Bill Text: NY S04746 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Requires fashion sellers to be accountable to standardized environmental due diligence policies; establishes a fashion remediation fund.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-06-03 - PRINT NUMBER 4746B [S04746 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S04746-Amended.html
Bill Title: Requires fashion sellers to be accountable to standardized environmental due diligence policies; establishes a fashion remediation fund.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-06-03 - PRINT NUMBER 4746B [S04746 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S04746-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4746--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 14, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN-SIGAL, BRISPORT, CHU, CLEARE, FERNANDEZ, GIANARIS, GONZALEZ, GOUNARDES, HARCKHAM, HINCHEY, JACKSON, KAVANAGH, KRUEGER, LIU, MANNION, MAY, MYRIE, RIVERA, RYAN, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, SKOUFIS, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection -- recommitted to the Committee on Consumer Protection in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring fash- ion sellers to be accountable to environmental standards and estab- lishing the interstate fashion environment accountability act compact; and to amend the state finance law, in relation to establishing a fashion remediation fund 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 "Fashion environmental accountability act". 3 § 2. The general business law is amended by adding two new sections 4 399-mm and 399-mmm to read as follows: 5 § 399-mm. Fashion environmental accountability act. 1. Definitions. 6 As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following 7 meanings: 8 (a) "Doing business in this state" shall mean actively engaging in any 9 transaction for the purpose of financial or pecuniary gain or profit. 10 (b) "Gross receipts" shall mean the gross amounts realized, otherwise 11 known as the sum of money and the fair market value of other property or 12 services received, on the sale or exchange of property, the performance 13 of services, or the use of property or capital, including rents, royal- 14 ties, interest, and dividends, in a transaction that produces business 15 income, in which the income, gain, or loss is recognized, or would be 16 recognized if the transaction were in the United States, under the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03469-06-4S. 4746--A 2 1 Internal Revenue Code, as applicable for purposes of this section. 2 Amounts realized on the sale or exchange of property shall not be 3 reduced by the cost of goods sold or the basis of property sold. Gross 4 receipts, even if business income, shall not include the following 5 items: 6 (i) repayment, maturity, or redemption of the principal of a loan, 7 bond, mutual fund, certificate of deposit, or similar marketable instru- 8 ment; 9 (ii) the principal amount received under a repurchase agreement or 10 other transaction properly characterized as a loan; 11 (iii) proceeds from issuance of the taxpayer's own stock or from sale 12 of treasury stock; 13 (iv) damages and other amounts received as the result of litigation; 14 (v) property acquired by an agent on behalf of another; 15 (vi) tax refunds and other tax benefit recoveries; 16 (vii) pension reversions; 17 (viii) contributions to capital, except for sales of securities by 18 securities dealers; 19 (ix) income from discharge of indebtedness; 20 (x) amounts realized from exchanges of inventory that are not recog- 21 nized under the Internal Revenue Code; 22 (xi) amounts received from transactions in intangible assets held in 23 connection with a treasury function of the taxpayer's unitary business 24 and the gross receipts and overall net gains from the maturity, redemp- 25 tion, sale, exchange, or other disposition of those intangible assets; 26 and 27 (xii) amounts received from hedging transactions involving intangible 28 assets. A "hedging transaction" means a transaction related to the 29 taxpayer's trading function involving futures and options transactions 30 for the purpose of hedging price risk of the products or commodities 31 consumed, produced, or sold by the taxpayer. 32 (c) "Fashion seller" shall mean a business entity which sells articles 33 of wearing apparel, footwear, or fashion bags that together exceed one 34 hundred million dollars in annual gross receipts, but shall not include 35 the sale of used wearing apparel, footwear, or fashion bags, nor shall 36 it include multi-brand retailers, except where the apparel, footwear, 37 and fashion bag private labels of those companies together exceed one 38 hundred million dollars in global revenue. 39 (d) "Article of wearing apparel" shall mean any costume or article of 40 clothing worn or intended to be worn by individuals. 41 (e) "Footwear" shall mean any covering worn or intended to be worn on 42 the foot. 43 (f) "Fashion bag" shall mean flexible packaging made of textiles, 44 leather or other animal products, woven material or other similar mate- 45 rials intended for repeated use. 46 (g) "Due diligence" shall mean the comprehensive process companies 47 shall carry out to identify, cease, prevent, mitigate, account for, and 48 remediate actual and potential adverse impacts to the environment in 49 their own operations and in their supply chain, in compliance with, at a 50 minimum, the standards outlined in the most recent Organisation for 51 Economic Co-operation and Development Guidelines for Multinational 52 Enterprises, and the most recent Organisation for Economic Co-operation 53 and Development Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in 54 the Garment and Footwear Sector. 55 (h) "Due diligence report" shall mean the document prepared by the 56 company to communicate all relevant information concerning the exist-S. 4746--A 3 1 ence, implementation and outcomes of due diligence in order to comply 2 with the requirements of this section, and to comply with any rules or 3 regulations established pursuant to this section. 4 (i) "Risk-based approach" shall mean commensurate to the likelihood 5 and severity of the harm. The fashion seller shall prioritize the order 6 in which it takes action based on the likelihood and severity of harm. 7 Severity of impacts shall be determined according to their scale or 8 gravity, scope, and irremediable character. 