Assembly Bill A844

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    844
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  ROSENTHAL  --  read once and referred to the
   Committee on Governmental Operations
 
 AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in  relation  to  requiring  that
   bidders and all others seeking state contracts disclose their percent-
   age and number of female executives and board members
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that there  is  a
 growing body of evidence that companies perform better when their boards
 and  executive leadership are strongly represented by women and that the
 state has a vested interest in ensuring that companies receiving  public
 funds  and  contracts  perform  efficiently  to  maintain a high rate of
 success.  Further, the legislature finds that it is in the state's vest-
 ed interest to encourage equitable and diverse gender representation  on
 corporate  boards  of companies receiving public funds and contracts. It
 is the intent of this act to require companies who wish to  do  business
 with  the  state  to disclose the current percentage and number of women
 executive officers employed by the company,  percentage  and  number  of
 women  on its corporate board, and the company's goals for the increased
 participation of women in executive positions and on corporate boards.
   § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section  149  to
 read as follows:
   § 149. DISCLOSURE OF WOMEN IN EXECUTIVE POSITIONS AND SERVING AS BOARD
 MEMBERS  BY  STATE  CONTRACTORS. 1. ALL CONTRACT SOLICITATIONS INCLUDING
 BUT NOT LIMITED  TO,  INVITATIONS  FOR  BIDS,  REQUESTS  FOR  PROPOSALS,
 REQUESTS FOR APPLICATIONS AND REQUESTS FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR CONTRACTS,
 IN  EXCESS  OF ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS SHALL REQUIRE THAT ALL OFFE-
 RORS SEEKING STATE CONTRACTS SHALL DISCLOSE:
   (A) THE CURRENT PERCENTAGE AND NUMBER OF WOMEN  SERVING  IN  EXECUTIVE
 POSITIONS AND AS BOARD MEMBERS FOR THE OFFEROR;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD03230-01-5
 A. 844                              2
 
   (B)  THE OFFEROR'S ASPIRATIONAL GOALS FOR THE INCLUSION OF WOMEN SERV-
 ING IN EXECUTIVE POSITIONS AND AS BOARD MEMBERS; AND
   (C)  THE  INTENDED EFFORTS BY THE OFFEROR TO ACHIEVE SUCH ASPIRATIONAL
 GOALS.
   2. PRIOR TO MAY THIRTY-FIRST  OF  EACH  YEAR,  EACH  STATE  AGENCY  IN
 RECEIPT  OF THE INFORMATION REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS
 SECTION SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  ECONOMIC
 DEVELOPMENT WITH THE COMPILED DIVERSITY DATA FOR EVERY OFFEROR SEEKING A
 STATE  CONTRACT,  WHETHER  OR NOT SUCH OFFEROR WAS AWARDED THE CONTRACT,
 FOR THE PRIOR CALENDAR YEAR. SUCH DATA SHALL INCLUDE, BUT  NEED  NOT  BE
 LIMITED TO, DATA RELATING TO GENERAL TRENDS IN THE NUMBER OF WOMEN SERV-
 ING  IN  EXECUTIVE  POSITIONS, SERVING ON BOARDS, STATISTICS RELATING TO
 WINNING AND LOSING BIDDERS, THE METHOD WHICH AGENCIES REFLECT  DIVERSITY
 INFORMATION  IN  THEIR  SCORING, AND THE MANNER IN WHICH SUCH SCORING IS
 PERFORMED.
   3. THE DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SHALL AGGREGATE AND  ANALYZE
 THE  DATA  RECEIVED  BY AGENCIES PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISIONS ONE AND TWO OF
 THIS SECTION AND PRESENT AN ANNUAL REPORT TO THE GOVERNOR, THE TEMPORARY
 PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE, THE SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY, THE MINORITY LEAD-
 ERS OF THE SENATE AND THE ASSEMBLY, AND THE CHAIRPERSONS OF  THE  SENATE
 FINANCE AND ASSEMBLY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEES.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.