S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1328
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to requiring the  commis-
   sioner  of general services to maintain a list of all state boards and
   requiring each state board to maintain a publicly accessible  website;
   and  to amend a chapter of the laws of 2022 amending the executive law
   relating to information on state boards, as  proposed  in  legislative
   bills  numbers S.  8145 and A. 843-A, in relation to the effectiveness
   thereof
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section 203-b of the executive law, as added by a chapter
 of the laws of 2022 amending the executive law relating  to  information
 on state boards, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 8145 and A.
 843-A, is amended to read as follows:
   §  203-b.  Additional duties of the commissioner regarding information
 on state boards. 1. As used in this section,  "commissioner"  means  the
 commissioner  of [the office of] general services and, "board" means any
 board, commission, committee, council, task force or any  similar  state
 public  organization,  required  to be established pursuant to the state
 constitution, state statutes or executive order, for the exercise of any
 function of state government and  to  which  members  are  appointed  or
 elected. "Board" does not include:
   a. any informal advisory organization NOT established [exclusively] by
 [a  state  agency  to advise the commissioner, secretary, or director of
 that agency on an informal basis] LAW;
   b. any joint standing committee of the legislature or any committee of
 the assembly and/or senate composed entirely of members of the  legisla-
 ture;
   c. any court;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03941-01-3
 S. 1328                             2
              

 
   d. the board of trustees of any institution of higher education finan-
 cially supported in whole or in part by the state;
   e. any entity of local government;
   f.  any  public authority or public benefit corporation, a majority of
 whose members are appointed by the  governor  or  serve  as  members  by
 virtue  of  holding  state  offices  to which they were appointed by the
 governor, or any combination thereof; and
   g. any board of elections.
   2. The commissioner shall maintain a [compilation  of  the  membership
 and  meeting  information]  LIST  of  all  state boards, including state
 boards deemed active and regularly meeting on and  after  the  effective
 date  of  this section. The commissioner shall keep such [inventory in a
 public record available for inspection, and updated annually] LIST on  a
 website designated by the commissioner for the purpose of public access,
 AND  SUCH  LIST  SHALL  HAVE  A  LINK TO THE WEBSITE FOR EACH SUCH BOARD
 ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION THREE OF THIS SECTION. [Such  compi-
 lation shall include, but not be limited to:
   a. statutory language, executive order or other legal basis or author-
 ization for the establishment of such board;
   b.  public  information  including  departmental  affiliation, contact
 address, phone number, and website;
   c. a brief description of the purpose of the  board  and  its  legally
 required duties, including required reports or other products;
   d.  the size of board membership, current member names, and any quali-
 fications;
   e. whether members of a board are eligible for payment of expenses  or
 other compensation in the performance of their duties as members of that
 board;
   f. dates and locations of all meetings held, and to be held within six
 months,  or a location, including but not limited to another website, in
 which such information can be publicly accessed;
   g. geographic and other relevant qualifications of all current members
 of the board, including the county in which the member resides  and  the
 background  or  expertise  the member possesses where such background or
 expertise is required for membership on such board; and
   h. any other information the commissioner may  require.    Nothing  in
 this  section  shall  authorize  the release or publication of any board
 member's residential address.
   2-a. The commissioner shall also, to the extent practicable,  maintain
 and  update  annually  a compilation of all available information of all
 state boards currently authorized by provisions of the  state  constitu-
 tion,  state  statutes  or  executive orders that the commissioner deems
 inactive. For purposes of this section, a board shall be deemed inactive
 if it has not held a meeting in the year prior to the effective date  of
 this  section.  A  board  shall hereafter be treated as inactive for the
 purposes of this section if it has not met  in  the  preceding  calendar
 year.
   3.  The  commissioner  shall update on an annual basis beginning April
 first, two thousand twenty-three on the designated website,  all  vacan-
 cies, expired terms, those terms expiring within one year, and the proc-
 ess  for  filling  such vacancies on such boards] THE DESIGNATED WEBSITE
 SHALL BE UPDATED ANNUALLY.
   [4.] 3. Each board or the state agency  that  provides  administrative
 support  or  is  otherwise  affiliated  with a board shall ESTABLISH AND
 MAINTAIN A WEBSITE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND PROVIDE A  LINK  TO  SUCH
 WEBSITE  TO  THE  COMMISSIONER.  EACH  BOARD  OR  THE  STATE AGENCY THAT
 S. 1328                             3
 
