Requires legislative fiscal impact notes to include objective calculations of anticipated economic impacts for next three years on state or political subdivisions.

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S3456-2011 Actions

• Jan 4, 2012: REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
• Feb 23, 2011: REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS

S3456-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S3456

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the legislative law, in relation to fiscal impact notes on
bills and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto

PURPOSE:
To expand disclosure requirements for fiscal impact notes attached to
proposed legislation.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Repeals sections 51 of the legislative law and inserts a new section
51 to require the standing committees of the senate and assembly,
prior to reporting a bill, to append to such bill a fiscal impact
note describing anticipated economic impacts of such bill to the
state and any political subdivision for the three fiscal years
following enactment of such legislation.

JUSTIFICATION:
This Legislature considers many thousands of bills each session, many
of which entail direct or indirect fiscal impacts on political
subdivisions of the state. The legislative law requires sponsors of
bills to describe their fiscal impacts in sponsors' memoranda. These
brief statements often fail to identify the anticipated economic
impacts of legislative proposals. As a result, members vote on bills
about which they may have only partial information, causing state and
local finances to be managed in an uncertain manner.

The state of California, operating in a political and economic
environment similar to that of New York, requires most legislative
proposals to undergo objective analyses of expected fiscal impacts
for each of three fiscal years following implementation. The
California Assembly and Senate attach to all legislation explicit
fiscal memoranda prepared by the fiscal committees of the respective
legislative houses and distributed to committees and lawmakers when
bills come before them. This bill is based on regulations in
California and other states governing disclosure of fiscal impacts.

Under this chapter, the standing committee to which a bill is referred
must, prior to reporting such bill, prepare an objective fiscal
statement detailing the economic impact of the bill on the state,
county or local governments, school districts or any other
political entities which the bill may affect. This statement, prepared
with the advice of the appropriate fiscal committee of that house,
will be attached to the bill when reported by the standing committee,
and will remain a apart of the bill throughout the legislative
process. This will help lawmakers make fully considered decisions on
managing the legislative and economic affairs of the state.

This bill does NOT require cost-benefit analysis, nor govern
regulations promulgated by state agencies. Rather, this bill simply
requires a frank description of the economic impacts of bills to be
given to lawmakers to help them balance social and economic
priorities. Lawmakers should know what expense or savings will result
from enacting legislation put before them. Expanding fiscal note


analysis and disclosure accomplishes this important precursor to
sound fiscal management.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S.3829 - Investigations Committee/A.5984 - Governmental Operations
Committee

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Potential savings to the state and its political subdivisions through
more complete disclosure of proposed expenditure prior to adopting
bills with fiscal impacts.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
First of January next succeeding the date the bill becomes a law.

S3456-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    3456

                         2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                              February 23, 2011
                                 ___________

  Introduced by Sens. GRIFFO, DeFRANCISCO, JOHNSON, LARKIN, RANZENHOFER --
    read  twice  and  ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to
    the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations

  AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to fiscal impact  notes
    on bills and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto

    THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section 1. Section 51 of the legislative law is  REPEALED  and  a  new
  section 51 is added to read as follows:

    S  51.  FISCAL  IMPACT NOTES ON BILLS AFFECTING THE STATE OR POLITICAL
  SUBDIVISIONS. 1. AS USED IN THIS SECTION:

