STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5749 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 15, 2017 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BENEDETTO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to district office staffing requirements during assembly member vacancies The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 7 of the legislative law, as amended by chapter 506 2 of the laws of 1960, the closing paragraph as added by chapter 141 of 3 the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows: 4 § 7. Officers and employees of the assembly. 1. The assembly may 5 choose a clerk, a sergeant-at-arms and a stenographer. When an appropri- 6 ation has been made for the services, temporary or otherwise, of offi- 7 cers and employees of the assembly and their appointment is not other- 8 wise authorized by law, the speaker of the assembly may appoint such 9 officers and employees and fix their compensation, respectively, within 10 the amount provided by appropriation. The majority leader of the assem- 11 bly may appoint a counsel to majority leader, an assistant counsel to 12 majority leader, a secretary to majority leader, and a clerk to majority 13 leader. The minority leader of the assembly may appoint a counsel to 14 minority leader, a clerk to minority, an assistant clerk to minority, a 15 secretary to minority leader, a clerk to minority leader, an assistant 16 clerk to minority leader, a ways and means minority clerk, two stenogra- 17 phers, a clerk-chauffeur and a messenger to minority. In case of the 18 death or resignation of the clerk of the assembly, or his or her inabil- 19 ity to exercise the powers and/or discharge the duties of said office, 20 notwithstanding any other provisions of law the speaker of the assembly 21 shall appoint an acting clerk or designate the assistant clerk as acting 22 clerk to serve until a clerk is chosen by the assembly to fill the 23 vacancy or until the disability shall cease. The acting clerk so 24 appointed or designated as such shall have and exercise all of the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD09807-01-7A. 5749 2 1 powers of the clerk of the assembly until a clerk has been chosen and 2 has qualified or until the disability shall cease. 3 2. Whenever the speaker of the assembly is authorized or required, 4 singly or jointly, to certify or approve warrants or vouchers for the 5 compensation of any person, it shall be sufficient if he or she execute 6 the first such warrant or voucher, and thereafter the same may be certi- 7 fied or approved by his or her designee or designees, so long as the 8 rate of such compensation is not increased, and upon proof by affidavit 9 or otherwise that the same is due. Such designation shall be in writing 10 and filed in the office of the speaker and in the office of the comp- 11 troller, and shall remain in effect during the term of office of the 12 speaker unless sooner revoked by him or her. 13 3. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the speaker of the assem- 14 bly or his or her designee may authorize expenditures to be made from 15 appropriations or reappropriations made to the assembly ways and means 16 committee, or the allocable portion of an appropriation or reappropri- 17 ation so made to a legislative council, commission or task force the 18 expenditures from which are for assembly purposes in whole or in alloca- 19 ble part. The speaker of the assembly may effect such authorization by 20 filing his or her approval of such authorization with the state comp- 21 troller. 22 4. In the event of a vacancy of an assembly member, in order to 23 protect the interests of the constituents of a district where there is 24 such a vacancy, the speaker of the assembly or his or her designee shall 25 appoint at least two people to continue the office services of such 26 vacant assembly member's district office until such vacancy is filled. 27 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.