Bill Text: NY A02765 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes a retired employee health insurance premium reserve fund for the town of Saranac to cover retired town employee health insurance premiums, to stabilize the tax rate, and to ensure transparency for the taxpayers and elected officials.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to governmental employees [A02765 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A02765-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2765 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 27, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. JONES -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Employees AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to establishing a retired employee health insurance premium reserve fund for the town of Saranac The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new 2 section 6-w to read as follows: 3 § 6-w. Retired employee health insurance premium reserve fund for the 4 town of Saranac. 1. As used in this section: 5 a. "Governing board" means the governing board of the town of Saranac, 6 county of Clinton. 7 b. "Reserve fund" means the retired employee health insurance premium 8 reserve fund. 9 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 10 governing board of the town of Saranac, county of Clinton, may establish 11 a retired employee health insurance premium reserve fund for the purpose 12 of covering retired town employee health insurance premiums, stabilizing 13 the tax rate, and ensuring transparency for the taxpayers and elected 14 officials. There may be paid into such reserve fund: 15 a. such amounts as may be provided therefor by budgetary appropriation 16 or raised by tax therefor; 17 b. such revenues as are not required by law to be paid into any other 18 fund or account; 19 c. such other funds as may be legally appropriated; and 20 d. notwithstanding any law to the contrary, such amounts as may be 21 transferred from a reserve fund established pursuant to section six-n, 22 six-p, or six-r of this article comprised of moneys raised from the same 23 tax base as the moneys in the reserve fund, provided, that any such 24 transfer shall only be made by resolution of the governing board after a EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07311-01-3A. 2765 2 1 public hearing held on at least fifteen days prior published notice in 2 the official newspaper of the town of Saranac, if such town does not 3 have an official newspaper, in at least one newspaper having general 4 circulation in such town. 5 3. The moneys in the reserve fund shall be deposited and secured in 6 the manner provided by section ten of this article. The governing board, 7 or the chief fiscal officer thereof if the governing board shall dele- 8 gate such duty to him or her, may invest the moneys in such fund in the 9 manner provided by section eleven of this article. Any interest earned 10 or capital gain realized on the money so deposited or invested shall 11 accrue to and become part of such fund. 12 4. The governing board by resolution may authorize expenditures from 13 the reserve fund. Except as otherwise provided by law, moneys in such 14 reserve fund may only be expended to finance health insurance premiums 15 for retired town employees. 16 5. The governing board by resolution may authorize the transfer of a 17 portion of the moneys in the reserve fund to a reserve fund of the town 18 of Saranac established pursuant to section six-n, six-p, or six-r of 19 this article comprised of moneys raised from the same tax base as the 20 moneys in the reserve fund, provided, that any such transfer shall only 21 be made by resolution of the governing board adopted after a public 22 hearing held on at least fifteen days prior published notice in the 23 official newspaper of the town of Saranac, if such town does not have an 24 official newspaper, in at least one newspaper having general circulation 25 in such town. 26 6. The chief fiscal officer of the town of Saranac shall account for 27 the reserve fund separate and apart from all other funds of such town. 28 Such accounting shall show: the source, date and amount of each sum paid 29 into the fund; the interest earned by such fund; capital gains or losses 30 resulting from the sale of investments of this fund; the order, purpose 31 thereof, date and amount of each payment from this fund; the assets of 32 the fund, indicating cash balance and a schedule of investments. The 33 chief fiscal officer, within sixty days of the end of each fiscal year, 34 shall furnish a detailed report of the operation and condition of this 35 fund to the governing board. 36 7. The members of the governing board are hereby declared trustees of 37 the reserve fund and shall be subject to all the duties and responsibil- 38 ities imposed by law on trustees, and such duties and responsibilities 39 may be enforced by the town of Saranac, as the case may be, or by any 40 board, commission, agency, officer or taxpayer thereof. 41 8. No member of the governing board shall: 42 a. authorize a withdrawal from a retirement contribution reserve fund 43 for any purpose except as provided in this section; or 44 b. expend any money withdrawn from such fund for a purpose other than 45 as provided in this section. 46 Any member of the governing board who violates the provisions of this 47 subdivision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. 48 9. The governing board by resolution may determine that the reserve 49 fund is no longer needed and terminate such fund. Such resolution shall 50 transfer any moneys remaining in such fund to one or more reserve funds 51 of the town of Saranac established pursuant to section six-n, six-p, or 52 six-r of this article comprised of moneys raised from the same tax base 53 as the moneys in the reserve fund. 54 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
