Assembly Bill A8452

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8452
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 16, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development
 
 AN ACT to require the commissioner of the parks and  recreation  depart-
   ment  in  New York city to create a formal publicly-available applica-
   tion process for sole-source concession agreements

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Sole-source concession agreements. 1. (a) Within six months
 of  the effective date of this act, the commissioner of parks and recre-
 ation in the city of New York shall establish a formal  publicly-availa-
 ble  application process for sole-source concession agreements and shall
 receive inquiries to initiate such sole-source concession negotiations.
   (b) Within 120 days of an application, the city shall respond  to  any
 application to detail the parameters of a negotiation or deny the appli-
 cation with cause that may be appealed.
   (c) In the initial application response to detail six-month benchmarks
 along  the  three-year timeline for various components of the concession
 agreement to be negotiated.
   (d) Within three years of the date that a response was provided  to  a
 not-for-profit  organization,  the  city  shall complete any sole-source
 concession negotiations.
   2. Enforcement. (a) If the city fails to  respond  to  an  application
 within  180  days,  independent  arbitration is authorized to generate a
 sole-source concession agreement  within  six  months.  The  city  shall
 adhere to the determination of the arbitrator.
   (b)  If  the city fails to generate a sole-source concession agreement
 within the three-year timeline established pursuant to paragraph (d)  of
 subdivision  one  of  this act, independent arbitration is authorized to
 generate a sole-source concession agreement within six months post-dead-
 line.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11963-01-5
 A. 8452                             2
              

 
   (c) The city parks, revenue and  community  outreach  and  partnership
 development  divisions  shall oversee such sole-source concession agree-
 ments.
   (d)  The franchise concession review committee shall grant approval of
 any sole-source concession agreement.
   3. Insurance. Any sole-source concessionaire which receives an  agree-
 ment with the city shall hold insurance and shall indemnify the city.
   4.  Definitions.  For  the  purposes  of this act, the following terms
 shall have the following meanings:
   1. "Sole-source concession agreement" means: (a) a document issued  to
 organizations  which  offer free and fee-based programming including but
 not limited to museums, nature centers,  recreational,  educational  and
 environmental  programs, urban agriculture initiatives, markets, special
 events, weddings, restaurants/snack bar/wine;
   (b) a system which  combines  features  of  a  not-for-profit  license
 agreement with a concession agreement; and
   (c) a system which is not a competitive process, however, not-for-pro-
 fit  organizations  and  the  department  of  parks and recreation shall
 justify to the franchise and concession review committee (FCRC) why such
 services of such not-for-profit organization are so unique and  valuable
 to  the  department  of  parks and recreation that a different selection
 procedure may be used.
   2. "City" means the city of New York.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.