Bill Text: NY A05560 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Relates to the metropolitan transit authority; provides that the members from the counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall each cast one vote apiece, instead of one collective vote.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-13 - held for consideration in corporations, authorities and commissions [A05560 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05560-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5560
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 13, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. BRABENEC -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
        AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to the metropol-
          itan transportation authority
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section
     2  1263 of the public authorities law, as amended by section 3 of part H of
     3  chapter 25 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
     4    (1) There is hereby created the "metropolitan transportation  authori-
     5  ty."  The authority shall be a body corporate and politic constituting a
     6  public benefit corporation. The authority shall consist of  a  chairman,
     7  sixteen  other  voting  members,  and  two non-voting and four alternate
     8  non-voting members, as described in subparagraph two of  this  paragraph
     9  appointed  by  the  governor  by  and with the advice and consent of the
    10  senate. Any member appointed to a term commencing on or after June thir-
    11  tieth, two thousand nine shall have experience in one  or  more  of  the
    12  following areas: transportation, public administration, business manage-
    13  ment,  finance,  accounting,  law,  engineering,  land  use,  urban  and
    14  regional  planning,  management  of  large   capital   projects,   labor
    15  relations,  or have experience in some other area of activity central to
    16  the mission of the authority. Four of the sixteen voting  members  other
    17  than  the  chairman  shall be appointed on the written recommendation of
    18  the mayor of the city of New  York;  and  each  of  seven  other  voting
    19  members  other than the chairman shall be appointed after selection from
    20  a written list of three recommendations from the chief executive officer
    21  of the county in which the  particular  member  is  required  to  reside
    22  pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision. Of the members appointed
    23  on  recommendation  of the chief executive officer of a county, one such
    24  member shall be, at the time of appointment, a resident of the county of
    25  Nassau, one a resident of the county of Suffolk, one a resident  of  the
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08151-01-9

        A. 5560                             2
     1  county  of  Westchester, one a resident of the county of Dutchess, one a
     2  resident of the county of Orange, one a resident of the county of Putnam
     3  and one a resident of the county of Rockland, provided that the term  of
     4  any  member  who  is  a resident of a county that has withdrawn from the
     5  metropolitan commuter transportation district pursuant to section twelve
     6  hundred seventy-nine-b of this article shall terminate upon  the  effec-
     7  tive  date  of  such county's withdrawal from such district. Of the five
     8  voting members, other than the chairman, appointed by the governor with-
     9  out recommendation from any other person, three shall be, at the time of
    10  appointment, residents of the city of New York and two shall be, at  the
    11  time  of  appointment, residents of such city or of any of the aforemen-
    12  tioned counties in the metropolitan  commuter  transportation  district.
    13  The  chairman  and  each of the members shall be appointed for a term of
    14  six years, provided however, that the  chairman  first  appointed  shall
    15  serve  for  a  term  ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one,
    16  provided that thirty days after the effective date of the chapter of the
    17  laws of two thousand nine which amended this subparagraph, the  term  of
    18  the  chairman  shall  expire;  provided, further, that such chairman may
    19  continue to discharge the duties of his or her office until the position
    20  of chairman is filled by appointment by the governor upon the advice and
    21  consent of the senate and the term of such new chairman shall  terminate
    22  June  thirtieth,  two  thousand fifteen. The sixteen other members first
    23  appointed shall serve for the following  terms:  The  members  from  the
    24  counties  of  Nassau  and Westchester shall each serve for a term ending
    25  June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-five; the members from the coun-
    26  ty of Suffolk and from the counties  of  Dutchess,  Orange,  Putnam  and
    27  Rockland  shall  each  serve  for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen
    28  hundred ninety-two; two of the members appointed  on  recommendation  of
    29  the  mayor  of  the  city of New York shall each serve for a term ending
    30  June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-four and, two shall  each  serve
    31  for  a  term  ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one; two of
    32  the members appointed by the governor without the recommendation of  any
    33  other person shall each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen
    34  hundred  eighty-two, two shall each serve for a term ending June thirti-
    35  eth, nineteen hundred eighty and one shall serve for a term ending  June
    36  thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-five.  The two non-voting and four
    37  alternate non-voting members shall serve until January first, two  thou-
    38  sand  one. The members from the counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and
