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

                                  4027

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             March 14, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  ZELDIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Education

AN ACT to amend the education law and  the  town  law,  in  relation  to
  requiring library and fire district budget proposal elections to occur
  on  the  same  day  as  the school district budget vote; and to repeal
  certain provisions of the town law relating thereto

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

  Section  1.  Subparagraph 1 of paragraph b of subdivision 1 of section
259 of the education law, as amended by chapter 184 of the laws of 2007,
is amended to read as follows:
  (1) Except as provided in subparagraph two of this paragraph, whenever
qualified voters of a municipality, in a number equal to  at  least  ten
per  centum  of  the total number of votes cast in such municipality for
governor at the last gubernatorial election, shall so petition  and  the
library board of trustees shall endorse, the question of establishing or
increasing  the  amount  of  funding  of the annual contribution for the
operating budget of a registered public or free association  library  by
such municipality to a sum specified in said petition, shall be voted on
[at  the next general election of such municipality] THE SAME DAY AS THE
SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGET VOTE IS HELD FOR SUCH MUNICIPALITY, provided that
due public notice of the proposed  action  shall  have  been  given.  An
increase  in  library  funding provided pursuant to this paragraph shall
not apply to a municipal budget  adopted  prior  to  the  date  of  such
election.
  S  2.  Section  105  of the town law, as amended by chapter 240 of the
laws of 2006 and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 555 of the laws  of
2007, is amended to read as follows:
  S 105. Fire district estimates and budget. 1. The board of commission-
ers  of  each  fire district shall submit the fire district budget on or
before the [seventh] TWENTIETH day of [November]  APRIL  to  the  budget

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD06987-01-1
              

S. 4027                             2

officer. The fire district budget shall be in the form prescribed by and
pursuant  to  subdivision one of section one hundred seven of this arti-
cle, and shall be adopted  in  the  manner  prescribed  in  section  one
hundred eighty-one of this chapter.
  2.  The  budget  officer  shall  affix the fire district budget to the
annual town budget[, established pursuant to section one hundred nine of
this article,] as a part thereof. No change shall be made by the  budget
officer or the town board in the budget submitted by a fire district.
  3.  SUCH  FIRE DISTRICT BUDGET PROPOSAL SHALL BE SUBMITTED TO THE VOTE
OF THE ELECTORS ON THE SAME DAY AS THE SCHOOL DISTRICT  BUDGET  VOTE  IS
HELD  FOR  SUCH  MUNICIPALITY.  IF  THE BUDGET PROPOSAL IS REJECTED, THE
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS SHALL SUBMIT TO  THE  ELECTORS,  A  REVISED  FIRE
DISTRICT  BUDGET PROPOSAL. IF SUCH PROPOSAL IS NOT ADOPTED, THE BOARD OF
COMMISSIONERS SHALL SUBMIT A BUDGET WITH  APPROPRIATIONS  EQUAL  TO  THE
APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE CURRENT YEAR.
  S 3. Section 109 of the town law is REPEALED.
  S 4. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 181 of the town law, as
amended  by  chapter  555  of  the  laws  of 2007, is amended to read as
follows:
  (a) The board of commissioners of each  fire  district  shall  hold  a
public  hearing  on  the  [third]  FOURTH  Tuesday in [October] APRIL to
discuss the contents of  the  proposed  budget.  The  hearing  shall  be
conducted and scheduled in a manner that maximizes participation. Notice
of  such public hearing shall be published at least once in the official
newspaper, or if no official newspaper has been designated, in any news-
paper having general circulation in the district.  At  least  five  days
shall elapse between the date of the first publication of the notice and
the  date  specified  for the hearing. The notice of hearing shall state
the time when and the place where the public hearing will be  held,  the
purpose  thereof  and that a copy of the proposed budget is available at
the office of the town clerk or clerks and fire district secretary where
it may be inspected by any interested person during office hours. In the
case of a fire district that maintains an internet website,  the  notice
of  hearing  shall  also state that the proposed budget is posted on the
fire district's website. The town clerk or clerks shall cause a copy  of
the  notice  to  be  posted on the signboard of the town or towns, main-
tained pursuant to subdivision six of section thirty  of  this  chapter,
not later than five days before the day designated for such hearing. The
notice  shall  also  be  posted  on  the  municipal and/or fire district
website or websites, if one exists. At such hearing, any person  may  be
heard  in favor of or against the proposed budget as compiled, or for or
against any item or items therein contained.
  S 5. The state board of elections shall  promulgate  rules  and  regu-
lations  for  the  implementation  of  voting  for  the library and fire
district budget proposal, on the same day as the school district  budget
vote for each municipality.
  S  6.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
sections one, two, three, and four of this act shall take effect January
1, 2013.