STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4504 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 6, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GRIFFO, BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, GALLIVAN, HELMING, OBERACKER, O'MARA, ORTT, TEDISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the education law, in relation to prohibiting the establishment of certain programs mandated for municipal corporations and school districts unless such programs are fully funded by the state; and to establish the New York state mandate review council The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new 2 section 26 to read as follows: 3 § 26. Funding of mandates. 1. Definitions. As used in this section, 4 the following terms shall have the following meanings unless the context 5 shall otherwise require: 6 (a) "Mandate" means: 7 (i) any state law, rule or regulation which establishes a new program 8 or requires a higher level of service for an existing program which a 9 municipal corporation is required to provide; or 10 (ii) any provision of general law which grants a new property tax 11 exemption or abatement or increases an existing property tax exemption 12 or abatement which a municipal corporation is required to provide. 13 (b) "Unfunded mandate" shall mean: 14 (i) any state law, rule or regulation which establishes a new program 15 or requires a higher level of service for an existing program which a 16 municipal corporation is required to provide, and which results in a net 17 additional cost to such municipal corporation; 18 (ii) any alteration in funding provided to a municipal corporation for 19 the purpose of defraying the costs of a program which it is required to EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD09052-01-5S. 4504 2 1 provide, thereby resulting in a net additional cost to such municipal 2 corporation; or 3 (iii) any provision of general law which grants a new property tax 4 exemption or abatement or increases an existing property tax exemption 5 or abatement which any municipal corporation is required to provide, 6 thereby resulting in a net additional cost to such municipal corpo- 7 ration. 8 (c) "Net additional cost" means the increased cost or costs incurred 9 or anticipated to be incurred within a one year period by a municipal 10 corporation in performing or administering a mandate after subtracting 11 therefrom any revenues received or receivable by such municipal corpo- 12 ration on account of the mandated program or service, including but not 13 limited to: 14 (i) fees charged to the recipients of the mandated program or service; 15 (ii) state or federal aid paid specifically or categorically in 16 connection with the program or service; and 17 (iii) an offsetting savings resulting from the diminution or elimi- 18 nation of any other program or service directly attributable to the 19 performance or administration of the mandated program. 20 2. Funding of municipal corporation mandates. Notwithstanding any 21 other provision of law to the contrary, no unfunded mandate shall be 22 enacted which creates an increased annual net additional cost to any 23 municipal corporation. Each mandate which imposes a net additional cost 24 upon a municipal corporation shall provide for compensation or funding 25 by the state of the full amount of the net additional cost thereof. In 26 the event such compensation or funding is not provided, the mandate 27 shall be void. 28 3. Exemptions to the funding of municipal corporation mandates 29 requirement. (a) The state shall not be required to fund any mandate if: 30 (i) The mandate is required by a court order or judgment; 31 (ii) The mandate is provided at the option of the local government 32 under a law, regulation, rule or order that is permissive rather than 33 mandatory; 34 (iii) The mandate results from the enactment of legislation requested 35 by the municipal corporation in a home rule message requesting authority 36 to implement the program or service specified in the statute, and the 37 statute imposes costs only upon that municipal corporation which 38 requests the authority to implement the program or service; 39 (iv) The mandate is required by, or arises from, an executive order of 40 the governor exercising their emergency powers; or 41 (v) The mandate is required by statute or executive order that imple- 42 ments a federal law or regulation and results from costs mandated by the 43 federal government to be borne at the local level, unless the statute or 44 executive order results in costs which exceed the costs mandated by the 45 federal government. 46 (b) Every statute, rule or regulation establishing a mandate shall 47 provide that the effective date of any such mandate imposed on municipal 48 corporations shall be consistent with the needs of the state and munici- 49 pal corporations to plan implementation thereof and be consistent with 50 the availability of required funds. 51 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 1527-b to 52 read as follows: 53 § 1527-b. Funding of mandates imposed on school districts. 1. Defi- 54 nitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the 55 following meanings unless the context shall otherwise require: 56 (a) "Mandate" means:S. 4504 3 1 (i) any state law, rule or regulation which establishes a new program 2 or requires a higher level of service for an existing program which a 3 school district is required to provide; or 4 (ii) any provision of general law which grants a new property tax 5 exemption or abatement or increases an existing property tax exemption 6 or abatement which a school district is required to provide. 7 (b) "Unfunded mandate" shall mean: 8 (i) any state law, rule or regulation which establishes a new program 9 or requires a higher level of service for an existing program which a 10 school district is required to provide and which results in a net addi- 11 tional cost to such school district; 12 (ii) any alteration in funding provided to a school district for the 13 purpose of defraying the costs of a program which it is required to 14 provide, thereby resulting in a net additional cost to such school 15 district; or 16 (iii) any provision of general law which grants a new property tax 17 exemption or abatement or increases an existing property tax exemption 18 or abatement which a school district is required to provide, thereby 19 resulting in a net additional cost to such school district. 