NY State Senate Bill 2015-S7733

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections 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
May 12, 2016	referred to elections

co-Sponsors

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2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§14-114, 14-120 & 14-102, El L
Versions Introduced in 2017-2018 Legislative Session:: S15

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to contributions made by a limited liability company; requires contributions made by a limited liability company to be attributed to each member in proportion to the member's ownership interest in the limited liability company.

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S7733

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the election law, in relation to
contributions made by a limited liability company

 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :

This proposal reduces the receipt limit for contributions made to a
party or constituted committee and requires contributions made by a
limited liability company ("LLC") be proportionally attributed
individually based on each member's direct or indirect interest,
respectively. In addition, such information would have to be disclosed
by both the LLC and its members, as well as, by any political
committee that accepts a contribution from an LLC.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :

Section one of the bill amends subdivision ten of Election Law section
14-114 by lowering the receipt limit for contributions made to a party
or constituted committee from $62,500 to $15,000. The limit would no
longer be subject to increase via changes in the consumer price index,
as it currently is.

The current party or constituted committee contribution limit is
$109,600, since increases in the limit are tied to periodic increases
based on changes in the consumer price index. As such, this change

alone would result in an immediate decrease of $94,600 for
contributions made to party or constituted committees.

Section two of the bill amends section 14-120 of the Election Law by
adding a new subdivision (3). This new subdivision requires all
contributions made by an LLC be attributed to each individual member
in proportion to the member's ownership interest in the company. Such
contributions would count toward the member's individual contribution
limit based on his or her proportional ownership.

The section further requires any LLC that makes contributions to
disclose, on an annual basis, to the State Board of Elections, the
identity of all direct and indirect owners and membership interests,
as well as proportional ownership in the LLC.

Section three of the bill amends Election Law section 14-102 to
require that political committees affirmatively list, for each
contribution received from an LLC: (1) the identity of all direct and
indirect owners and; (2) The amount of the contribution, as attributed
to each member based on the percentage of his or her ownership
interest in the LLC.

 JUSTIFICATION :

This bill addresses some of the core criticisms made over and over
again about New York's lax campaign finance laws. Specifically, the
bill drastically reduces the amount of money that can be solicited or
contributed to constituted or political campaign committees by over
75%. The bill also sets a hard limit for these specific types of
contributions rather than allowing for periodic increases over time as
is currently allowed.

The bill also seeks to provide additional disclosure of who is
specifically behind contributions made by LLC's. Under current law,
only the name of an LLC need be disclosed on campaign filings,
oftentimes making it nearly impossible to trace who, or what interest,
is specifically behind the contribution. This bill seeks to shed
sunlight on this loophole by requiring disclosure of the name of the
LLC and each member's ownership interest. This information would then
have to be affirmatively disclosed on routine campaign finance filings
by candidate and political committees, as well as, annually by each
LLC participating in the political process. The bill also apportions
contributions made by an LLC to each individual member based on his or
her proportional ownership. This amendment to the law would thereby
apply uniform receipt limits to those individuals who contribute
either through an LLC or individually.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

This is a new bill.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None to the state.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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

                                  7733

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              May 12, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sen. KAMINSKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections

AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to contributions made by a
  limited liability company

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

  Section  1.  Subdivision  10 of section 14-114 of the election law, as
added by chapter 79 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
  10. [a.] No contributor may make a contribution to a party or  consti-
tuted committee and no such committee may accept a contribution from any
contributor which, in the aggregate, is greater than [sixty-two thousand
five hundred] FIFTEEN THOUSAND dollars per annum.
  [b. At the beginning of each fourth calendar year, commencing in nine-
teen hundred ninety-five, the state board shall determine the percentage
of  the  difference  between  the most recent available monthly consumer
price index for all urban  consumers  published  by  the  United  States
bureau  of  labor statistics and such consumer price index published for
the same month four years previously. The amount  of  such  contribution
limit  fixed in paragraph a of this subdivision shall be adjusted by the
amount of such percentage difference to the closest one hundred  dollars
by  the  state  board which, not later than the first day of February in
each such year, shall issue a regulation publishing the amount  of  such
contribution  limit. Such contribution limit as so adjusted shall be the
contribution limit in effect for any election held before the next  such
adjustment.]
  S  2.  Section 14-120 of the election law is amended by adding two new
subdivisions 3 and 4 to read as follows:
  3. (A) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY LAW TO THE CONTRARY, ALL CONTRIBUTIONS MADE
TO A CAMPAIGN OR POLITICAL COMMITTEE  BY  A  LIMITED  LIABILITY  COMPANY
SHALL  BE  ATTRIBUTED TO EACH MEMBER OF THE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY IN
PROPORTION TO THE MEMBER'S OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN THE  LIMITED  LIABILITY
COMPANY.  SUCH CONTRIBUTIONS SHALL COUNT TOWARDS THE CONTRIBUTION LIMITS
OF SUCH PERSONS. NOTHING  HEREIN  SHALL  PERMIT  THE  LIMITED  LIABILITY

