S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8400
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 21, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. BENJAMIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities
 
 AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the New York state  finan-
   cial emergency act for the city of New York, in relation to the estab-
   lishment  by  the city of New York of a revenue stabilization fund and
   variations from generally accepted accounting principles as applied to
   the budget and accounts of such city in connection with such fund
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 25 of the general municipal law, as added by chap-
 ter 406 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   § 25.  Treatment  of  capital  costs  and  [restricted]  CERTAIN  fund
 balances  OF  THE  CITY  OF NEW YORK; REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND OF SUCH
 CITY.  Notwithstanding the provisions of any general  or  special  state
 law  or  local law to the contrary, including but not limited to the New
 York city charter, the following shall apply with respect to the  budget
 and accounts of the city of New York:
   1.  All costs that would be capital costs in accordance with generally
 accepted accounting principles, but for the application of  governmental
 accounting  standards board statement number forty-nine, shall be deemed
 to be capital costs for purposes of this chapter and any other provision
 of state or local law, including but not limited to the  New  York  city
 charter, relevant to the treatment of such costs; [and]
   2.  The determination as to the existence of a deficit pursuant to the
 New York state financial emergency act for the city of New  York,  while
 such  act  remains  in effect, and any other provision of state or local
 law, including but not limited to the New York city  charter,  shall  be
 made  without  regard to changes in restricted fund balances, as defined
 by the governmental accounting standards board,  where  restrictions  in
 relation  to  such  fund balances are imposed by state or federal law or
 regulation, or otherwise by private or governmental parties  other  than
 the  city  of  New  York, and without regard to funds held in the health
 stabilization fund, the school crossing guards  health  insurance  fund,
 ANY  REVENUE  STABILIZATION FUND ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SECTION FIFTEEN
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD15355-03-0

 S. 8400                             2
 
 HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT OF THE NEW YORK CITY  CHARTER  and  the  management
 benefits  fund  established  by the city of New York.  DEPOSITS INTO ANY
 SUCH REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE EXPENSES  OF  SUCH
 CITY  FOR ALL PURPOSES IN THE FISCAL YEAR DURING WHICH SUCH DEPOSITS ARE
 MADE, AND WITHDRAWALS FROM SUCH FUND SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE  REVENUES  OF
 SUCH  CITY  FOR  ALL PURPOSES IN THE FISCAL YEAR DURING WHICH SUCH WITH-
 DRAWALS ARE MADE; PROVIDED HOWEVER, THAT SURPLUSES OF SUCH CITY, WHETHER
 ACCUMULATED FROM FISCAL YEARS ENDING PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF  THE
 CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND TWENTY THAT AMENDED THIS SUBDIVISION
 OR  EXISTING AT THE CLOSE OF ANY FISCAL YEAR ENDING AFTER SUCH EFFECTIVE
 DATE, SHALL BE DEPOSITED INTO SUCH REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND AS SOON AS
 PRACTICABLE, AND SUCH DEPOSITS SHALL NOT BE DEEMED EXPENSES OF THE  CITY
 IN THE FISCAL YEARS DURING WHICH SUCH DEPOSITS ARE MADE; AND
   3.  THE CITY OF NEW YORK MAY ESTABLISH AND MAINTAIN A REVENUE STABILI-
 ZATION FUND PURSUANT TO SECTION FIFTEEN HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT OF THE  NEW
 YORK CITY CHARTER. EXCEPT AS REQUIRED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION
 WITH  RESPECT TO SURPLUSES, DEPOSITS INTO AND WITHDRAWALS FROM SUCH FUND
 MAY BE MADE BY MEANS OF THE PROCEDURES SET FORTH  IN  SUCH  CHARTER  FOR
 ADOPTION OR MODIFICATION OF THE EXPENSE BUDGET OF SUCH CITY, AS APPLICA-
 BLE,  PROVIDED  THAT  NO  MORE THAN FIFTY PERCENT OF THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF
 SUCH FUND MAY BE WITHDRAWN IN ANY  FISCAL  YEAR  UNLESS  THE  MAYOR  HAS
 CERTIFIED  THAT THERE IS A COMPELLING FISCAL NEED, WHICH MAY BE BASED ON
 CIRCUMSTANCES INCLUDING, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, A NATIONAL  OR  REGIONAL
 RECESSION,  A REDUCTION IN TOTAL REVENUES FROM THE PRECEDING FISCAL YEAR
 AS PROJECTED IN THE FINANCIAL PLAN OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, A NATURAL OR
 OTHER DISASTER, OR A DECLARED STATE OF EMERGENCY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK
 OR THE STATE OF NEW YORK. THE AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH A REVENUE  STABILI-
 ZATION  FUND  SET  FORTH IN THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE IN ADDITION TO ANY
 OTHER AUTHORIZATION SET FORTH IN THIS ARTICLE OR OTHER APPLICABLE LAW.
   § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 8 of section 2 of chapter
 868 of the laws of 1975, constituting the New York state financial emer-
 gency act for the city of New York, as amended by  chapter  406  of  the
 laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   a. For its fiscal years ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seven-
 ty-nine  through June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one, the city's
 budget covering all expenditures  other  than  capital  items  shall  be
 prepared and balanced so that the results thereof would not show a defi-
 cit when reported in accordance with the accounting principles set forth
 in  the  state  comptroller's  uniform  system  of  accounts for munici-
 palities, as the same may be modified by the comptroller,  in  consulta-
 tion  with the city comptroller, for application to the city; subject to
 the provision of subdivision four of section three thousand thirty-eight
 of the public authorities law with respect to contributions by the  city
 or  other  public  employer to any retirement system or pension fund and
 subject to the provision of paragraph (c) of subdivision five of section
 three thousand thirty-eight of the public authorities law  with  respect
 to  expense  items  included  in the capital budget of the city. For the
 fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two, and  for
 each fiscal year thereafter, the city's budget covering all expenditures
 other  than  capital  items  shall  be prepared and balanced so that the
 results thereof would not show a deficit  when  reported  in  accordance
 with  generally  accepted accounting principles and would permit compar-
 ison of the budget with the report of actual financial results  prepared
 in  accordance  with  generally  accepted  accounting  principles.  With
 respect to financial plans that include the  fiscal  years  ending  June
 thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred seventy-nine through June thirtieth, nine-

 S. 8400                             3
 
 teen hundred eighty-one, the city's  budget  covering  all  expenditures
 other  than capital items shall be prepared in accordance with generally
 accepted accounting principles and there shall be  substantial  progress
 in  each  such  fiscal year towards achieving a city budget covering all
 expenditures other than capital items the results  of  which  would  not
 show  a  deficit  when  reported  in  accordance with generally accepted
 accounting principles. The city shall eliminate expense items  from  its
 capital budget not later than the commencement of the fiscal year ending
 June  thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two. For the fiscal year ending
 June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-nine, and for each  fiscal  year
 thereafter,  the  budgets  covering  all expenditures other than capital
 items of each  of  the  covered  organizations  shall  be  prepared  and
 balanced  so  that  the  results  thereof  would not show a deficit when
 reported in accordance with generally  accepted  accounting  principles;
 and  for  each  fiscal  year  prior  thereto, there shall be substantial
 progress towards  such  goal.  Notwithstanding  the  foregoing  and  the
 provisions  of  any  general  or  special  state law or local law to the
 contrary, including but not limited to the New York city charter:    (i)
 all  costs  that  would  be  capital  costs in accordance with generally
 accepted accounting principles, but for the application of  governmental
 accounting  standards board statement number forty-nine, shall be deemed
 to be capital costs for purposes of this act and any other provision  of
 state or local law, including but not limited to the New York city char-
 ter, relevant to the treatment of such costs; and (ii) the determination
 as  to  the  existence  of  a deficit pursuant to this act and any other
 provision of state or local law, including but not limited  to  the  New
 York city charter, shall be made without regard to changes in restricted
 fund  balances,  as  defined  by  the  governmental accounting standards
 board, where restrictions in relation to such fund balances are  imposed
 by  state  or  federal  law  or  regulation,  or otherwise by private or
 governmental parties other than the city of New York, and without regard
 to funds held in the health  stabilization  fund,  the  school  crossing
 guards health insurance fund, ANY REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND ESTABLISHED
 PURSUANT  TO  SECTION  FIFTEEN HUNDRED TWENTY-EIGHT OF THE NEW YORK CITY
 CHARTER and the management benefits fund established by the city of  New
 York.  DEPOSITS INTO ANY SUCH REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND SHALL BE DEEMED
 TO BE EXPENSES OF SUCH CITY IN THE FISCAL YEAR IN  WHICH  SUCH  DEPOSITS
 ARE  MADE, AND WITHDRAWALS FROM SUCH FUND SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE REVENUES
 OF SUCH CITY IN THE YEAR IN WHICH SUCH WITHDRAWALS  ARE  MADE;  PROVIDED
 HOWEVER,  THAT  SURPLUSES  OF SUCH CITY, WHETHER ACCUMULATED FROM FISCAL
 YEARS ENDING PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF THE  LAWS  OF
 TWO THOUSAND TWENTY THAT AMENDED THIS PARAGRAPH OR EXISTING AT THE CLOSE
 OF  ANY FISCAL YEAR ENDING AFTER SUCH EFFECTIVE DATE, SHALL BE DEPOSITED
 INTO SUCH REVENUE STABILIZATION FUND AS SOON AS  PRACTICABLE,  AND  SUCH
 DEPOSITS  SHALL NOT BE DEEMED EXPENSES OF THE CITY IN THE FISCAL YEAR IN
 WHICH SUCH DEPOSITS ARE MADE.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.