S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5611
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 22, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. BRABENEC -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
 
 AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to the metropol-
   itan transportation authority
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section
 1263 of the public authorities law, as amended by section 1 of part E of
 chapter 39 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (1) There is hereby created the "metropolitan transportation  authori-
 ty."  The authority shall be a body corporate and politic constituting a
 public  benefit  corporation. The authority shall consist of a chairman,
 sixteen other voting members, and  two  non-voting  and  four  alternate
 non-voting  members,  as described in subparagraph two of this paragraph
 appointed by the governor by and with the  advice  and  consent  of  the
 senate. Any member appointed to a term commencing on or after June thir-
 tieth,  two  thousand  nine  shall have experience in one or more of the
 following areas: transportation, public administration, business manage-
 ment,  finance,  accounting,  law,  engineering,  land  use,  urban  and
 regional   planning,   management   of  large  capital  projects,  labor
 relations, or have experience in some other area of activity central  to
 the  mission  of the authority. Four of the sixteen voting members other
 than the chairman shall be appointed on the  written  recommendation  of
 the  mayor  of  the  city  of  New  York; and each of seven other voting
 members other than the chairman shall be appointed after selection  from
 a written list of three recommendations from the chief executive officer
 of  the  county  in  which  the  particular member is required to reside
 pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision. Of the members appointed
 on recommendation of the chief executive officer of a county,  one  such
 member shall be, at the time of appointment, a resident of the county of
 Nassau,  one  a resident of the county of Suffolk, one a resident of the
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD07854-01-1

 A. 5611                             2
 
 county of Westchester, one a resident of the county of Dutchess,  one  a
 resident of the county of Orange, one a resident of the county of Putnam
 and  one a resident of the county of Rockland, provided that the term of
 any  member  who  is  a resident of a county that has withdrawn from the
 metropolitan commuter transportation district pursuant to section twelve
 hundred seventy-nine-b of this title shall terminate upon the  effective
 date  of such county's withdrawal from such district. Of the five voting
 members, other than the chairman,  appointed  by  the  governor  without
 recommendation  from  any  other  person, three shall be, at the time of
 appointment, residents of the city of New York and two shall be, at  the
 time  of  appointment, residents of such city or of any of the aforemen-
 tioned counties in the metropolitan  commuter  transportation  district.
 Provided  however,  notwithstanding the foregoing residency requirement,
 one of the five voting members appointed by the governor without  recom-
 mendation  from  any  other  person, other than the chairman, may be the
 director of the New York state division  of  the  budget,  and  provided
 further  that,  in  the event of such appointment, the budget director's
 membership in the authority shall be deemed ex-officio. The chairman and
 each of the members shall be appointed for a term of six years, provided
 however, that the chairman first appointed shall serve for a term ending
 June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one, provided that  thirty  days
 after the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two thousand nine
 which  amended this subparagraph, the term of the chairman shall expire;
 provided, further, that such chairman  may  continue  to  discharge  the
 duties  of his or her office until the position of chairman is filled by
 appointment by the governor upon the advice and consent  of  the  senate
 and  the  term  of such new chairman shall terminate June thirtieth, two
 thousand fifteen. The sixteen other members first appointed shall  serve
 for  the  following  terms:  The members from the counties of Nassau and
 Westchester shall each serve for a term ending June thirtieth,  nineteen
 hundred eighty-five; the members from the county of Suffolk and from the
 counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall each serve for a
 term  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred ninety-two; two of the
 members appointed on recommendation of the mayor of the city of New York
 shall each serve for a term  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred
 eighty-four  and, two shall each serve for a term ending June thirtieth,
 nineteen hundred eighty-one; two of the members appointed by the  gover-
 nor  without the recommendation of any other person shall each serve for
 a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen  hundred  eighty-two,  two  shall
 each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty and
 one  shall  serve  for  a  term  ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred
 eighty-five. The two non-voting and four  alternate  non-voting  members
 shall  serve until January first, two thousand one. The members from the
 counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall  EACH  cast  one
 [collective] vote.
   §  2.  Paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision 1 of section 1263 of the public
 authorities law, as amended by section 2 of part E of chapter 39 of  the
 laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (a)  There is hereby created the "metropolitan transportation authori-
 ty." The authority shall be a body corporate and politic constituting  a
 public  benefit  corporation.  The authority shall consist of a chairman
 and sixteen other members appointed by the  governor  by  and  with  the
 advice  and  consent  of  the  senate.  Any  member  appointed to a term
 commencing on or after June thirtieth,  two  thousand  nine  shall  have
 experience  in  one or more of the following areas of expertise:  trans-
 portation, public administration, business management, finance, account-

