
officer, director or employee of such corporation;

5. The attorney general would also have the power, as shall the
district attorney of the county in which the corporation maintains its
offices, to prosecute any violation of this section; and

6. Any not-for-profit corporation found guilty of soliciting
contributions for, transferring monies to any person or organization
which assists, funds or supports terrorism or terrorist activities,
and/or any not-for-corporation which has an officer or director found
guilty of section 490.15 of the penal law, shall be deemed immediately
dissolved, with its assets immediately transferred to the state of New
York, and the comptroller upon depositing such assets into a
segregated account shall thereupon disburse such assets to other
charitable organizations which do not assist, fund or support
terrorism or terrorist activities, unless such corporation can
demonstrate by compelling evidence to a supreme court that its
corporate existence should be continued and that any person so
involved with the Violation will no longer be employed or associated
with the corporation.
This bill would also amend section 490.15 of the penal law, to provide
that any officer of director of a not-for-profit corporation who
knowingly permits such corporation to assist, fund or support
terrorism would be guilty of the crime of soliciting or providing
support for an act of terrorism In the first degree, which is a class
C felony.

 JUSTIFICATION :

One of the greatest weapons our society has to effectively fight the
war against terrorism is to stop the flow of monies to those who would
advocate, advance or commit acts of terrorism. Money is the life's
blood of terrorism. It is the resource that makes it operate and helps
to sustain its viability to inflict such great damage. Stop the
financing of those who advocate, advance or commit acts of terrorism,
and the real threat and viability that terrorist can pose becomes
dramatically diminished.

Since September 11, 2001, it has become evident that a great deal of
the terrorist's funding has come from the United States, being
channeled through charitable organizations. Project Green Quest, was
established by the federal government with the sole intent of tracking
these monies funneled to terrorists, and then seeking to try to stop
them. But even with such effort both the federal department of justice
and our nation's intelligence services, have all said that the only
real way to prevent this funding is to have the not-for-profit
corporations themselves stop raising and distributing these monies.

These federal authorities responsible for fighting the war against
terrorism, have called upon the states to take real and meaningful
action to combat this problem. This bill would take such action, and
would provide the incentive for not- for-profit charities to insure
they are not providing monies to any person or organization which
assists, funds or supports terrorism or terrorist activities, as well
as institute the personal criminal liability and corporate dissolution
for those who continue to do so.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2008 - S.3587 A: Passed Senate.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None noted.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act would take effect on January 1, 2010.

2009-S4697 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  4697

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 27, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. LEIBELL -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Securi-
  ty and Military Affairs

AN ACT to amend the penal law and the not-for-profit corporation law, in
  relation to prohibiting funding and support  of  terrorist  activities
  and organizations

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1.  Section 490.15 of the penal law, as added by  chapter  300
of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
S  490.15 Soliciting or providing support for an act of terrorism in the
           first degree.
  A person commits soliciting or providing support for an act of terror-
ism in the first degree when:
  1. he or she commits the crime of soliciting or providing support  for
an act of terrorism in the second degree and the total value of material
support or resources exceeds one thousand dollars; OR
  2.  HE  OR  SHE,  AS AN OFFICER OR DIRECTOR OF A NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPO-
RATION, KNOWINGLY PERMITS SUCH CORPORATION TO ASSIST,  FUND  OR  SUPPORT
TERRORISM.
  Soliciting  or  providing support for an act of terrorism in the first
degree is a class C felony.
  S 2. Section 115 of the not-for-profit corporation law,  as  added  by
chapter 669 of the laws of 1977, is amended to read as follows:
S 115. Power to solicit contributions for charitable purposes.
  (A)  SOLICITATION  OF CONTRIBUTIONS FOR CHARITABLE PURPOSES. No corpo-
ration having the power to solicit contributions for charitable purposes
may solicit contributions for any purpose for  which  approval  of  such
solicitation  is  required  under the provisions of section four hundred
four of this chapter unless the certificate specifically makes provision
for such solicitation and the required written approval is  endorsed  on

