NY State Senate Bill 2021-S5528

Senate Bill S5528

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Requires all public authorities owning, leasing, and controlling critical infrastructure to study the potential consequences of privatization

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Corporations, Authorities And Commissions 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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
Mar 10, 2021	referred to corporations, authorities and commissions

2021-S5528 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Corporations, Authorities And Commissions
Law Section:: Public Authorities
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S5388
2017-2018: S6296
2019-2020: S5318
2023-2024: S5590

2021-S5528 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires all public authorities owning, leasing, and controlling critical infrastructure to study the potential consequences of privatization.

2021-S5528 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5528

SPONSOR: COMRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act requiring all public authorities owning, leasing, and controlling
critical infrastructure to study the potential consequences of privati-
zation

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill would require all public authorities seeking to transfer
control of critical transportation infrastructure to the private busi-
ness sector, as well as all those who have done so within the past ten
years, to issue a study reporting on the effects of privatization on the
infrastructure and on the authority's finances and operations.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 lays out the legislative findings.

Section 2 defines key terms such as critical transportation infrastruc-
ture.

Section 3 lays out the requirement for public authorities looking to or
that have already have privatized pieces of critical transportation
infrastructure in the past ten years to study the effects of that priva-
tization. These studies would have to examine the effects privatization
of that piece of infrastructure would or did have on the authority's
finances and operations, as well as any comparable privatization initi-
atives across the United States, and the outcomes of those comparable
project(s). This section also describes the deadlines by which public
authorities must submit their reports to various committees of the New
York State Senate and Assembly and to various elected officials, receive
feedback from said figures, and then update their reports based on that
feedback.

Section 4 states the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill would require public authorities to analyze the long-term
fiscal implications relative to the privatizization of critical trans-
portation infrastructure.

Public authorities should be required to show rational and demonstrable
proof that a onetime cash infusion resulting from selling public assets
is preferable to the decades of future income and tighter control of
price increases that may currently exist. The possibility exists that
taxpayers will be left with higher tolls and poorer service when private
entities begin seeking greater profits from privatized infrastructure.
The legislature needs the specific details of any and all deals that
have or would privatize infrastructure in New York State so we may craft
a comprehensive policy that protects the state.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.6296-A of 2017-18.

 
FISCAL IMPACT:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law, except that any rule or regulation necessary for the time-
ly implementation of this act on its effective date shall be promulgated
on or before, such date.

2021-S5528 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5528
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 10, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Corporations,  Authorities
   and Commissions
 
 AN ACT requiring all public authorities owning, leasing, and controlling
   critical  infrastructure to study the potential consequences of priva-
   tization

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Legislative  findings. 1. New York state must have suffi-
 cient numbers of properly designed and  maintained  pieces  of  critical
 transportation infrastructure such as bridges, tunnels, roads, airports,
 ports, container ports, railroads and rapid transit services in order to
 retain its economic competitiveness and grow its economy.
   2.  Much  of the state's existing critical infrastructure is aging, is
 experiencing capacity problems, has had maintenance problems, or in some
 other manner has become  a  candidate  for  re-engineering,  rebuilding,
 replacement or supplementation.
   3.  The  most  critical and expensive transportation infrastructure in
 New York state to re-engineer, rebuild or replace is under  the  control
 or  ownership  of  public  authorities, and such critical transportation
 infrastructure, from time to time,  is  under  consideration  for  sale,
 long-term lease or other transfer of ownership or control to the private
 business sector.
   §  2. For the purposes of this act, the following terms shall have the
 following meanings:
   1. "critical transportation infrastructure" shall  refer  to  bridges,
 tunnels,  roads,  airports,  ports, container ports, railroads and rapid
 transit services owned by a state or local public authority;
   2. "privatization" shall refer to the sale, long-term lease  or  other
 transfer  of  ownership  or control of pieces of critical transportation
 infrastructure to the private business sector;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD10103-01-1

 S. 5528                             2
 
   3. "comparable projects" shall refer to existing privatization  initi-
 atives  in the United States comparable in scope, scale and value to the
 critical transportation infrastructure  controlled  by  state  or  local
 public authorities; and
   4.  "privatization  report" shall refer to the report created pursuant
 to this act.
   § 3. 1. All public authorities who are currently  in  the  process  of
 issuing  concessions  or  selling  or otherwise transferring, or issuing
 notices of inquiry ("NOIs") or requests for proposal ("RFPs") for  leas-
 ing, or selling or otherwise transferring control of any critical trans-
 portation  infrastructure,  or  who  have done so in the past ten years,
 shall issue a study reporting on the effects of privatization  of  crit-
 ical transportation infrastructure.
   2.  (a) Each public authority shall issue its individual privatization
 report to the  assembly  committees  on  corporations,  authorities  and
 commissions,  economic  development, transportation, and ways and means,
 and to the senate committees on commerce, economic development and small
 business, corporations, authorities and commissions, and transportation.
   (b) Each public authority's privatization  report  shall  evaluate  in
 detail the following:
   (i)  the  impact  that  sale  or  transfer  of control of its critical
 infrastructure would have upon the authority's ability to  pay  any  and
 all  debt  it has issued, or succeeded to, that is guaranteed or secured
 by any revenues arising from the authority's critical infrastructure, or
 by the ownership of such critical infrastructure;
   (ii) whether the critical infrastructure involved any existing  priva-
 tization initiatives in the United States are comparable in scope, scale
 and  value  to  the  critical  infrastructure  controlled  by the public
 authority;
   (iii) the progress to date of any comparable projects and whether  any
 such  projects  have  experienced  cost overruns or delays, or otherwise
 have failed, or succeeded, in meeting the deadlines and costs put  forth
 by the private entity.
   3.  (a)  The privatization report shall be due on or within 14 days of
 December 1, 2022. Within 90 days after the date  each  public  authority
 submits  the  report  provided for in subdivision one of this section to
 the committees, such committees may, severally or  collectively,  submit
 further issues for study and inclusion in such report, which said public
 authorities  shall  study  and include within such report within 60 days
 after receipt of any such submission, at which point said public author-
 ities shall submit the privatization report to the governor, the  tempo-
 rary  president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority
 leaders of the senate and assembly, the chairperson and ranking minority
 member of the senate corporations, authorities and  commissions  commit-
 tee,  and  the  chairperson  and ranking minority member of the assembly
 corporations, authorities and commissions committee.
   (b) The governor, the temporary president of the senate,  the  speaker
 of  the  assembly,  the minority leaders of the senate and assembly, the
 chairperson and ranking minority  member  of  the  senate  corporations,
 authorities  and  commissions committee, and the chairperson and ranking
 minority member of the assembly corporations,  authorities  and  commis-
 sions  committee  shall  have a period of 90 days within which to submit
 further issues for study and inclusion in such report, which said public
 authorities shall study and include within such report  within  60  days
 after receipt of any such submission.

 S. 5528                             3
 
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.    Effective  immediately,  the  addition,  amendment
 and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
 of  this  act  on  its  effective  date  are  authorized  to be made and
 completed on or before such effective date.

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