NY State Senate Bill S150

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Introduced
In Committee
On Floor Calendar
- Passed Senate
- Passed Assembly
Delivered to Governor
Signed/Vetoed by Governor

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Actions

view actions (7)

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 15, 2023	referred to governmental operations delivered to assembly passed senate
May 10, 2023	advanced to third reading
May 09, 2023	2nd report cal.
May 08, 2023	1st report cal.760
Jan 04, 2023	referred to ethics and internal governance

Votes

view votes

May 15, 2023 - floor Vote

S150

floor

Aye

Nay

Absent

Excused

Abstained

May 9, 2023 - Ethics and Internal Governance committee Vote

S150

committee

Aye

Nay

Aye with Reservations

Absent

Excused

Abstained

Co-Sponsors

S150 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A148
Law Section:: Public Officers Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §19, Pub Off L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S2262
2017-2018: S2394
2019-2020: S295
2021-2022: S164, A8138

S150 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits state reimbursement of campaign and political committees, or legal defense funds, for payments made on behalf of the criminal defense of a state employee.

S150 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 
BILL NUMBER: S150

SPONSOR: GIANARIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public officers law, in relation to prohibiting
reimbursement of campaign committees and legal defense funds for defense
costs incurred on behalf of state employees

 
PURPOSE:

To close a loophole in New York's ethics laws, preventing state taxpayer
money from being used to reimburse campaign or legal defense accounts.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends subdivision 2 of section 19 of the Public Officers Law
preventing any state reimbursement to a campaign account or legal
defense account for attorneys fees and litigation expenses to a public
official after an acquittal or dismissal. Additionally, no reimbursement
shall be made to a state employee who has a legal defense account until
all funds from such account have been expended.

Section 2 sets the effective date.

 
EXISTING LAW:

Click here

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Currently, when a state employee is acquitted of criminal charges aris-
ing from his or her duties while in office, or has such charges
dismissed, the State provides reimbursement for all attorneys fees and
litigation expenses, subject to the approval of the Attorney General and
the Comptroller. The situation has arisen, however, where state employ-
ees have paid for such costs using campaign funds or a special legal
defense fund, and subsequently require the taxpayers to reimburse
dormant campaign or legal defense accounts.

This bill will protect taxpayers by preventing reimbursements to a
campaign committee or legal defense fund. Additionally, the bill
provides that if a criminal defendant has a legal defense fund, he or
she will be required to expend all money in the account before he or she
would be entitled to any taxpayer reimbursement.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2022: Passed Senate; Died in Governmental Operations (Assembly)

2021: Passed Senate; Died in Governmental Operations (Assembly)

2020: Died in Investigations and Government Operations

2019: Died in Investigations and Government Operations

2018: Reported by Investigations and Government Operations, Died in
Finance

2017: Defeated in Investigations and Government Operations

2016: Reported by Investigations and Government Operations, died in
Finance

2015: Defeated in Investigations and Government Operations

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Such reimbursements in the past have totaled millions of dollars for
single cases. Preventing such reimbursements would result in substantial
savings to the state.

 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Click here

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

S150 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    150
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 4, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. GIANARIS, HOYLMAN, KRUEGER -- read twice and ordered
   printed,  and  when printed to be committed to the Committee on Ethics
   and Internal Governance
 
 AN ACT to amend the public officers  law,  in  relation  to  prohibiting
   reimbursement  of  campaign  committees  and  legal  defense funds for
   defense costs incurred on behalf of state employees
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Subdivision 2 of section 19 of the public officers law, as
 amended by chapter 769 of the laws  of  1985,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   2. (a) Upon compliance by the employee with the provisions of subdivi-
 sion three of this section, and subject to THE RESTRICTIONS SET FORTH IN
 PARAGRAPH  (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION AND the conditions set forth in para-
 graph [(b)] (C) of this subdivision, it shall be the duty of  the  state
 to pay reasonable attorneys' fees and litigation expenses incurred by or
 on  behalf of an employee in his or her defense of a criminal proceeding
 in a state or federal court arising out of any act which occurred  while
 such  employee  was  acting within the scope of his public employment or
 duties upon his acquittal or upon the dismissal of the criminal  charges
 against him or reasonable attorneys' fees incurred in connection with an
 appearance  before  a  grand jury which returns no true bill against the
 employee where such appearance was required as a result of any act which
 occurred while such employee was acting within the scope of  his  public
 employment  or duties unless such appearance occurs in the normal course
 of the public employment or duties of such employee.
   (b)  NO REIMBURSEMENT SHALL BE PAID PURSUANT TO THIS  SECTION  TO  ANY
 CAMPAIGN OR POLITICAL COMMITTEE, OR LEGAL DEFENSE FUND WHICH PAYS ALL OR
 ANY  PORTION  OF  AN  EMPLOYEES' REASONABLE ATTORNEYS' FEES AND/OR LITI-
 GATION EXPENSES.   FURTHERMORE, AN EMPLOYEE  ON  WHOSE  BEHALF  A  LEGAL
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD01880-01-3
 S. 150                              2
 
 DEFENSE  FUND OR LEGAL DEFENSE FUNDS HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED, SHALL NOT BE
 ELIGIBLE FOR REIMBURSEMENT PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION UNTIL ALL MONEYS  IN
 SUCH  FUND  OR  FUNDS  HAVE  BEEN EXPENDED FOR THE EMPLOYEES' REASONABLE
 ATTORNEYS' FEES AND/OR LITIGATION EXPENSES.
   (C)  Upon  the application for reimbursement for reasonable attorneys'
 fees or litigation expenses or both made by or on behalf of an  employee
 as  provided  in subdivision three of this section, the attorney general
 shall determine, based upon his investigation  and  his  review  of  the
 facts  and  circumstances, whether such reimbursement shall be paid. The
 attorney general shall notify the employee in writing of  such  determi-
 nation. Upon determining that such reimbursement should be provided, the
 attorney  general shall so certify to the comptroller. Upon such certif-
 ication, reimbursement shall be made for such fees or expenses  or  both
 upon  the  audit  and  warrant  of the comptroller. On or before January
 fifteenth the comptroller, in consultation with the  department  of  law
 and  other  agencies as may be appropriate, shall submit to the governor
 and the legislature an  annual  accounting  of  judgments,  settlements,
 fees,  and  litigation expenses paid pursuant to this section during the
 preceding and current fiscal years. Such accounting shall  include,  but
 not be limited to the number, type and amount of claims so paid, as well
 as  an estimate of claims to be paid during the remainder of the current
 fiscal year and during the  following  fiscal  year.  Any  dispute  with
 regard  to  entitlement  to  reimbursement  or  the amount of litigation
 expenses or the reasonableness of attorneys' fees shall be resolved by a
 court of competent jurisdiction upon appropriate motion or by way  of  a
 special proceeding.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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The New York State Senate

senate Bill S150

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

May 15, 2023 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: May 15, 2023

May 9, 2023 - Ethics and Internal Governance committee Vote

Ethics and Internal Governance Committee Vote: May 9, 2023

Co-Sponsors

S150 (ACTIVE) - Details

S150 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S150 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S150 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S150

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Sponsored By

Michael Gianaris

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

May 15, 2023 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: May 15, 2023

May 9, 2023 - Ethics and Internal Governance committee Vote

Ethics and Internal Governance Committee Vote: May 9, 2023

Co-Sponsors

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

Liz Krueger

S150 (ACTIVE) - Details

S150 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S150 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S150 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments