Senate Bill S5315A

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

                                 5315--A
    Cal. No. 734

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               May 5, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sen. FLANAGAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the  Committee  on  Education  --  reported
  favorably  from  said  committee,  ordered to first and second report,
  ordered to a third reading, passed by  Senate  and  delivered  to  the
  Assembly,  recalled,  vote  reconsidered,  restored  to third reading,
  amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place  in  the  order  of
  third reading

AN  ACT  relating  to  validating actions taken by the Smithtown Central
  School District

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

  Section  1.  Legislative intent. The legislature hereby finds that the
Smithtown Central School District approved several  capital  improvement
projects  which  were  designated  by  the State Education Department as
project numbers 7999-002, 0034-022, 0027-008 and 0023-021. In  addition,
the  projects  were  eligible  for  certain  state  aid. The legislature
further finds that due to an administrative error, required filings  for
eligibility  for  such  aid  were  not  made by the district in a timely
manner making the district ineligible for certain aid.  The  legislature
further  finds  that  without such aid, the capital improvement projects
will impose an additional, unanticipated hardship on district taxpayers.
  S 2. All the acts done and proceedings heretofore  had  and  taken  or
caused  to be had and taken by the Smithtown Central School District and
by all its officers or agents relating to or in connection with  certain
final  cost  reports to be filed with the state education department for
projects 7999-002, 0034-022, 0027-008 and 0023-021, and all  acts  inci-
dental  thereto are hereby legalized, validated, ratified and confirmed,
notwithstanding any failure to  comply  with  the  approval  and  filing
provisions  of the education law or any other law or any other statutory
authority, rule or regulation, in  relation  to  any  omissions,  error,
defect,  irregularity  or  illegality in such proceedings had and taken,

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

                                                           LBD11448-04-1

S. 5315--A                          2

and provided further that nay amount due and payable  to  the  Smithtown
Central  School  District  for  school years prior to the 2012-13 school
year as a result of this act shall be paid pursuant to the provisions of
paragraph c of subdivision 5 of section 3604 of the education law.
  S  3.  The  education  department  is  hereby directed to consider the
approved costs of the aforementioned projects as valid and proper  obli-
gations of the Smithtown Central School District.
  S  4. Notwithstanding any provisions of law to the contrary, state aid
payments in the amount of not more than three million five  hundred  two
thousand one hundred fifty dollars ($3,502,150.00) made to the Smithtown
Central School District in the 2004-2005 through 2010-2011 school years,
which  included excess payments of aid for which a recovery must be made
by the state through deduction of future aid payments by deducting  one-
sixth  of  such  excess  payments  from  the payments due to such school
district and payable in the month of June in the years 2011, 2012, 2013,
2014, 2015, and 2016 provided,  however,  there  shall  be  no  interest
penalty  assessed  against  such district or collected by the state, and
provided further that,  any  pending  payment  of  moneys  due  to  such
district  as  a prior year adjustment payable pursuant to paragraph c of
subdivision 5 of section 3604 of the education law for aid  claims  that
had  been previously paid in excess as current year aid payments and for
which recovery of excess  payments  is  to  be  made  pursuant  to  this
section, shall be reduced at the time of actual payment by any remaining
unrecovered balance of such excess payments, and the remaining scheduled
deductions  of  such  excess  payments pursuant to this section shall be
reduced by the commissioner of education to reflect the amount so recov-
ered.
  S 5. This act shall take effect immediately.