S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7569
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 25, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  GALLAGHER  --  read once and referred to the
   Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
 
 AN ACT to amend the religious corporations law, in relation to requiring
   the Catholic Archdiocese follow certain procedures during the  consol-
   idation or merger of churches

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 13 of the religious corporations law, as amended by
 chapter 549 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
   § 13. Consolidation or merger of incorporated churches.  Two  or  more
 incorporated  churches  may enter into an agreement, under their respec-
 tive corporate seals, for the consolidation or  merger  of  such  corpo-
 rations,  setting  forth  the  name  of  the proposed new corporation or
 surviving corporation, the denomination, if  any,  to  which  it  is  to
 belong,  and  if  the  churches  of such denomination have more than one
 method of choosing trustees, by which of such methods the  trustees  are
 to  be  chosen, the number of such trustees, the names of the persons to
 be the first trustees of the new corporation, and the date of its  first
 annual  corporate  meeting.  Such  an  agreement  shall not be valid for
 United Methodist churches unless proposed by  a  majority  vote  of  the
 charge  conference  of each church and approved by the superintendent or
 superintendents of the district or districts in which the  consolidating
 churches are located, and by the majority of the members of each of such
 churches,  over  the  age  of  twenty-one years, present and voting at a
 meeting thereof held in the usual place of public worship and called for
 the purpose of considering such agreement by announcement made at public
 service in such churches on two Sundays, the first  not  less  than  ten
 days  next  preceding  the date of such meeting. SUCH AN AGREEMENT SHALL
 NOT BE VALID FOR ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCHES UNLESS PROPOSED BY  A  MAJORITY
 VOTE  OF THE PARISH COUNCILS AND TRUSTEES OF EACH CHURCH AND APPROVED BY
 THE CARDINAL OR CARDINALS OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OR  ARCHDIOCESES  IN  WHICH
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10643-01-3
              

 A. 7569                             2
 
 THE  CONSOLIDATING  CHURCHES  ARE  LOCATED,  AND  BY THE MAJORITY OF THE
 MEMBERS OF EACH OF SUCH CHURCHES, OVER  THE  AGE  OF  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS,
 PRESENT  AND  VOTING  AT  A  MEETING  THEREOF HELD IN THE USUAL PLACE OF
 PUBLIC  WORSHIP AND CALLED FOR THE PURPOSE OF CONSIDERING SUCH AGREEMENT
 BY ANNOUNCEMENT MADE AT PUBLIC SERVICE IN SUCH CHURCHES ON TWO  SUNDAYS,
 THE  FIRST  NOT LESS THAN TEN DAYS NEXT PRECEDING THE DATE OF SUCH MEET-
 ING. Such agreement shall not be valid unless approved in  the  case  of
 Protestant  Episcopal  churches  by the bishop and standing committee of
 the diocese in which such churches are  situated  and  in  the  case  of
 churches  of  other  denominations  by the governing body of the denomi-
 nation, if any, to which each church belongs, having  jurisdiction  over
 such  church.  Each corporation shall thereupon make a separate petition
 to the supreme court for an order consolidating or  merging  the  corpo-
 rations,  setting  forth  the  denomination, if any, to which the church
 belongs, that the consent of the governing body to the consolidation  or
 merger,  if  any,  of  that  denomination  having jurisdiction over such
 church has been obtained, the agreement therefor, and a statement of all
 the property and liabilities and the amount and sources  of  the  annual
 income  of such petitioning corporation. In its discretion the court may
 direct that notice of the hearing of  such  petition  be  given  to  the
 parties  interested  therein  in such manner and for such time as it may
 prescribe. After hearing all the parties interested, present and  desir-
 ing  to  be  heard, the court may make an order for the consolidation or
 merger of the corporations on the terms of such agreement and such other
 terms and conditions as it may prescribe, specifying the  name  of  such
 new or surviving corporation and the trustees thereof, and the method by
 which their successors shall be chosen and the date of its first or next
 annual  corporate meeting. When such order is made and duly entered, the
 persons constituting such consolidated or merged corporations  shall  be
 or become an incorporated church by, and said petitioning churches shall
 become  consolidated  or merged under, the name designated in the order,
 and the trustees therein named shall be the trustees  thereof,  and  the
 future  trustees  thereof  shall  be chosen by the method therein desig-
 nated, and all the estate, rights, powers  and  property  of  whatsoever
 nature belonging to either corporation shall without further act or deed
 be  vested  in  and  transferred  to the new or surviving corporation as
 effectually as they were vested in or belonging  to  the  former  corpo-
 rations;  and  the said new or surviving corporation shall be liable for
 all the debts and liabilities of the former  corporations  in  the  same
 manner  and  as  effectually  as  if  said debts or liabilities had been
 contracted or incurred by the new or surviving corporation. A  certified
 copy  of  such order shall be recorded in the book for recording certif-
 icates of incorporation in each  county  clerk's  office  in  which  the
 certificate of incorporation of each consolidating or merging church was
 recorded; or if no such certificate was so recorded, then in the clerk's
 office  of the county in which the principal place of worship or princi-
 pal office of the new or surviving corporation is, or is intended to be,
 situated.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.