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD15403-05-6

S. 7733                             2

COMPANY  ITSELF  FROM  CONTRIBUTING MORE THAN AUTHORIZED PURSUANT TO THE
RECEIPT LIMITATIONS IN SECTION 14-114 OF THIS ARTICLE.
  (B)  IF,  BY  APPLICATION  OF  PARAGRAPH  (A)  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION, A
CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION IS ATTRIBUTED TO A LIMITED  LIABILITY  COMPANY  OR
THE  OTHER  CORPORATE  ENTITY, THE CONTRIBUTIONS SHALL BE FURTHER ATTRI-
BUTED TO EACH MEMBER OF THE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY OR OTHER CORPORATE
ENTITY IN PROPORTION TO THE MEMBER'S OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN  THE  LIMITED
LIABILITY COMPANY.
  (C)  THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL ENACT REGULATIONS THAT PREVENT
THE AVOIDANCE OF THE RULES SET FORTH IN PARAGRAPHS (A) AND (B)  OF  THIS
SUBDIVISION.
  4.  EACH  LIMITED  LIABILITY  COMPANY  THAT  MAKES  A CONTRIBUTION, OR
EXPENDITURE FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES SHALL FILE WITH THE  STATE  BOARD  OF
ELECTIONS, BY DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST OF THE YEAR IN WHICH THE EXPENDITURE
IS  MADE,  ON  THE  FORM PRESCRIBED BY THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS, THE
IDENTITY OF ALL DIRECT AND INDIRECT OWNERS OF THE  MEMBERSHIP  INTERESTS
IN  THE  LIMITED  LIABILITY COMPANY AND THE PROPORTION OF EACH DIRECT OR
INDIRECT MEMBER'S OWNERSHIP INTEREST IN THE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY.
  S 3. Subdivision 1 of section 14-102 of the election law,  as  amended
by  chapter  8  and  redesignated  by  chapter 9 of the laws of 1978, is
amended to read as follows:
  1. The treasurer of every political committee which, or  any  officer,
member  or  agent  of  any  such  committee  who, in connection with any
election, receives or expends any  money  or  other  valuable  thing  or
incurs  any  liability  to pay money or its equivalent shall file state-
ments sworn, or subscribed and bearing a form notice that  false  state-
ments  made  therein are punishable as a class A misdemeanor pursuant to
section 210.45 of the penal law, at the times prescribed by this article
setting forth all the receipts, contributions to and the expenditures by
and liabilities of the committee,  and  of  its  officers,  members  and
agents in its behalf. Such statements shall include the dollar amount of
any  receipt,  contribution or transfer, or the fair market value of any
receipt, contribution or transfer, which is other  than  of  money,  the
name  and  address  of  the  transferor, contributor or person from whom
received, [and] THE IDENTITY OF ALL DIRECT AND INDIRECT OWNERS  AND  ANY
CONTRIBUTION ATTRIBUTED TO THE MEMBERSHIP INTERESTS IN A LIMITED LIABIL-
ITY  COMPANY  AND  THE  PROPORTION  OF EACH DIRECT AND INDIRECT MEMBER'S
OWNERSHIP INTEREST, AND if the transferor, contributor or  person  is  a
political  committee;  the name of and the political unit represented by
the committee, the date of its  receipt,  the  dollar  amount  of  every
expenditure,  the  name and address of the person to whom it was made or
the name of and the political unit represented by the committee to which
it was made and the date thereof, and shall state clearly the purpose of
such expenditure. Any statement reporting a loan shall have attached  to
it  a  copy  of the evidence of indebtedness. Expenditures in sums under
fifty dollars need not be specifically accounted for by  separate  items
in  said statements, and receipts and contributions aggregating not more
than ninety-nine dollars, from any one contributor need not  be  specif-
ically  accounted  for  by  separate  items in said statements, provided
however, that such expenditures, receipts  and  contributions  shall  be
subject to the other provisions of section 14-118 of this article.
  S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S7733

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

co-Sponsors

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S7733

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Sponsored By

Todd Kaminsky

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

co-Sponsors

Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.

Tony Avella

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

George Latimer

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Details

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S7733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments