Bill Text: NY A03923 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Removes requirements for certain smaller municipalities to maintain official websites.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-30 - referred to local governments [A03923 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A03923-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3923

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 30, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. KASSAY -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Local Governments

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  general  municipal law, in relation to removing
          certain requirements for official websites  of  small  municipalities;
          and  to  amend  a  chapter  of the laws of 2024 amending   the general
          municipal law relating to requiring  municipalities to maintain munic-
          ipal websites, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 3353-A  and
          A. 2852-A, in relation to the effectiveness thereof

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

     1    Section 1. Section 300 of the general municipal law,  as  added  by  a
     2  chapter of the laws of 2024 amending  the general municipal law relating
     3  to requiring  municipalities to maintain municipal websites, as proposed
     4  in legislative bills numbers S. 3353-A and A. 2852-A, is amended to read
     5  as follows:
     6    §  300.  Municipal  websites.  1.  All municipal corporations having a
     7  population, as shown by the latest preceding decennial  federal  census,
     8  equal  to or greater than one thousand five hundred persons, shall main-
     9  tain an official website with a ".gov" domain name that is accessible to
    10  the public and update such website regularly[. The], as  follows:    the
    11  official  website  shall  contain  basic information on the municipality
    12  including but not limited to hours of operations, elected officials  and
    13  services  provided[. The] and the website shall contain a privacy policy
    14  that is prominently posted and written in plain  language  that  informs
    15  website visitors of any personal information that is being collected and
    16  how  it  is being used; provided however, that any municipal corporation
    17  having a population, as shown by the latest preceding decennial  federal
    18  census,  of  less  than one thousand  five hundred persons, shall comply
    19  with the provisions of this  section  to  the  extent  practicable.  For
    20  purposes  of  this section, a municipal corporation that hosts its offi-
    21  cial website on another municipal corporation's ".gov" Uniform  Resource

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02683-01-5

        A. 3923                             2

     1  Locator  (URL)  will  satisfy  this section's requirement to maintain an
     2  official website with a ".gov" domain name.
     3    2. [Municipal] All municipal websites of municipal corporations having
     4  a population, as shown by the latest preceding decennial federal census,
     5  equal  to  or greater than one thousand five hundred persons shall, at a
     6  minimum, contain the following information:
     7    a. all documents required by subdivision seven of  section  thirty  of
     8  this chapter;
     9    b. notice of all municipal elections, public hearings and public meet-
    10  ings including regular board or legislative meetings;
    11    c.  agenda  and  minutes  of municipal meetings as required by article
    12  seven of the public officers law; and
    13    d. an up to date version of, or an active hyperlink  to,  the  munici-
    14  pality's codes or local laws and resolutions; provided however, that any
    15  municipal  corporation  having  a  population,  as  shown  by the latest
    16  preceding decennial federal census,  of  less  than  one  thousand  five
    17  hundred persons, shall comply with the provisions of this section to the
    18  extent practicable.
    19    §  2.  Subdivision  7  of  section 30 of the general municipal law, as
    20  amended by a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the general  municipal
    21  law   relating  to  requiring    municipalities  to  maintain  municipal
    22  websites, as proposed in legislative bills  numbers  S.  3353-A  and  A.
    23  2852-A,  is amended to read as follows:
    24    7.  Each  municipal corporation shall make accessible to the public on
    25  its [official] municipal website required under  article  thirteen-E  of
    26  this  chapter  documentation pertaining to its most recent annual finan-
    27  cial reports, current year budget, most recent independent audit  report
    28  and  most  recent  fiscal  performance  plan or multiyear financial plan
    29  required pursuant to paragraph g of subdivision ten  of  section  fifty-
    30  four  of  the  state  finance law, unless such information is covered by
    31  subdivision two of section eighty-seven of the public officers law.
    32    § 3.  Section 3 of a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the  general
    33  municipal  law relating to requiring  municipalities to maintain munici-
    34  pal websites, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 3353-A and  A.
    35  2852-A,  is amended to read as follows:
    36    § 3. This act shall take effect [on the one hundred eightieth day] one
    37  year after it shall have become a law.
    38    §  4.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
    39  section one and two of this act shall take effect on the same  date  and
    40  in the same manner as a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the general
    41  municipal law relating to   requiring  municipalities to maintain munic-
    42  ipal websites, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 3353-A and A.
    43  2852-A,  takes effect.
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