S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5507
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
May 14, 2015
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Introduced by Sens. ROBACH, MURPHY -- read twice and ordered printed,
and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance
AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in relation to establishing a
spending cap and increasing the maximum capacity of the rainy day fund
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The state finance law is amended by adding a new article 17
to read as follows:
ARTICLE 17
ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP ACT
SECTION 244. DEFINITIONS.
245. ESTABLISHMENT OF ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
246. PROVISIONS REGARDING DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY.
S 244. DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL
HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS, UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED:
1. "ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP" SHALL MEAN A PERCENTAGE DETERMINED BY
ADDING THE INFLATION RATES FROM EACH OF THE THREE CALENDAR YEARS IMME-
DIATELY PRIOR TO THE COMMENCEMENT OF A GIVEN FISCAL YEAR AND THEN DIVID-
ING THAT SUM BY THREE.
2. "STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING" SHALL MEAN ANNUAL DISBURSEMENTS OF
ALL GOVERNMENTAL FUND TYPES INCLUDED IN THE CASH-BASIS FINANCIAL PLAN OF
THE STATE, EXCLUDING DISBURSEMENTS FROM FEDERAL FUNDS AND CAPITAL
PROJECT FUNDS.
3. "INFLATION RATE" SHALL MEAN THE PERCENTAGE CHANGE IN THE
TWELVE-MONTH AVERAGE OF THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX FOR ALL URBAN CONSUMERS
AS PUBLISHED BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, BUREAU OF LABOR
STATISTICS OR ANY SUCCESSOR AGENCY FOR A GIVEN CALENDAR YEAR COMPARED TO
THE PRIOR CALENDAR YEAR.
4. "EXECUTIVE BUDGET" SHALL MEAN THE BUDGET SUBMITTED ANNUALLY BY THE
GOVERNOR PURSUANT TO SECTION ONE OF ARTICLE VII OF THE STATE CONSTITU-
TION.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08406-02-5
S. 5507 2
5. "STATE BUDGET AS ENACTED" SHALL MEAN THE BUDGET ACTED UPON BY THE
LEGISLATURE IN A GIVEN FISCAL YEAR, AS SUBJECT TO SECTION FOUR OF ARTI-
CLE VII OF THE STATE CONSTITUTION AND SECTION SEVEN OF ARTICLE IV OF THE
STATE CONSTITUTION.
6. "EMERGENCY" SHALL MEAN AN EXTRAORDINARY, UNFORESEEN, OR UNEXPECTED
OCCURRENCE, OR COMBINATION OF CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
TO A NATURAL DISASTER, INVASION, TERRORIST ATTACK, OR ECONOMIC CALAMITY.
S 245. ESTABLISHMENT OF ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP. 1. THERE IS HERE-
BY ESTABLISHED AN ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
2. THE GOVERNOR SHALL NOT SUBMIT, AND THE LEGISLATURE SHALL NOT ACT
UPON, A BUDGET THAT CONTAINS A PERCENTAGE INCREASE OVER THE PRIOR FISCAL
YEAR IN STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING WHICH EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING
GROWTH CAP.
3. THE GOVERNOR SHALL CERTIFY IN WRITING THAT STATE OPERATING FUNDS
SPENDING IN THE EXECUTIVE BUDGET DOES NOT EXCEED THE ANNUAL SPENDING
GROWTH CAP. IF FINAL INFLATION RATE DATA FOR THE PRIOR CALENDAR YEAR IS
NOT YET AVAILABLE AT THE TIME THE GOVERNOR SUBMITS HIS OR HER EXECUTIVE
BUDGET, HE OR SHE SHALL FURNISH A REASONABLE ESTIMATE OF SUCH PRIOR
CALENDAR YEAR INFLATION RATE.
4. THE COMPTROLLER SHALL PROVIDE, WITHIN FIVE DAYS OF ACTION BY THE
LEGISLATURE UPON THE BUDGET, A DETERMINATION AS TO WHETHER THE STATE
OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING AS SET FORTH IN THE STATE BUDGET AS ENACTED
EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
5. IF THE COMPTROLLER FINDS THAT STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING AS SET
FORTH IN THE STATE BUDGET AS ENACTED EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH
CAP, THE GOVERNOR SHALL TAKE CORRECTIVE ACTION TO ENSURE THAT FUNDING IS
LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT OF THE ANNUAL SPENDING CAP.
S 246. PROVISIONS REGARDING DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY. 1. UPON A FIND-
ING OF AN EMERGENCY BY THE GOVERNOR, HE OR SHE MAY DECLARE AN EMERGENCY
BY AN EXECUTIVE ORDER WHICH SHALL SET FORTH THE REASONS FOR SUCH DECLA-
RATION.
2. BASED UPON SUCH DECLARATION, THE GOVERNOR MAY SUBMIT, AND THE
LEGISLATURE MAY AUTHORIZE, BY A TWO-THIRDS SUPERMAJORITY, A BUDGET
CONTAINING A PERCENTAGE INCREASE OVER THE PRIOR FISCAL YEAR IN STATE
OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING THAT EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
S 2. Subdivision 2 of section 92-cc of the state finance law, as
amended by section 12-a of part I of chapter 60 of the laws of 2015, is
amended to read as follows:
2. Such fund shall have a maximum balance not to exceed [five] TEN per
centum of the aggregate amount projected to be disbursed from the gener-
al fund during the fiscal year immediately following the then-current
fiscal year. At the request of the director of the budget, the state
comptroller shall transfer monies to the rainy day reserve fund up to
and including an amount equivalent to seventy-five one-hundredths of one
per centum of the aggregate amount projected to be disbursed from the
general fund during the then-current fiscal year, unless such transfer
would increase the rainy day reserve fund to an amount in excess of five
per centum of the aggregate amount projected to be disbursed from the
general fund during the fiscal year immediately following the then-cur-
rent fiscal year, in which event such transfer shall be limited to such
amount as will increase the rainy day reserve fund to such five per
centum limitation.
S 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
have become a law.
