Expands the products which may be purchased for public use by including renewable energy resources; increases the cost premium percentage for renewable energy generated in New York.

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S661-2011 Actions

• Jan 4, 2012: REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT
• Jan 5, 2011: REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT

S661-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S661

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the education law, in relation to enabling
elementary and secondary school teachers to use
public transportation to ride to and from school at
no charge

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To allow elementary and secondary
school teachers to ride public transportation to and from school at
no charge.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the education law
by adding a new section 3036. This section allows elementary and
secondary school teachers to ride public transportation free of
charge on one round-trip to and from school on any workday. The bill
also provides that each school district shall provide suitable
identification to enable teachers to use the benefits provided under
this bill.

EFFECTS OF PRESENT LAW WHICH THIS BILL WOULD ALTER:
Currently, all
riders must pay subway or bus fares. Failure to pay constitutes theft
of services as defined in the penal law section 165.15(3).

JUSTIFICATION:
Teachers in New York state currently must travel to and
from school each weekday during the school year. Those who travel by
means of public transportation are not eligible for fare reductions
or discounts. Students are eligible for bus passes and reduced fares
but the teachers who instruct them must pay for each ride on public
transportation. Recruiting and retaining qualified teachers must be a
priority if New York state is to provide students at all academic
levels with a quality education. Further, a highly educated workforce
is one way to encourage employers to locate in New York rather than
another state.
Governor Pataki has proposed a number of financial incentives designed
to attract new teachers and retain current personnel.
These initiatives include: tuition reimbursement, fellowships,
stipends and recruitment scholarships. While this bill is modest by
comparison it does represent an attempt to alleviate one financial
disadvantage faced by teachers in New York state. In addition,
providing elementary and secondary school-teachers with free fares
will encourage more use of public transportation which will result in
less air and noise pollution and reduce traffic congestion in urban
areas of our state.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.2494 of 2008
01/09/08 REFERRED TO EDUCATION
S.1619 of 2011
01/10/11 REFERRED TO EDUCATION
01/04/12 REFERRED TO EDUCATION

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
Unknown at present time.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first day of the
calendar month next succeeding the thirtieth day after it shall have
become a law.

S661-2011 Text

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

                                     661

                         2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                                 (PREFILED)

                               January 5, 2011
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen. VALESKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government

  AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to expanding  the
    products which may be purchased for public use

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


    Section 1. Section 104-a of the general municipal law, as  amended  by
  chapter 468 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:

    S  104-a.  Purchasing  of products for public use.  1. Notwithstanding
  the provisions of section one hundred three of this  [chapter]  ARTICLE,
  when  purchasing  products the officer, board or agency of any political
  subdivision or of any district therein  charged  with  the  awarding  of
  public  contracts  may,  wherever RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCES OR recycled
  products meet contract specifications and the price of such products  is
  reasonably  competitive, purchase such products. For the purpose of this
  section [and until July first, nineteen  hundred  ninety-six,  "recycled
  product" shall mean any product which has been manufactured from second-
  ary  materials,  as  defined  in  subdivision one of section two hundred
  sixty-one of the economic development law, and meets secondary  material
  content  requirements  adopted  by  the office of general services under
  subdivision one of  section  one  hundred  seventy-seven  of  the  state
  finance  law  for  products  available  to  the political subdivision or
  district under state contract or, if no such contract for  such  product
  is  available,  any  product  which meets the secondary material content
  requirements adopted by the political subdivision  or  district  thereof
  with  respect to a specific commodity procurement by such entity. On and
  after July first, nineteen hundred ninety-six,]:

    (A) "recycled product" shall mean[, for the purposes of this section,]
  any product which is manufactured from secondary materials,  as  defined
  in  subdivision  one  of  section  two hundred sixty-one of the economic

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD03583-01-1

 S. 661                              2

  development law, and which meets the requirements of subdivision two  of
  section  27-0717  of  the environmental conservation law and regulations
  promulgated pursuant thereto[. For the purpose of this section,];
    (B)  "RENEWABLE  ENERGY RESOURCES" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS SUCH
  TERM IS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION TWELVE OF SECTION  1-103  OF  THE  ENERGY
  LAW;
    (C) "reasonably competitive" shall mean:

    (I)  that  the  cost  of  the  recycled product does not exceed a cost
  premium of ten percent above the cost of a comparable  product  that  is
  not  a  recycled  product or, if at least fifty percent of the secondary
  materials utilized in the manufacture of that product are generated from
  the waste stream in New York state, the cost  of  the  recycled  product
  does  not  exceed  a cost premium of fifteen percent above the cost of a
  comparable product that is not a recycled product; OR
    (II) THAT THE COST OF THE RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCE DOES NOT EXCEED  A
  COST  PREMIUM OF TEN PERCENT ABOVE THE COST OF A COMPARABLE PRODUCT THAT
  IS NOT A RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCE.
    2. Whenever such officer, board or agency shall purchase or cause  the
  purchase  of  printing on recycled paper pursuant to this section, he or
  she shall require the printed material to  contain  the  official  state
  recycling  emblem  established  pursuant  to  subdivision two of section
  27-0717 of the environmental conservation law and regulations promulgat-
  ed pursuant thereto if such paper has been approved by the department of
  environmental conservation as satisfying the requirements of such  stat-
  ute and regulations, or, if such paper has not been so approved, require
  the  printed material to include a printed statement which indicates the
  percentages of pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled material  content
  of such paper.
    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;  provided,  however,
  that effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any
  rule  or  regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its
  effective date are authorized and directed to be made and  completed  on
  or before such effective date.