Bill Text: NY S06768 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Exempts the Village of Port Dickinson Fire Department from the requirement that the percentage of non-resident fire department members not exceed forty-five percent of the membership.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2020-09-21 - SIGNED CHAP.185 [S06768 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S06768-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6768

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     October 7, 2019
                                       ___________

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

        AN ACT to amend the  not-for-profit  corporation  law,  in  relation  to
          exempting  the  Village  of  Port  Dickinson  Fire Department from the
          requirement  that  the  percentage  of  non-resident  fire  department
          members not exceed forty-five percent of the membership

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Subparagraph 3 of paragraph (c)  of  section  1402  of  the
     2  not-for-profit  corporation  law,  as separately amended by chapters 275
     3  and 276 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
     4    (3) In towns outside of villages and fire districts, the consent of  a
     5  majority  of  the  members  of the town board to the formation of a fire
     6  corporation shall constitute an appointment of the persons named in  the
     7  certificate  of  incorporation  as  town firefighters. Thereafter, other
     8  eligible persons may be elected as members pursuant to  the  by-laws  of
     9  the  fire  corporation, but the election of a member must be approved by
    10  the town board of each town which consented to the formation of the fire
    11  corporation. Such a person shall be a resident of the  territory  speci-
    12  fied  in  the  certificate of incorporation or of territory outside such
    13  boundaries which is afforded fire protection  by  the  fire  corporation
    14  pursuant  to a contract for fire protection under which a cash consider-
    15  ation is received by the  corporation  or  for  which  negotiations  for
    16  renewal  of such a contract are pending. The membership of any volunteer
    17  member shall terminate when he or she ceases to be a  resident  of  such
    18  inside  or  outside territory, except that the corporation may authorize
    19  his or her continued membership where he or she notifies  the  secretary
    20  of  the  fire  corporation (a) that he or she plans to change his or her
    21  residence to a territory which is not in such inside or outside territo-
    22  ry, and (b) that by reason of his or her residence in  the  vicinity  or
    23  his or her usual occupation he or she will be available to render active

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13909-01-9
        S. 6768                             2

     1  service as a volunteer firefighter in either such inside or such outside
     2  territory.  Voting  for  such  authorization  shall  be  pursuant to the
     3  by-laws. Such authorization shall not become effective  unless  approved
     4  by  resolution  of  the  town  board of each town which consented to the
     5  formation of the corporation. Any membership so continued  shall  termi-
     6  nate when the member can no longer meet the requirements of this subpar-
     7  agraph.  A  person  who  cannot  meet the residence requirements of this
     8  subparagraph may be elected to membership as a volunteer  member  if  by
     9  reason of his or her residence in the vicinity or his or her usual occu-
    10  pation  he or she will be available to render active service as a volun-
    11  teer firefighter in such inside or outside territory.  Voting  for  such
    12  election  shall  be  pursuant  to  the  by-laws. Such election shall not
    13  become effective unless approved by resolution of the town board of each
    14  town which consented to the formation of the corporation.  Such  member-
    15  ship shall terminate when the member can no longer meet the requirements
    16  of  this  subparagraph.  The  election or continuance of any person as a
    17  member shall be deemed to have been approved by the town board  pursuant
    18  to  this  subparagraph  in the event that no action is taken by the town
    19  board, either approving or disapproving, within forty days in  the  case
    20  of  residents  of the territory specified in the certificate of incorpo-
    21  ration or of outside contract territory, and within seventy days in  the
    22  case  of all others, after service of written notice of such election or
    23  continuance of membership shall have been made by the secretary  of  the
    24  corporation  upon  the  town  clerk,  either  personally or by mail. The
    25  membership of any volunteer firefighter shall not be continued  pursuant
    26  to  this  subparagraph,  and  persons who do not reside in the territory
    27  specified in the certificate of incorporation or in territory  protected
    28  pursuant  to  a  contract  for  fire  protection shall not be elected to
    29  membership, if, by so doing, the percentage of such nonresident  members
    30  in the fire corporation would exceed forty-five per centum of the actual
    31  membership thereof, provided, however, that the forty-five percent limit
    32  on non-resident members shall not apply to the membership of the Huguen-
    33  ot  Fire  Company,  Inc., within the town of Deerpark, Orange county, to
    34  the membership of the Prospect Terrace Fire Company,  Inc.,  within  the
    35  town  of  Dickinson,  Broome county, to the membership of the Village of
    36  Port Dickinson Fire Department, within the village  of  Port  Dickinson,
    37  Broome  county, to membership of the Hopewell Volunteer Fire Department,
    38  Inc., to membership of the Wales Center Volunteer  Fire  Company,  Inc.,
    39  within  the  town of Wales, Erie county, to the membership of the Nedrow
    40  Fire Department, within the town of Onondaga, Onondaga  county,  to  the
    41  membership of the Howlett Hill Fire Department, within the town of Onon-
    42  daga,  Onondaga  county,  to  the  membership  of the East Syracuse Fire
    43  Department, within the town of Dewitt, Onondaga county, to  the  member-
    44  ship of the Pleasant Square Fire Company, Inc. within the town of Johns-
    45  town, Fulton county, or to membership of the fire departments within the
    46  town  of Fleming, Cayuga county. Nonresidents of the territory specified
    47  in the certificate of incorporation whose volunteer membership has  been
    48  authorized  or continued pursuant to this subparagraph may be elected or
    49  appointed to any office in the fire corporation and shall have  all  the
    50  powers, duties, immunities, and privileges of resident volunteer members
    51  except  a non-resident of this state whose membership has been continued
    52  pursuant to this subparagraph, or who was elected to membership pursuant
    53  to this subparagraph, shall not be considered to be performing any fire-
    54  fighting duty, or to be engaged  in  any  firefighting  activity,  as  a
    55  member  of  the  fire  company  while he or she is outside of this state
    56  unless and until he or she has first reported to the  officer  or  fire-
        S. 6768                             3

     1  fighter  in command of his or her fire department, or any company, squad
     2  or other unit thereof, engaged or to be  engaged  in  rendering  service
     3  outside  this  state,  or  has  received orders or authorization from an
     4  officer  of  the  fire  department  or fire company to participate in or
     5  attend authorized activities outside of this state in the same manner as
     6  resident members of the fire company. A person shall not be eligible  to
     7  volunteer  membership  in  any other fire corporation or fire company at
     8  one time. The provisions of this subparagraph shall  not  be  deemed  to
     9  authorize  the  election or the continuance of any person as a member of
    10  the corporation if such election or continuance of membership  shall  be
    11  contrary to the by-laws, rules or regulations of the fire corporation.
    12    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.