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03545-01-9

S. 4697                             2

or  annexed to such certificate or unless the corporation is among those
referred to in section one hundred seventy-two-a of the  executive  law.
If such approval is not obtained and the corporation continues to solic-
it  or  to  receive contributions for such purpose or advertises that it
has obtained such approval, the attorney general, at the request of  the
officer  or  body  authorized  to grant such approval, shall maintain an
action or proceeding pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph  one  of
paragraph  (a)  of section one hundred twelve of this [chapter] ARTICLE.
Such an action may also be maintained in relation to a corporation here-
inafter incorporated if the name, purposes, objects or the activities of
such corporation may, in any manner, lead to the belief that the  corpo-
ration possesses or may exercise any of such purposes.
  (B) CONTRIBUTIONS SOLICITED FOR, OR TRANSFERRED TO, ORGANIZATIONS THAT
SUPPORT  TERRORISM  PROHIBITED. NO CORPORATION FORMED UNDER THIS CHAPTER
SHALL SOLICIT CONTRIBUTIONS FOR, OR TRANSFER ANY MONIES TO,  ANY  PERSON
OR  ORGANIZATION WHICH ASSISTS, FUNDS OR SUPPORTS TERRORISM OR TERRORIST
ACTIVITIES. TERRORISM AND TERRORIST ACTIVITIES FOR THE PURPOSES OF  THIS
SECTION,  SHALL  INCLUDE  ANY  ACT,  OR  THREAT  OF  AN ACT, OF VIOLENCE
DIRECTED AGAINST THE UNITED STATES, ANY STATE, OR LOCAL  GOVERNMENT,  OR
AGAINST ANY PERSON OR PROPERTY WITHIN THE UNITED STATES, IF SUCH ACT, OR
THREAT  OF  AN  ACT,  OF VIOLENCE IS MOTIVATED BY RELIGIOUS, CULTURAL OR
POLITICAL IDEOLOGY. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS  SECTION,  THE  ASSISTANCE,
FUNDING  OR  SUPPORT OF TERRORISM SHALL INCLUDE ANY ACTIVITY WHICH COULD
ASSIST THE ADVANCEMENT, PLANNING,  OPERATION,  CONDUCT  OR  ADVOCACY  OF
TERRORISM  OR TERRORIST ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING THE ASSISTANCE, FUNDING OR
SUPPORTING OR ANY EDUCATIONAL, RELIGIOUS, CULTURAL OR  POLITICAL  ORGAN-
IZATION,  OR  PERSON OFFICIALLY AFFILIATED WITH SUCH ORGANIZATION, WHICH
ADVOCATES THE ADVANCEMENT, PLANNING, OPERATION, CONDUCT OR  ADVOCACY  OF
TERRORISM OR TERRORIST ACTIVITIES. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND/OR THE STATE
COMPTROLLER,  UPON  PROBABLE CAUSE, MAY AUDIT AND INVESTIGATE ANY CORPO-
RATION FORMED UNDER THIS CHAPTER, SUSPECTED OF VIOLATING THE  PROVISIONS
OF  THIS SECTION.   UPON THE CONDUCT OF SUCH AUDIT OR INVESTIGATION, THE
ATTORNEY GENERAL AND STATE COMPTROLLER SHALL BE PERMITTED FULL AND UNRE-
STRICTED ACCESS TO ALL RECORDS, PAPERS AND ACCOUNTS OF SUCH CORPORATION,
AND SHALL ALSO BE EMPOWERED TO DEPOSE UNDER OATH, ANY OFFICER,  DIRECTOR
OR  EMPLOYEE  OF  SUCH CORPORATION. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL SHALL ALSO HAVE
THE POWER, AS SHALL THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY OF THE  COUNTY  IN  WHICH  THE
CORPORATION  MAINTAINS  ITS  OFFICES, TO PROSECUTE ANY VIOLATION OF THIS
SECTION.  ANY CORPORATION FOUND TO HAVE VIOLATED THE PROVISIONS OF  THIS
SECTION,  AND/OR  ANY CORPORATION WHICH HAS AN OFFICER OR DIRECTOR FOUND
GUILTY OF SECTION 490.15 OF  THE  PENAL  LAW  UPON  APPLICATION  TO  THE
SUPREME  COURT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OR THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY SHALL BE
DEEMED IMMEDIATELY DISSOLVED, WITH ITS ASSETS IMMEDIATELY TRANSFERRED TO
THE STATE OF NEW YORK, AND THE STATE COMPTROLLER  UPON  DEPOSITING  SUCH
ASSETS INTO A SEGREGATED ACCOUNT SHALL THEREUPON DISBURSE SUCH ASSETS TO
OTHER  CHARITABLE  ORGANIZATIONS  WHICH  DO  NOT ASSIST, FUND OR SUPPORT
TERRORISM OR  TERRORIST  ACTIVITIES,  UNLESS  THE  SUPREME  COURT  FINDS
COMPELLING  EVIDENCE  THAT  THE  CORPORATION'S EXISTENCE SHOULD BE MAIN-
TAINED AND THE CORPORATION HAS DEMONSTRATED THAT ALL PERSONS INVOLVED IN
THE ACTIVITIES CONSTITUTING A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION HAVE BEEN PERMA-
NENTLY BARRED FROM EMPLOYMENT, ASSOCIATION, AND/OR ANY INVOLVEMENT  WITH
THE CORPORATION.
  S 3. This act shall take effect January 1, 2010.

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