Bill Text: NY A01648 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended

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

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Bill Title: Authorizes the use of innovative techniques to enhance public participation in the rule making process; provides that use of such techniques shall in no way otherwise diminish public participation in the rule making process; establishes a three year pilot project for seven major regulatory agencies to hold public hearings upon petition of 125 or more New York residents.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 18-4)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-05 - print number 1648a [A01648 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-A01648-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        1648--A
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 11, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of  A. KAVANAGH, AUBRY, CAHILL, CASTRO, COOK, GALEF,
         JAFFEE, LANCMAN, LUPARDO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M.  of  A.  BRENNAN,
         GOTTFRIED,  MAGEE,  McDONOUGH, McKEVITT, MENG, ORTIZ, PERRY, SALADINO,
         SWEENEY, THIELE -- read once and referred to the Committee on  Govern-
         mental  Operations  --  recommitted  to  the Committee on Governmental
         Operations in accordance with Assembly Rule 3,  sec.  2  --  committee
         discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
         to said committee
       AN  ACT  to amend the state administrative procedure act, in relation to
         public hearings on proposed rules; and providing  for  the  repeal  of
         such provisions upon expiration thereof
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 102 of  the  state  administrative
    2  procedure act, as amended by section 155 of subpart B of part C of chap-
    3  ter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
    4    1. "Agency" means any department, board, bureau, commission, division,
    5  office,  council, committee or officer of the state, or a public benefit
    6  corporation or public  authority  at  least  one  of  whose  members  is
    7  appointed  by  the  governor, authorized by law to make rules or to make
    8  final decisions in adjudicatory proceedings but shall  not  include  the
    9  governor,  agencies  in  the legislative and judicial branches, agencies
   10  created by interstate compact or international agreement,  the  division
   11  of  military  and naval affairs to the extent it exercises its responsi-
   12  bility for military and naval affairs, the division of state police, the
   13  identification and intelligence unit of the division of criminal justice
   14  services, the state insurance fund, the  unemployment  insurance  appeal
   15  board, and except for purposes of subdivision one of section two hundred
   16  two-d  AND  SECTION  TWO  HUNDRED  TWO-F  of  this chapter, the workers'
   17  compensation board and except for purposes of article two of this  chap-
   18  ter, the department of corrections and community supervision.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD04122-04-1
       A. 1648--A                          2
    1    S 2. The state administrative procedure act is amended by adding a new
    2  section 202-f to read as follows:
    3    S  202-F.  PUBLIC  HEARINGS. 1. WHENEVER A PUBLIC HEARING IS HELD ON A
    4  PROPOSED RULE PURSUANT TO THIS CHAPTER,  UNLESS  OTHERWISE  PROVIDED  IN
    5  LAW, AN AGENCY IS AUTHORIZED TO UTILIZE INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES TO ENHANCE
    6  PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN RULE MAKING, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ALLOW-
    7  ING  THE  PUBLIC  TO  ASK QUESTIONS OF AGENCY PERSONNEL FOR A PORTION OF
    8  SUCH HEARING, ORGANIZING SUCH HEARING AS A ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION, SCHED-
    9  ULING AN EVENING OR WEEKEND HEARING, AND USING BROADCASTING AND TELECON-
   10  FERENCING TECHNOLOGIES; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT NO SUCH INNOVATIVE TECH-
   11  NIQUES SHALL BE USED IN A MANNER  WHICH  DIMINISHES  THE  ABILITY  WHICH
   12  MEMBERS  OF  THE  PUBLIC WOULD OTHERWISE HAVE TO COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED
   13  RULE AT A PUBLIC HEARING. EACH AGENCY LISTED IN SUBDIVISION FOUR OF THIS
   14  SECTION SHALL, AND ANY OTHER AGENCY MAY, INCLUDE IN ITS ANNUAL REPORT  A
   15  DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS OF ITS USE OF INNOVATIVE TECHNIQUES PURSUANT TO
   16  THIS SUBDIVISION.
   17    2. EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF THIS SECTION, ANY AGENCY
   18  LISTED  IN  SUBDIVISION  FOUR  OF THIS SECTION WHICH RECEIVES A PETITION
   19  SUBSCRIBED BY NOT FEWER THAN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE PERSONS RESIDING IN
   20  THIS STATE REQUESTING A PUBLIC HEARING ON ANY RULE OR RULES  WHICH  HAVE
   21  BEEN  PROPOSED  BY  THE AGENCY, OR HAVE BEEN DESCRIBED IN THE REGULATORY
   22  AGENDA SUBMITTED BY THE AGENCY PURSUANT TO SECTION TWO HUNDRED TWO-D  OF
   23  THIS  ARTICLE,  SHALL  HOLD  AT  LEAST ONE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE RULE OR
   24  RULES; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT ANY SUCH PETITION ON  A  RULE  WHICH  HAS
   25  BEEN  PROPOSED MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE AGENCY NOT LATER THAN THE TWENTI-
   26  ETH DAY BEFORE THE LAST DATE FOR SUBMISSION OF COMMENTS. ANY AGENCY THAT
   27  RECEIVES A PETITION AFTER THE TWENTIETH DAY BEFORE  THE  LAST  DATE  FOR
   28  SUBMISSION  OF COMMENTS AND ANY AGENCY NOT LISTED IN SUBDIVISION FOUR OF
   29  THIS SECTION MAY ELECT TO HOLD A HEARING UPON RECEIPT OF A PETITION. DUE
   30  CONSIDERATION SHALL BE GIVEN TO ANY REQUEST IN A PETITION THAT A HEARING
   31  BE CONDUCTED IN A PARTICULAR REGION.
   32    3. AN AGENCY SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED TO HOLD A PUBLIC  HEARING  PURSUANT
   33  TO  SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION (A) ON A RULE FOR WHICH A HEARING IS
   34  REQUIRED BY LAW AND HAS BEEN SCHEDULED OR HELD; (B) ON A CONSENSUS RULE;
   35  OR (C) ON A RULE DEFINED IN SUBPARAGRAPH (II) OF PARAGRAPH (A) OF SUBDI-
   36  VISION TWO OF SECTION ONE HUNDRED TWO OF THIS  CHAPTER.  WHEN  A  PUBLIC
   37  HEARING  HAS BEEN REQUESTED FOR ANY RULE DESCRIBED IN A REGULATORY AGEN-
   38  DA, THE AGENCY SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED TO SCHEDULE A PUBLIC HEARING  UNTIL
   39  SUCH TIME AS THE RULE IS PROPOSED.
   40    4.  THE  FOLLOWING AGENCIES SHALL ENGAGE IN THE REPORTING PROVIDED FOR
   41  IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION AND HOLD HEARINGS AS PROVIDED FOR  IN
   42  SUBDIVISIONS  TWO  AND  THREE OF THIS SECTION: THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION
   43  BOARD AND THE  DEPARTMENTS  OF  EDUCATION,  ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION,
   44  HEALTH, INSURANCE, LABOR AND FAMILY ASSISTANCE.
   45    S  3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
   46  ing the date on which it shall have become a law, and shall  expire  and
   47  be  deemed  repealed  on  the thirty-first day of December of the second
   48  calendar year following such effective date,  and  shall  apply  to  all
   49  rules  for  which a notice of proposed rule making or a description in a
   50  regulatory agenda is published during such time period.