 PROVIDES ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT OR IS OTHERWISE AFFILIATED WITH A  BOARD
 SHALL  annually  on or before January first, [submit to the commissioner
 all information pursuant to this section in a manner  specified  by  the
 commissioner to facilitate the publication requirements of this section.
 Each  submission  shall  also  include  information  on compensation and
 expenses incurred in the prior and current  fiscal  years,  as  well  as
 projected  costs  for  the coming fiscal year] UPDATE THE INFORMATION ON
 ITS WEBSITE.
   [5. The commissioner shall  receive  from  any  department,  division,
 board,  bureau,  commission or other agency of the state any information
 and resources as will enable him  or  her  to  properly  carry  out  the
 purposes of this section.]
   4.  THE  WEBSITE  ESTABLISHED  BY  EACH BOARD OR THE STATE AGENCY THAT
 PROVIDES ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT OR IS OTHERWISE AFFILIATED WITH A  BOARD
 SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:
   A. STATUTORY LANGUAGE, EXECUTIVE ORDER OR OTHER LEGAL BASIS OR AUTHOR-
 IZATION FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF SUCH BOARD;
   B.  PUBLIC  INFORMATION  INCLUDING  DEPARTMENTAL  AFFILIATION, CONTACT
 ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER, AND WEBSITE;
   C. A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PURPOSE OF THE  BOARD  AND  ITS  LEGALLY
 REQUIRED DUTIES, INCLUDING REQUIRED REPORTS OR OTHER PRODUCTS;
   D.  THE SIZE OF BOARD MEMBERSHIP, CURRENT MEMBER NAMES, AND ANY QUALI-
 FICATIONS;
   E. WHETHER MEMBERS OF A BOARD ARE ELIGIBLE FOR PAYMENT OF EXPENSES  OR
 OTHER COMPENSATION IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTIES AS MEMBERS OF SUCH
 BOARD AND INFORMATION ON COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES INCURRED IN THE PRIOR
 AND  CURRENT  FISCAL  YEARS,  AS  WELL AS PROJECTED COSTS FOR THE COMING
 FISCAL YEAR;
   F. MEETING MINUTES AND AGENDAS, DATES AND LOCATIONS  OF  ALL  MEETINGS
 HELD, AND TO BE HELD WITHIN SIX MONTHS, OR A LOCATION, INCLUDING BUT NOT
 LIMITED  TO  ANOTHER  WEBSITE, IN WHICH SUCH INFORMATION CAN BE PUBLICLY
 ACCESSED;
   G. GEOGRAPHIC AND OTHER RELEVANT QUALIFICATIONS OF ALL CURRENT MEMBERS
 OF THE BOARD, INCLUDING THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE MEMBER RESIDES  AND  THE
 BACKGROUND  OR  EXPERTISE  THE MEMBER POSSESSES WHERE SUCH BACKGROUND OR
 EXPERTISE IS REQUIRED FOR MEMBERSHIP ON SUCH BOARD; AND
   H. ANY OTHER INFORMATION THE COMMISSIONER MAY REQUIRE. NOTHING IN THIS
 SECTION SHALL AUTHORIZE THE RELEASE OR PUBLICATION OF ANY BOARD MEMBER'S
 RESIDENTIAL ADDRESS.
   5. EACH BOARD OR THE STATE AGENCY THAT PROVIDES ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT
 OR IS OTHERWISE AFFILIATED WITH A BOARD SHALL UPDATE ON AN ANNUAL  BASIS
 BEGINNING  NOVEMBER FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-THREE ON ITS WEBSITE, ALL
 VACANCIES, EXPIRED TERMS, TERMS EXPIRING WITHIN ONE YEAR, AND THE  PROC-
 ESS FOR FILLING SUCH VACANCIES ON SUCH BOARDS.
   6.  On  or before January first, two thousand twenty-four, the commis-
 sioner shall report to the governor, the speaker of  the  assembly,  the
 temporary  president of the senate, the chair of the assembly oversight,
 analysis and investigation committee and the chair of the senate  inves-
 tigations  and  government  operations  committee  on  the status of the
 [inventory] LIST including but not  limited  to  the  number  of  boards
 reported   and  verified[;  the  aggregate  demographic  information  of
 appointments made by each appointing authority including but not limited
 to race, sex, and geographic representation of such appointees  provided
 that  no  information  shall be personally identifiable, and the content
 and completeness of the information  gathered  in  accordance  with  the
 S. 1328                             4

 requirements of this section]. The commissioner shall also report on any
 impediments to obtaining information.
   § 2. Section 2 of a chapter of the laws of 2022 amending the executive
 law  relating to information on state boards, as proposed in legislative
 bills numbers S. 8145 and A. 843-A, is amended to read as follows:
   § 2. This act shall take effect [April] NOVEMBER 1, 2023.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided,  however,  that
 section  one  of  this act shall take effect on the same date and in the
 same manner as a chapter of the laws of 2022 amending the executive  law
 relating  to  information  on  state  boards, as proposed in legislative
 bills numbers S. 8145 and A. 843-A, takes effect.