Senate Finance Committee Meeting

Revenue Budget Bill --

Part UUU -- "relates to the findings and determinations made by the compensation committee"

Part VVV -- "relates to the powers of the members of the commission on judicial and executive compensation"

Part XXX -- "establishes a public campaign financing and election commission to examine, evaluate and make recommendations for new laws with respect to how the state should implement a system of public campaign financing for state legislative and statewide public offices"

PART UUU
 
Section  1.  Part II of a chapter of the laws of 2019 amending chapter 141 of the laws of 1994 amending  the  legislative  law  and  the  state finance law relating to the operation and administration of the legislature  relating  to extending such provisions, as proposed in legislative bill numbers S.1507-C and A.2007-C, is amended by adding a  new  section 1-a to read as follows:

§  1-a.  This act shall not supersede the findings and determinations made by the compensation committee as authorized pursuant to part HHH of chapter 59 of the laws of 2018 unless a court of competent jurisdiction determines that such findings and determinations are invalid or otherwise not applicable or in force.

§ 2. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same manner as  Part II of a chapter of the laws of 2019 amending chapter 141of  the  laws of 1994 amending the legislative law and the state finance law relating to the operation  and  administration  of  the  legislature relating  to  extending such provisions, as proposed in legislative bill numbers S.1507-C and A.2007-C, takes effect.
 
PART VVV   (at pp. 195-196)
 
Section 1. Subdivision 7 of section 3 of part E of chapter 60  of  the laws  of  2015, establishing a commission on legislative, judicial and executive compensation, and providing for the powers and duties of the commission and for the dissolution of the commission, is amended to read as follows:

7.   The commission shall make a report to the governor, the legislature and  the chief judge of the state of its findings, conclusions, determinations and recommendations, if any, not later than the thirty-first of December of the year in which the commission is established for judicial compensation and the fifteenth of November the following year for legislative and executive compensation.  Any findings, conclusions, determinations and recommendations in the report must be adopted by a majority vote of the commission and [findings, conclusions, determinations and recommendations with respect to executive and legislative compensation] shall also be supported by at least one member appointed by each appointing authority.  Each recommendation made to implement a determination  pursuant to section two of this act shall have the force of law, and shall supersede, where appropriate, inconsistent provisions of article 7-B of the judiciary law, section 169 of the executive law, and sections 5 and 5-a of the legislative law, unless modified or abrogated by statute prior to April first of the year as to which such determination applies to judicial compensation and January first of the year as to which such determination applies to legislative and executive compensation.
    

§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

PART XXX (pp. 197-198)

 Section  1. (a) Establishment of commission. The state shall establish a system of voluntary public campaign financing for statewide and state legislative public offices.  There is hereby  established a public campaign financing and election commission to examine, evaluate and make recommendations for new laws with respect to how the State should implement such a system of voluntary public campaign  financing for state legislative  and statewide public offices, and what the parameters of such a program should be. The commission shall make its recommendations in furtherance of the goals of incentivizing candidates to solicit small contributions,  reducing the pressure on candidates to spend inordinate amounts of time raising large contributions for their  campaigns, and encouraging qualified candidates to run for office. The commission shall also review and recommend changes to certain aspects of the state election law as detailed herein.  The commission's report is  due  by December  1, 2019 and shall have the full effect of law unless modified or abrogated by statute prior to December 22, 2019.

(b) Members of commission. The commission shall be comprised  of  nine members, two of which shall be appointed by the governor, two of which shall be appointed by the senate majority leader, two of which shall  be appointed by the speaker of the  assembly, one of which shall be appointed by the senate minority leader,  and  one  of  which shall be appointed by the assembly minority leader. The governor, senate majority leader, and speaker of the assembly shall jointly appoint a ninth member  to  serve on the commission. The commission shall not be fully constituted without the appointment of the ninth member.  There shall be no chairperson appointed, and the commission shall be governed by a majority vote, and at all times the commission shall act with a quorum.

     
2.  The  commission  shall  specifically  determine and identify all details and components reasonably related to administration of a  public financing  program,  and shall also specifically determine and identify new election laws in the following areas:
(a) ratio of public matching funds to small contributions;
(b)  limits  on  total receipt of public funds depending on the office sought by a candidate under the program,  including  geographic  differences in such limits, if any;
(c) candidate eligibility thresholds for the program;
(d)  contribution limits applicable to candidates participating in the program;
(e)  eligible  uses  of  matchable  contributions  and  public  funds; contributions  to  participating  candidates above the matchable portion shall be governed by election law §14-130;
(f) related conditions of compliance with the program;
(g) an appropriate state agency to oversee administration and enforcement of the program, or recommendation of a new agency if the commission deems such recommendation appropriate;
(h) resources necessary to administer and enforce the program;
(i) effective date of the program;
(j) rules  and  definitions  governing:  candidates'  eligibility  for public financing; political party qualifications; multiple party candidate nominations and/or designations; and  civil  violations  of public financing rules.

3.  The commission shall limit its recommendations to a public financing program that has a total maximum annual fiscal cost of no more than 100 million dollars.

4.  (a)  The commission shall only meet within the state and must hold at least one hearing at which the public will be afforded an opportunity to provide comments. The commission may hold additional public hearings as it deems necessary.  Such additional hearings, if any, may allow for an opportunity to provide public comments.
(b) The members of the commission shall receive  no  compensation  for their  services but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties hereunder. Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a member of the commission from receiving his or her salary earned by reason of their state employee position.
(c) No member of the commission shall be disqualified from holding any other public office or public employment, nor shall he or she forfeit any such public office or public employment by reason of his or  her
appointment  pursuant to this section, notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local law, regulation, ordinance or city charter.  No person who holds a party position shall be prohibited or disqualified from serving as a member of the commission.
(d) To the maximum extent feasible, the commission shall  be  entitled to  request  and  receive  and  shall  utilize and be provided with such facilities, resources and  data  of  any  court, department, division, board,  bureau,  commission,  agency or public authority of the state or any political subdivision thereof as it may reasonably request to  properly carry out its powers and duties pursuant to this act.
(e)  The commission may request, and shall receive, reasonable assistance from state agency personnel as is necessary for the performance of its function, including legal guidance as is necessary from legislative and executive counsel.

    
5. The commission shall make a report to the governor and the legislature of its findings, conclusions,  determinations  and  recommendations and shall submit such report by December 1, 2019. Any  findings,  conclusions, determinations and recommendations in the report must be adopted by a majority vote of the commission. Each member of the commission shall report their vote and describe their reasoning for their determination. The commission may report recommendations supported by a majority. Each recommendation made to implement a determination pursuant to this act shall have the force of law, and shall supersede, where appropriate, inconsistent provisions of the election law, unless modified or abrogated by statute prior to December 22, 2019.

§ 2. If any clause, sentence, subdivision, paragraph, section or part of this act be adjudged by any court of  competent  jurisdiction to be invalid,  such  judgment  shall  not  affect,  impair  or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, subdivision,  paragraph, section or part  thereof  directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.

§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately. While any  recommendation contained within the commission's final report that is made to implement a  determination  pursuant  to this act shall remain law, the commission itself, as created herein, shall expire and be deemed  repealed  on  and after December 31, 2019.

 
BUDGET BILL  A.2007-C

Part II:  "extends the operation and administration of legislative commissions"