 A. 5611                             3
 
 ing, law, engineering, land use, urban and regional planning, management
 of large capital projects, labor relations, or have experience  in  some
 other  area of activity central to the mission of the authority. Four of
 the  sixteen  members  other than the chairman shall be appointed on the
 written recommendation of the mayor of the city of New York; and each of
 seven other members other than the chairman  shall  be  appointed  after
 selection  from  a  written list of three recommendations from the chief
 executive officer of the  county  in  which  the  particular  member  is
 required  to  reside  pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision. Of
 the members appointed on recommendation of the chief  executive  officer
 of  a  county,  one  such member shall be, at the time of appointment, a
 resident of the county of Nassau;  one  a  resident  of  the  county  of
 Suffolk; one a resident of the county of Westchester; and one a resident
 of the county of Dutchess, one a resident of the county of Orange, one a
 resident  of  the  county  of Putnam and one a resident of the county of
 Rockland, provided that the term of any member who is a  resident  of  a
 county  that has withdrawn from the metropolitan commuter transportation
 district pursuant to section twelve hundred seventy-nine-b of this title
 shall terminate upon the effective date of such county's withdrawal from
 such district. Of the five members, other than the  chairman,  appointed
 by  the  governor  without  recommendation  from any other person, three
 shall be, at the time of appointment, residents of the city of New  York
 and  two shall be, at the time of appointment, residents of such city or
 of any of the  aforementioned  counties  in  the  metropolitan  commuter
 transportation district. Provided however, notwithstanding the foregoing
 residency  requirement,  one of the five voting members appointed by the
 governor without recommendation from any other person,  other  than  the
 chairman,  may  be  the  director  of the New York state division of the
 budget, and provided further that, in the event of such appointment, the
 budget director's membership in the authority shall be  deemed  ex-offi-
 cio.  The chairman and each of the members shall be appointed for a term
 of six years, provided however, that the chairman first appointed  shall
 serve  for  a  term  ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one,
 provided that thirty days after the effective date of the chapter of the
 laws of two thousand nine which amended this paragraph, the term of  the
 chairman shall expire; provided, further, that such chairman may contin-
 ue  to discharge the duties of his office until the position of chairman
 is filled by appointment by the governor upon the advice and consent  of
 the  senate and the term of such new chairman shall terminate June thir-
 tieth, two thousand fifteen. The sixteen other members  first  appointed
 shall  serve  for  the following terms: The members from the counties of
 Nassau and Westchester shall each serve for a term ending  June  thirti-
 eth,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-five;  the  members  from  the county of
 Suffolk and from the counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam  and  Rockland
 shall  each  serve  for  a  term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred
 ninety-two; two of the members appointed on recommendation of the  mayor
 of  the city of New York shall each serve for a term ending June thirti-
 eth, nineteen hundred eighty-four and, two shall each serve for  a  term
 ending  June  thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one; two of the members
 appointed by the governor without the recommendation of any other person
 shall each serve for a term  ending  June  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred
 eighty-two, two shall each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nine-
 teen  hundred  eighty and one shall serve for a term ending June thirti-
 eth, nineteen hundred eighty-five. The  members  from  the  counties  of
 Dutchess,  Orange,  Putnam and Rockland shall EACH cast one [collective]
 vote.