    39  Rockland shall each cast one [collective] vote.
    40    § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of  section  1263  of  the  public
    41  authorities  law, as amended by section 4 of part H of chapter 25 of the
    42  laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
    43    (a) There is hereby created the "metropolitan transportation  authori-
    44  ty."  The authority shall be a body corporate and politic constituting a
    45  public benefit corporation. The authority shall consist  of  a  chairman
    46  and  sixteen  other  members  appointed  by the governor by and with the
    47  advice and consent of  the  senate.  Any  member  appointed  to  a  term
    48  commencing  on  or  after  June  thirtieth, two thousand nine shall have
    49  experience in one or more of the following areas of expertise:    trans-
    50  portation, public administration, business management, finance, account-
    51  ing, law, engineering, land use, urban and regional planning, management
    52  of  large  capital projects, labor relations, or have experience in some
    53  other area of activity central to the mission of the authority. Four  of
    54  the  sixteen  members  other than the chairman shall be appointed on the
    55  written recommendation of the mayor of the city of New York; and each of
    56  seven other members other than the chairman  shall  be  appointed  after

        A. 5560                             3
     1  selection  from  a  written list of three recommendations from the chief
     2  executive officer of the  county  in  which  the  particular  member  is
     3  required  to  reside  pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision. Of
     4  the  members  appointed on recommendation of the chief executive officer
     5  of a county, one such member shall be, at the  time  of  appointment,  a
     6  resident  of  the  county  of  Nassau;  one  a resident of the county of
     7  Suffolk; one a resident of the county of Westchester; and one a resident
     8  of the county of Dutchess, one a resident of the county of Orange, one a
     9  resident of the county of Putnam and one a resident  of  the  county  of
    10  Rockland,  provided  that  the term of any member who is a resident of a
    11  county that has withdrawn from the metropolitan commuter  transportation
    12  district pursuant to section twelve hundred seventy-nine-b of this arti-
    13  cle  shall terminate upon the effective date of such county's withdrawal
    14  from such district. Of  the  five  members,  other  than  the  chairman,
    15  appointed  by the governor without recommendation from any other person,
    16  three shall be, at the time of appointment, residents of the city of New
    17  York and two shall be, at the time of  appointment,  residents  of  such
    18  city or of any of the aforementioned counties in the metropolitan commu-
    19  ter  transportation district. The chairman and each of the members shall
    20  be appointed for a term of six years, provided however, that the  chair-
    21  man  first appointed shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nine-
    22  teen hundred eighty-one, provided that thirty days after  the  effective
    23  date  of the chapter of the laws of two thousand nine which amended this
    24  paragraph, the term of the chairman  shall  expire;  provided,  further,
    25  that  such  chairman  may continue to discharge the duties of his office
    26  until the position of chairman is filled by appointment by the  governor
    27  upon  the  advice  and  consent  of  the senate and the term of such new
    28  chairman shall terminate  June  thirtieth,  two  thousand  fifteen.  The
    29  sixteen  other  members  first  appointed  shall serve for the following
    30  terms: The members from the counties of  Nassau  and  Westchester  shall
    31  each  serve  for  a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
    32  five; the members from the county of Suffolk and from  the  counties  of
    33  Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall each serve for a term ending
    34  June   thirtieth,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-two;  two  of  the  members
    35  appointed on recommendation of the mayor of the city of New  York  shall
    36  each  serve  for  a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
    37  four and, two shall each serve for a term ending June  thirtieth,  nine-
    38  teen  hundred  eighty-one;  two of the members appointed by the governor
    39  without the recommendation of any other person shall each  serve  for  a
    40  term  ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two, two shall each
    41  serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty and  one
    42  shall  serve  for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
    43  five. The members from the counties  of  Dutchess,  Orange,  Putnam  and
    44  Rockland shall each cast one [collective] vote.
    45    §  3.  Subdivision 3 of section 1263 of the public authorities law, as
    46  amended by chapter 929 of the laws of 1986, paragraph (b) as amended  by
    47  chapter 14 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
    48    3.  [(a)]  A  majority of the whole number of members of the authority
    49  then in office shall constitute a quorum  for  the  transaction  of  any
    50  business or the exercise of any power of the authority. Except as other-
    51  wise specified in this title, for the transaction of any business or the
    52  exercise  of  any power of the authority, the authority shall have power
    53  to act by a majority vote of the members present at any meeting at which
    54  a quorum is in attendance and except further, that in the event of a tie
    55  vote the chairman shall cast one additional vote.

