S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
6153
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
April 3, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GONZALEZ-ROJAS -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to establish the pandemic response study commission act; and
providing for the repeal of such commission upon the completion of the
commission's final report
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
the "pandemic response study commission act".
§ 2. Statement of legislative findings and purposes. The legislature
hereby finds and declares that:
a. protecting the public health is one of the highest responsibilities
of state government;
b. as recent events tragically confirmed, New York is vulnerable to
global pandemics because of its status as a hub of international travel
and tourism, among other factors;
c. COVID-19 reached New York in the early months of the outbreak and
hit the state especially hard--eventually claiming more than 75,000
lives, sickening millions of others, massively disrupting ordinary life
and doing billions in damage to the economy;
d. the crisis revealed limitations in the state's public health system
that delayed the government's response and undermined the effectiveness
of its interventions;
e. those limitations included a delay in disease surveillance systems
to detect COVID-19 for several weeks after its arrival in the state;
lack of critical supplies such as personal protective equipment and
mechanical ventilators; miscommunication between different levels of
government to address issues such as overcrowding of hospitals;
f. despite these shortcomings, many New Yorkers in and out of govern-
ment performed heroically during the crisis--especially including front-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02888-01-3
A. 6153 2
line caregivers who worked tirelessly to save lives, often at risk to
their own health;
g. another deadly virus could arise at any time and potentially have
ramifications far worse than COVID-19;
h. the state has a duty to carefully review the events of the corona-
virus pandemic, so that it can learn from experience and provide the
best possible public health protection for New Yorkers going forward.
The legislature further finds and declares that it is in the interest
of the state to immediately undertake a thorough, rigorous, independent
study of its response to COVID-19 for the purpose of building state-of-
the-art public health defenses against future pandemics. To undertake
such review rationally and equitably, the legislature determines that it
is necessary to establish a commission separate and apart from existing
bodies responsible for public health and emergency response, which shall
be charged with drawing lessons from the coronavirus crisis and recom-
mending improvements to the state's public health system that will safe-
guard the lives and livelihoods of New Yorkers.
§ 3. a. There is hereby established a pandemic response study commis-
sion to conduct a study of the state's response to COVID-19 and to make
recommendations on improvements to the state's public health system. The
commission shall consist of the following nine voting members: one shall
be appointed by the temporary president of the senate; one shall be
appointed by the speaker of the assembly; one shall be appointed by the
senate minority leader; one shall be appointed by the assembly minority
leader; one shall be appointed by the comptroller; one shall be
appointed by the attorney general; and three members shall be appointed
by the governor, one of whom shall be the chairperson. At least one of
the members appointed by the governor shall be experienced in public
health at the local government level. The commissioners of the depart-
ment of health and the division of homeland security and emergency
services, or their designees, shall be ex-officio non-voting members.
b. A majority of the commission shall constitute a quorum to hold a
meeting and to conduct official business. The commission shall have
power to act by the majority vote of the total number of members of the
commission.
c. All voting members shall be selected based on their expertise
and/or experience in relevant fields such as epidemiology, virology,
medicine, public health policy making, emergency procurement processes,
auditing, emergency management and public health management. At least
one member shall have expertise or experience in addressing the health
care needs of underserved communities disproportionately affected by
COVID-19. No voting member may be within the past two years an active
elected official, lobbyist, government vendor or contractor, political
party officer, or candidate for elected office in New York State, and
may not be a current employee of a state or local government agency, an
employee or official of a state-regulated health-care entity, or state
official or employee involved in the state's COVID-19 response.
d. Members of the commission shall receive no compensation for their
services, but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses
incurred in the performance of their functions hereunder.
e. The commission shall investigate all aspects of New York State's
pandemic response including, but not limited to: policies and guidance
on management of hospitals; the transfer of individuals to nursing
facilities and other congregate care settings; the shutdown and re-open-
ings of educational institutions; the determination of what businesses
and functions were considered essential; the protection of essential
A. 6153 3
workers in their workplaces; coordination between the state and its
federal and local counterparts; effective communication and sharing of
data with the public; and the staffing and expertise needed to plan and
implement emergency procedures.
f. The commission shall be formed and hold its first meeting within 90
days of the effective date of this act. The commission shall issue a
draft report of its findings and recommendations within one year after
its initial meeting, which shall be posted on the commission's website.
g. The commission shall hold public hearings on its draft report and
publish a final report which shall include factual findings and recom-
mendations within 18 months of its initial meeting. The commission's
proceedings shall be subject to articles six and seven of the public
officers law. A public comment period of at least 60 days shall be
included on the draft report prior to the issuance of a final report.
Public comment shall be accepted during any public hearings and through
electronic submissions.
h. The commission shall have the authority to hire employees and
execute contracts.
i. The commission may conduct and/or solicit scientific research as it
deems necessary.
j. For the accomplishment of its purposes, the commission shall have
full access to all documents, data, analysis, reports and recommenda-
tions produced by any other state-ordered or state-conducted reviews of
the pandemic response, including by independent contractors. The commis-
sion shall have the authority to review existing contracts related to
the pandemic response on terms mutually acceptable to the commission and
the contractor.
k. For the accomplishment of its purposes, the commission shall have
access to state records and documents, including confidential materials,
and shall be able to interview witnesses, issue subpoenas and, by major-
ity vote, refer matters for prosecution.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
deemed repealed upon the issuance of the commission's final report as
required by subdivision g of section three of this act; provided that
the commissioner of the department of health or the commissioner of the
division of homeland security and emergency services shall notify the
legislative bill drafting commission upon the occurrence of the delivery
of the report provided for in subdivision g of section three of this act
in order that the commission may maintain an accurate and timely effec-
tive data base of the official text of the laws of the state of New York
in furtherance of effectuating the provisions of section 44 of the
legislative law and section 70-b of the public officers law.