 A. 5611                             4
 
   § 3. Subdivision 3 of section 1263 of the public authorities  law,  as
 amended  by chapter 929 of the laws of 1986, paragraph (b) as amended by
 chapter 14 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  [(a)]  A  majority of the whole number of members of the authority
 then in office shall constitute a quorum  for  the  transaction  of  any
 business or the exercise of any power of the authority. Except as other-
 wise specified in this title, for the transaction of any business or the
 exercise  of  any power of the authority, the authority shall have power
 to act by a majority vote of the members present at any meeting at which
 a quorum is in attendance and except further, that in the event of a tie
 vote the chairman shall cast one additional vote.
   [(b) For purposes of determining the presence of  a  quorum,  and  for
 purposes  of  participation  on  any  committee  or  subcommittee, those
 members who collectively cast a single vote pursuant to  the  provisions
 of  paragraph (a) of subdivision one of this section shall be considered
 to be a single member, and the presence of such member shall  be  deter-
 mined as provided in this subdivision. Except as otherwise provided in a
 by-law  adopted as hereinafter provided, such single member constituting
 those members entitled to a collective vote shall be deemed present as a
 single member for purposes of a quorum if one or  more  of  the  members
 then  in  office  entitled  to cast such collective vote is present, and
 such collective vote shall be  cast  in  accordance  with  the  majority
 agreement  of  the members entitled to a collective vote who are present
 or in the event a single member entitled to a collective vote is present
 it shall be cast by that member.  To  evidence  the  existence  of  such
 majority agreement among the members entitled to a collective vote, each
 such  member  shall  be  polled  as  to  his vote and such poll shall be
 recorded in the minutes. In the event a majority vote is not achieved by
 the members entitled to a collective vote who are present, then the vote
 shall not be cast. Nothing herein shall limit the right of an individual
 member to participate in board meetings or in other  activities  of  the
 authority when the other members then in office entitled to collectively
 cast  a  vote  are not present. At any meeting of the authority at which
 there is a quorum including all the members then in office  entitled  to
 cast  a  collective  vote,  the  authority may adopt a by-law or by-laws
 regulating the casting of such collective  vote,  provided  all  members
 then  in office entitled to cast a collective vote affirmatively approve
 such by-law or by-laws. Any action taken by the authority in  accordance
 with  any  such  by-law or by-laws adopted pursuant to the provisions of
 this paragraph shall take effect in the same manner as any other  action
 of  the  authority. Any such by-law or by-laws shall not provide for the
 casting of any fractional vote. Nor  shall  such  a  by-law  or  by-laws
 provide  for  the  amendment, repeal or adoption in the future of such a
 by-law or by-laws in a manner other than that set forth  in  this  para-
 graph.
   (c)  No provision of paragraph (b) of this subdivision relating to the
 adoption of certain by-laws by the authority shall affect the manner  in
 which  by-laws of the authority are adopted concerning any subject other
 than the voting and presence for quorum purposes of the members from the
 counties of Dutchess, Putnam, Orange and Rockland.
   (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivision one
 of this section, any member  appointed  from  the  county  of  Dutchess,
 Orange,  Putnam  or  Rockland  prior  to  the  increase in the number of
 members of the authority to include a member from each such county shall
 continue in office as the member from such counties pursuant to  section
 five  of  the public officers law until the appointment and confirmation

 A. 5611                             5

 of all of the new members from such counties pursuant to the  provisions
 of  this  section, and no individual member exercising a collective vote
 appointed and confirmed pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision one  of
 this  section shall take office until all such new members are appointed
 and confirmed.]
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the  amend-
 ments  to  paragraph  (a) of subdivision 1 of section 1263 of the public
 authorities law made by section one of this act shall be subject to  the
 expiration  and  reversion  of such paragraph pursuant to chapter 549 of
 the laws of 1994, as amended, when upon  such  date  the  provisions  of
 section two of this act shall take effect.