    (A) THE TERM "POLITICAL SUBDIVISION" MEANS  ANY  COUNTY,  CITY,  TOWN,
  VILLAGE,  SPECIAL DISTRICT OR SCHOOL DISTRICT, OR ANY AGENCY, AUTHORITY,
  COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OR INSTRUMENTALITY THEREOF.
    (B) THE TERM "QUALIFYING BILL" MEANS ANY BILL OR AMENDMENT TO  A  BILL
  FILED  ON  OR AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS SECTION WHICH ESTABLISHES
  OR ELIMINATES A STATE PROGRAM, SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGES  SERVICES  REQUIRED
  TO  BE  PROVIDED  BY SUCH PROGRAM, OR RESULTS IN A CHANGE IN REVENUES OR
  EXPENSES OF THE STATE OR ANY POLITICAL SUBDIVISION.
    2. BEFORE DISCHARGING QUALIFYING BILLS FROM CONSIDERATION, THE  SENATE
  FINANCE COMMITTEE OR THE ASSEMBLY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE SHALL PREPARE
  FOR EACH SUCH BILL A FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT CLEARLY DETAILING THE ESTI-
  MATED  COST  OR  SAVINGS ENTAILED BY SUCH BILL TO THE STATE AND AFFECTED
  POLITICAL SUBDIVISION FOR THE THREE FISCAL YEARS FOLLOWING  ADOPTION  OF
  SUCH BILL. SUCH FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT SHALL ALSO PROVIDE THE SOURCE OR
  SOURCES OF SUCH ESTIMATES.
    3.  A  FISCAL  IMPACT  STATEMENT  REQUIRED  TO  BE PREPARED UNDER THIS
  SECTION SHALL BE MADE AND SHALL REMAIN A PART OF THE BILL IT  DESCRIBES,
  AND  SHALL  BE  AFFIXED  TO THE BILL BEFORE IT IS LAID UPON THE MEMBERS'
  DESKS FOR CONSIDERATION.

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD05960-01-1

 S. 3456                             2

    4.  IN DETERMINING THE FISCAL IMPACTS OF A BILL,  THE  SENATE  FINANCE
  COMMITTEE  AND  ASSEMBLY  WAYS  AND  MEANS COMMITTEE SHALL ESTIMATE SUCH
  IMPACTS ON THE BASIS OF ANY OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

    (A) INDIVIDUAL POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS;
    (B)  AGGREGATES  OF  POLITICAL  SUBDIVISIONS  EITHER STATEWIDE OR BY A
  LESSER GEOGRAPHIC AREA;
    (C) REPRESENTATIVE POLITICAL  SUBDIVISIONS  WITH  RELEVANT  CHARACTER-
  ISTICS  SUCH AS POPULATION, AREA, AVERAGE INCOME, WEIGHTED AVERAGE DAILY
  ATTENDANCE OF PUPILS, OR ANY OTHER RELEVANT CHARACTERISTICS  APPROPRIATE
  TO THE ESTIMATE; OR
    (D)  ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE, CONVENIENT OR ACCESSIBLE GROUPING OF CHAR-
  ACTERISTICS OR POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS.
    5. ESTIMATED OR ACTUAL FISCAL IMPACTS  DISCLOSED  UNDER  THIS  SECTION
  SHALL  BE REPORTED IN UNITS OF MONEY, SERVICES, PERSONNEL, EQUIPMENT, OR
  ANY OTHER APPROPRIATE, CONVENIENT OR ACCESSIBLE UNIT OR UNITS  OF  MEAS-
  UREMENT.
    6. IF THE ESTIMATES CONTAINED IN A FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT ARE INACCU-
  RATE,  SUCH  INACCURACIES  SHALL  NOT  AFFECT, IMPAIR OR INVALIDATE SUCH
  BILL.
    7. FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENTS SHALL  NOT  BE  REQUIRED  FOR  BILLS:  (A)
  SUBJECT  TO  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  SECTION  FIFTY OF THIS ARTICLE, OR (B)
  ACCOMPANIED BY SPECIAL HOME RULE REQUESTS  SUBMITTED  BY  EACH  AFFECTED
  POLITICAL SUBDIVISION, OR (C) WHICH PROVIDE ONLY DISCRETIONARY AUTHORITY
  TO  POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS, OR (D) SUBMITTED PURSUANT TO SECTION TWENTY-
  FOUR OF THE STATE FINANCE LAW.
    S 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next  succeed-
  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.