20 (c) "Net additional cost" means the increased cost or costs incurred 21 or anticipated to be incurred within a one year period by a school 22 district in performing or administering a mandate after subtracting 23 therefrom any revenues received or receivable by such school district on 24 account of the mandated program or service, including but not limited 25 to: 26 (i) fees charged to the recipients of the mandated program or service; 27 (ii) state or federal aid paid specifically or categorically in 28 connection with the program or service; and 29 (iii) an offsetting savings resulting from the diminution or elimi- 30 nation of any other program or service directly attributable to the 31 performance or administration of the mandated program. 32 2. Funding of school district mandates. Notwithstanding any other 33 provision of law to the contrary, no unfunded mandate shall be enacted 34 which creates a net additional cost to any school district. Each 35 mandate which imposes a net additional cost upon a school district shall 36 provide for compensation or funding by the state of the full amount of 37 the net additional costs thereof. In the event such compensation or 38 funding is not provided, the mandate shall be void. 39 3. Exemptions to the funding of school district mandates requirement. 40 (a) The state shall not be required to fund any mandate for school 41 districts if: 42 (i) The mandate is required by a court order or judgment; 43 (ii) The mandate is provided at the option of the school district 44 under a law, regulation, rule or order that is permissive rather than 45 mandatory; 46 (iii) The mandate results from the enactment of legislation requested 47 by the school district in a home rule message requesting authority to 48 implement the program or service specified in the statute, and the stat- 49 ute imposes costs only upon that school district which requests the 50 authority to implement the program or service; 51 (iv) The mandate is required by, or arises from, an executive order of 52 the governor exercising their emergency powers; or 53 (v) The mandate is required by statute or executive order that imple- 54 ments a federal law or regulation and results from costs mandated by the 55 federal government to be borne at the local level, unless the statute orS. 4504 4 1 executive order results in costs which exceed the costs mandated by the 2 federal government. 3 (b) Every statute, rule or regulation establishing a mandate shall 4 provide that the effective date of any such mandate imposed on school 5 districts shall be consistent with the needs of the state and school 6 districts to plan implementation thereof, and be consistent with the 7 availability of required funds. 8 § 3. New York state mandate review council. 1. There shall be estab- 9 lished a New York state mandate review council. Such council shall 10 consist of fifteen members as follows: eight members appointed by the 11 governor; three members appointed by the state comptroller; one member 12 appointed by the temporary president of the senate; one member appointed 13 by the speaker of the assembly; one member appointed by the minority 14 leader of the senate; and one member appointed by the minority leader of 15 the assembly. Such members shall be appointed and the council shall 16 first convene no later than ninety days after this act shall have become 17 law. 18 2. The members of the council shall include: at least one current or 19 former county executive; at least one current or former county comp- 20 troller; at least one current or former county legislator; at least one 21 current or former mayor; at least one current or former city comp- 22 troller; at least one current or former city councilmember; at least one 23 current or former town supervisor; at least one current or former school 24 superintendent; and at least one current or former member of a school 25 board. 26 3. The council shall hold at least two hearings in each of New York's 27 regional economic development council regions. No single county, city, 28 town or village may host both hearings. Additionally, the council shall 29 meet in the state capitol as often as necessary to draft the report 30 required pursuant to subdivision 5 of this section. 31 4. The council shall review all mandates in the state and compile a 32 report outlining all mandates which have no cost on either the state or 33 localities, all mandates whose costs are covered by the state, and all 34 mandates which counties, cities, towns and villages are required to pay 35 for. The council shall have the authority to eliminate or suspend any 36 mandate; provided, however that the council shall not be allowed to add 37 any new mandates or refine any existing mandates other than to eliminate 38 or suspend such mandates. 39 5. The council shall draft a report which provides information on all 40 mandates in the state, indicating those mandates imposed by the state on 41 localities, the cost of each mandate, the percentage of each county's 42 budget which accounts for state-imposed mandates, legislative recommen- 43 dations, and any other information that the council deems relevant. 44 6. The report required pursuant to subdivision 5 of this section shall 45 be provided to the governor, the state comptroller, the speaker of the 46 assembly, the temporary president of the senate, the assembly minority 47 leader, and the senate minority leader and shall be published on the 48 website of the state comptroller on the same day that such report is 49 provided to such state officials. 50 § 4. No new mandates may be imposed on localities until the report of 51 the New York state mandate review council required pursuant to section 52 three of this act has been published. 53 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately and sections one and two 54 of this act shall apply to mandates enacted on or after such effective 55 date.