        A. 5560                             4
     1    [(b) For purposes of determining the presence of  a  quorum,  and  for
     2  purposes  of  participation  on  any  committee  or  subcommittee, those
     3  members who collectively cast a single vote pursuant to  the  provisions
     4  of  paragraph (a) of subdivision one of this section shall be considered
     5  to  be  a single member, and the presence of such member shall be deter-
     6  mined as provided in this subdivision. Except as otherwise provided in a
     7  by-law adopted as hereinafter provided, such single member  constituting
     8  those members entitled to a collective vote shall be deemed present as a
     9  single  member  for  purposes  of a quorum if one or more of the members
    10  then in office entitled to cast such collective  vote  is  present,  and
    11  such  collective  vote  shall  be  cast  in accordance with the majority
    12  agreement of the members entitled to a collective vote who  are  present
    13  or in the event a single member entitled to a collective vote is present
    14  it  shall  be  cast  by  that  member. To evidence the existence of such
    15  majority agreement among the members entitled to a collective vote, each
    16  such member shall be polled as to  his  vote  and  such  poll  shall  be
    17  recorded in the minutes. In the event a majority vote is not achieved by
    18  the members entitled to a collective vote who are present, then the vote
    19  shall not be cast. Nothing herein shall limit the right of an individual
    20  member  to  participate  in board meetings or in other activities of the
    21  authority when the other members then in office entitled to collectively
    22  cast a vote are not present. At any meeting of the  authority  at  which
    23  there  is  a quorum including all the members then in office entitled to
    24  cast a collective vote, the authority may  adopt  a  by-law  or  by-laws
    25  regulating  the  casting  of  such collective vote, provided all members
    26  then in office entitled to cast a collective vote affirmatively  approve
    27  such  by-law or by-laws. Any action taken by the authority in accordance
    28  with any such by-law or by-laws adopted pursuant to  the  provisions  of
    29  this  paragraph shall take effect in the same manner as any other action
    30  of the authority. Any such by-law or by-laws shall not provide  for  the
    31  casting  of  any  fractional  vote.  Nor  shall such a by-law or by-laws
    32  provide for the amendment, repeal or adoption in the future  of  such  a
    33  by-law  or  by-laws  in a manner other than that set forth in this para-
    34  graph.
    35    (c) No provision of paragraph (b) of this subdivision relating to  the
    36  adoption  of certain by-laws by the authority shall affect the manner in
    37  which by-laws of the authority are adopted concerning any subject  other
    38  than the voting and presence for quorum purposes of the members from the
    39  counties of Dutchess, Putnam, Orange and Rockland.
    40    (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivision one
    41  of  this  section,  any  member  appointed  from the county of Dutchess,
    42  Orange, Putnam or Rockland prior  to  the  increase  in  the  number  of
    43  members of the authority to include a member from each such county shall
    44  continue  in office as the member from such counties pursuant to section
    45  five of the public officers law until the appointment  and  confirmation
    46  of  all of the new members from such counties pursuant to the provisions
    47  of this section, and no individual member exercising a  collective  vote
    48  appointed  and confirmed pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision one of
    49  this section shall take office until all such new members are  appointed
    50  and confirmed.]
    51    §  4. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the amend-
    52  ments to paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 1263  of  the  public
    53  authorities  law made by section one of this act shall be subject to the
    54  expiration and reversion of such paragraph pursuant to  chapter  549  of
    55  the  laws  of  1994,  as  amended, when upon such date the provisions of
    56  section two of this act shall take effect.
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