Bill Text: NY S01464 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides that contributions made by any person, firm, association or corporation to a member of the state legislature which are intended to be used by such member or on behalf of such member for the payment of legal services and other charges in connection with the legal defense of such member in any past or pending civil or criminal action shall be subject to similar monetary limitations and disclosure requirements set forth in the election law pertaining to campaign contributions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO ETHICS AND INTERNAL GOVERNANCE [S01464 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S01464-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1464

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 12, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. BRESLIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Ethics and Internal Gover-
          nance

        AN ACT to amend the public officers law  and  the  legislative  law,  in
          relation  to  the  receipt of monies by members of the legislature for
          purposes of legal defense

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

     1    Section  1. The public officers law is amended by adding a new section
     2  77-b to read as follows:
     3    § 77-b. Disclosure of special defense funds received by members of the
     4  legislature. 1. Contributions made by any person, firm,  association  or
     5  corporation  to  a member of the state legislature which are intended to
     6  be used by such member, or on behalf of such member, for the payment  of
     7  legal services and other charges in connection with the legal defense of
     8  such  member  in  any  past or pending civil or criminal action shall be
     9  subject to the monetary limitations set  forth  in  subdivision  one  of
    10  section  14-114  of  the  election  law.  Such  contributions  shall  be
    11  disclosed annually to the legislative ethics commission on sworn  state-
    12  ments  setting forth the dollar amount of any receipt or contribution or
    13  the fair market value of any receipt or contribution which is other than
    14  of money, the name and address of the contributor or  person  from  whom
    15  received.  Any  statement  reporting  a loan shall have attached to it a
    16  copy of the evidence of indebtedness. The legislative ethics  commission
    17  shall provide forms suitable for such statements.
    18    2.  For  the  purposes of this section, "contribution" means any gift,
    19  subscription, advance, or deposit of money or any thing of  value,  made
    20  in  connection  with the legal defense of a member of the legislature in
    21  connection with a civil or criminal action against such member,  includ-
    22  ing  but  not  limited  to compensation for the personal services of any
    23  individual which are rendered in  connection  with  such  legal  defense

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03888-01-1
        S. 1464                             2

     1  without  charge.  A  loan  made  to  a  member of the legislature by any
     2  person, firm, association or  corporation  other  than  in  the  regular
     3  course  of  the lender's business shall be deemed a contribution for the
     4  purposes of this section.  The provisions of this section shall apply to
     5  contributions made on and after January first, two thousand twenty-one.
     6    3. Any anonymous contributions received by a member of the legislature
     7  for  the legal defense of such member shall not be used or expended, but
     8  the same shall be paid over to the comptroller of the state of New  York
     9  for deposit in the general treasury of the state unless, before the date
    10  for  filing  statements  and reports as herein provided, the identity of
    11  such anonymous contributor shall become known, and, in  such  event  the
    12  anonymous contribution shall be returned to such contributor or retained
    13  and properly reported as a contribution from such contributor.
    14    § 2. Paragraph (vii) of subdivision (j) of section 1-c of the legisla-
    15  tive  law,  as amended by section 1 of part D of chapter 399 of the laws
    16  of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
    17    (vii) gifts from a family member, member of  the  same  household,  or
    18  person  with a personal relationship with the public official, including
    19  invitations to attend personal or family social events, when the circum-
    20  stances  establish  that  it  is  the  family,  household,  or  personal
    21  relationship that is the primary motivating factor; in determining moti-
    22  vation,  the  following factors shall be among those considered: (A) the
    23  history and nature of the relationship between the donor and the recipi-
    24  ent, including whether or not items have previously been exchanged;  (B)
    25  whether  the item was purchased by the donor; and (C) whether or not the
    26  donor at the same time gave similar items to other public officials; the
    27  transfer shall not be considered to be motivated by a family, household,
    28  or personal relationship if the donor seeks  to  charge  or  deduct  the
    29  value  of  such item as a business expense or seeks reimbursement from a
    30  client. Contributions made by any individual or entity  required  to  be
    31  listed  on  a  statement  of  registration pursuant to this article to a
    32  member of the state legislature which are intended to be  used  by  such
    33  member or on behalf of such member for the payment of legal services and
    34  other charges in connection with the legal defense of such member in any
    35  past or pending civil or criminal action shall be considered gifts under
    36  this article;
    37    §  3.  Subdivision 13 of section 80 of the legislative law, as amended
    38  by section 9 of part A of chapter 399 of the laws of 2011, is amended to
    39  read as follows:
    40    13. Within one hundred twenty days  of  the  effective  date  of  this
    41  subdivision,  the  commission  shall  create  and  thereafter maintain a
    42  publicly accessible website which shall  set  forth  the  procedure  for
    43  filing a complaint with the joint commission on public ethics, and which
    44  shall contain disclosure forms filed pursuant to section seventy-seven-b
    45  of  the  public  officers law and any other records or information which
    46  the commission determines to be appropriate.
    47    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately provided that section  one
    48  of this act shall be deemed to have been in full force and effect on and
    49  after January 1, 2021.