Bill Text: NY A10166 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Enacts the "MWBE equality act" to add ethno-religious groups as minority group members for the purposes of MWBE; defines ethno-religious persons as unified by a common religious and ethnic background.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-05-10 - referred to governmental operations [A10166 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A10166-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 10166 IN ASSEMBLY May 10, 2024 ___________ Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Blumencranz) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations AN ACT to amend the executive law, the public authorities law, the economic development law, the environmental conservation law and the transportation law, in relation to adding ethno-religious groups as minority group members The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "MWBE Equality Act". 3 § 2. Subdivision 8 of section 310 of the executive law is amended by 4 adding a new paragraph (e) to read as follows: 5 (e) Ethno-religious persons unified by a common religious and ethnic 6 background. 7 § 3. Subdivision 6 of section 821 of the executive law is amended by 8 adding a new paragraph (e) to read as follows: 9 (e) Ethno-religious persons unified by a common religious and ethnic 10 background. 11 § 4. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 3 of section 2879 of the public 12 authorities law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (v) to read as 13 follows: 14 (v) Ethno-religious persons unified by a common religious and ethnic 15 background. 16 § 5. Subdivisions 3 and 4 of section 210 of the economic development 17 law, as amended by chapter 669 of the laws of 2022, are amended to read 18 as follows: 19 3. "Minority business enterprise" shall mean any business enterprise 20 which is at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the case of a 21 publicly owned business at least fifty-one per centum of the stock of 22 which is owned by, citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are 23 Black, Hispanic, Asian or American Indian, Pacific Islander [or], Alas- 24 kan Native, or ethno-religious where such ownership interest is real, 25 substantial and continuing and where such persons have the authority to 26 independently control the day-to-day business decisions of the entity. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD15443-01-4A. 10166 2 1 4. "Minority group member" shall mean a United States citizen or 2 permanent resident noncitizen who is and can demonstrate membership in 3 one of the following groups: 4 (a) Black persons having origins in any of the Black African racial 5 groups not of Hispanic origin; 6 (b) Hispanic persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban, 7 Central or South American descent of either Indian or Hispanic origin, 8 regardless of race; 9 (c) Asian and Pacific Islander persons having origins in the Far East, 10 Southeast Asia, the Indian sub-continent or the Pacific Islands; [or] 11 (d) American Indian or Alaskan Native persons having origins in any of 12 the original peoples of North America[.]; or 13 (e) Ethno-religious persons unified by a common religious and ethnic 14 background. 15 § 6. The opening paragraph of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of 16 section 52-0113 of the environmental conservation law, as amended by 17 chapter 669 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows: 18 In the performance of projects pursuant to this article minority and 19 women-owned business enterprises shall be given the opportunity for 20 meaningful participation. The department or the office shall establish 21 measures and procedures to secure meaningful participation and identify 22 those contracts and items of work for which minority and women-owned 23 business enterprises may best bid to actively and affirmatively promote 24 and assist their participation in the projects, so as to facilitate the 25 award of a fair share of contracts to such enterprises; provided, howev- 26 er, that nothing in this article shall be construed to limit the ability 27 of the department or office to assure that qualified minority and 28 women-owned business enterprises may participate in the program. For 29 purposes hereof, minority business enterprise shall mean any business 30 enterprise which is at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the 31 case of a publicly owned business, at least fifty-one per centum of the 32 stock of which is owned by citizens or permanent resident noncitizens 33 who are Black, Hispanic, Asian or American Indian, Pacific Islander 34 [or], Alaskan natives or ethno-religious, and such ownership interest is 35 real, substantial and continuing and have the authority to independently 36 control the day to day business decisions of the entity for at least one 37 year; and women-owned business enterprise shall mean any business enter- 38 prise which is at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the case of 39 a publicly owned business, at least fifty-one per centum of the stock of 40 which is owned by citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are 41 women, and such ownership interest is real, substantial and continuing 42 and have the authority to independently control the day to day business 43 decisions of the entity for at least one year. 44 § 7. The opening paragraph of paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of 45 section 428 of the transportation law, as amended by chapter 669 of the 46 laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows: 47 In the performance of transportation infrastructure renewal projects, 48 minority and women-owned business enterprises shall be given the oppor- 49 tunity for meaningful participation. The governor shall establish meas- 50 ures and procedures to secure meaningful participation and identify 51 those contracts and items of work for which minority and women-owned 52 business enterprises may best bid to actively and affirmatively promote 53 and assist their participation in the department's construction and 54 procurement program for transportation infrastructure renewal projects, 55 so as to facilitate the award of a fair share of contracts to such 56 enterprises; provided, however, that nothing in this article shall beA. 10166 3 1 construed to limit the ability of the governor to assure that qualified 2 minority and women-owned business enterprises may participate in the 3 transportation infrastructure renewal program. For purposes hereof, 4 minority business enterprise shall mean any business enterprise which is 5 at least fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the case of a publicly 6 owned business, at least fifty-one per centum of the stock of which is 7 owned by citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are Black, 8 Hispanic, Asian [or], American Indian or ethno-religious, and such 9 ownership interest is real, substantial and continuing; and women-owned 10 business enterprise shall mean any business enterprise which is at least 11 fifty-one per centum owned by, or in the case of a publicly owned busi- 12 ness, at least fifty-one per centum of the stock of which is owned by 13 citizens or permanent resident noncitizens who are women, and such 14 ownership interest is real, substantial and continuing. 15 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend- 16 ments to section 310 of the executive law made by section two of this 17 act and the amendments to section 821 of the executive law made by 18 section three of this act shall not affect the repeal of such sections 19 and shall be deemed repealed therewith.