9 (j) "Supply chain tiers" shall mean a four tier system defined as the 10 following: 11 (i) "Tier one" shall mean suppliers who produce finished goods for 12 fashion sellers, including suppliers' subcontractors, who provide the 13 following services, including but not limited to sewing and embroider- 14 ing; 15 (ii) "Tier two" shall mean suppliers to tier one, including subcon- 16 tractors, who provide the following services or goods, including but not 17 limited to knitting, weaving, washing, dyeing, finishing, printing for 18 finished goods, and components and materials for finished goods when 19 they are stand-alone operations and not integrated with tier one. Compo- 20 nents shall mean materials used to build a product, including but not 21 limited to buttons, zippers, rubber soles, down, and fusibles; 22 (iii) "Tier three" shall mean suppliers to tier two suppliers, includ- 23 ing subcontractors, who process raw materials, such as ginning, spin- 24 ning, and suppliers of chemicals; and 25 (iv) "Tier four" shall mean companies, including subcontractors, that 26 provide raw materials to tier three. 27 (k) "Independently verified" shall mean audited by a verification body 28 accredited by the department of state as described in subdivision five 29 of this section. 30 (l) "Living wage" shall mean the remuneration received for a standard 31 workweek by a worker in a particular place sufficient to afford a decent 32 standard of living for such worker and their family. Elements of a 33 decent standard of living include food, water, housing, education, 34 health care, transportation, clothing, and other essential needs includ- 35 ing provision for unexpected events. Living wage shall be determined 36 exclusive of overtime wages and by net wages including in-kind and cash 37 benefits, and deducting taxes and deductions. 38 (m) "Open data principles" shall mean data that can be freely used, 39 reused and redistributed by anyone. Such data shall be findable or easi- 40 ly discoverable on a website or within a database, accessible or avail- 41 able in a machine readable, convenient, modifiable form and published as 42 a whole, complete dataset, interoperable or able to be mixed with 43 different datasets, and reusable or provided under an open license that 44 permits reuse and redistribution, including the intermixing with other 45 datasets. 46 (n) "Employee" shall mean all workers, whether full-time or part-time, 47 permanent or fixed-term, directly contracted or hired indirectly through 48 an agency or other intermediary. 49 2. Due Diligence. (a) Every fashion seller shall effectively carry out 50 environmental due diligence for the portions of their business related 51 to wearing apparel, footwear or fashion bags, including wearing apparel, 52 footwear or fashion bags produced as a private label, which shall 53 include: 54 (i) supply chain mapping:S. 4746--A 4 1 (1) companies taking a risk-based approach and implementing good faith 2 efforts to map suppliers across tier one through tier four of 3 production. 4 (2) disclosure of suppliers of the production supply chain including: 5 the name, parent company and product type at each site by country, filed 6 by the following: 7 (A) Tier one suppliers shall be disclosed within twelve months of the 8 effective date of this section, and shall contain a minimum of seventy- 9 five percent of suppliers by volume. 10 (B) Tier two suppliers shall be disclosed within two years of the 11 effective date of this section, and shall contain a minimum of seventy- 12 five percent of suppliers by volume. 13 (C) Tier three suppliers shall be disclosed within three years of the 14 effective date of this section and shall contain a minimum of fifty 15 percent of suppliers by volume or dollar value. 16 (D) Tier four suppliers shall be disclosed within four years of the 17 effective date of this section and shall contain a minimum of fifty 18 percent of suppliers by volume or dollar value. 19 (ii) in carrying out effective due diligence, fashion sellers shall be 20 in compliance with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Devel- 21 opment Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the Organisation for 22 Economic Co-operation and Development Due Diligence Guidance for Respon- 23 sible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector, requiring fash- 24 ion sellers to, at a minimum: 25 (1) embed responsible business conduct into the company's policies and 26 management systems; 27 (2) identify areas of significant risks in the contexts of its own 28 activities and business and supply chain relationships; 29 (3) identify, prioritize, and assess the significant potential and 30 actual adverse impacts of those risks; 31 (4) cease, prevent or mitigate those risks. This shall include, but 32 not be limited to: 33 (A) establishing quantitative baseline and reduction targets on green- 34 house gas emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions inventory shall be 35 reported annually, starting in two thousand twenty-six for emissions in 36 the prior fiscal year; include absolute figures; and conform with the 37 accounting and reporting requirements of the most recent Greenhouse Gas 38 Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, Scope Two Guid- 39 ance, and, starting in two thousand twenty-seven, the most recent Corpo- 40 rate Value Chain Scope Three accounting and reporting standard promul- 41 gated by the World Resources Institute and the World Business Council 42 for Sustainable Development. Greenhouse gas emissions inventory reported 43 in the due diligence report required pursuant to subdivision three of 44 this section shall be independently verified no less than once every two 45 years. Fashion sellers shall not be subject to an administrative penalty 46 under this section for any misstatements with regard to scope three 47 emissions disclosures made with a reasonable basis and disclosed in good 48 faith. Within four years of the effective date of this section, primary 49 data shall be used to capture the fashion seller's tier two and tier 50 three inventory of its most significant suppliers contributing to green- 51 house gas emissions. Significant suppliers shall mean suppliers repres- 52 enting seventy-five percent of fabric by volume in tier two and fifty 53 percent of fabric by volume in tier three. Greenhouse gas emission 54 reduction targets must be near-term and long-term, covering scopes one, 55 two and three emissions, and align with, at a minimum, Science Based 56 Target initiative's most recent target validation criteria as promulgat-S. 4746--A 5 1 ed by World Resources Institute, CDP, United Nations Global Compact and 2 the World Wildlife Fund. For fashion sellers with global revenue over 3 one billion dollars, the absolute contraction approach must be used to 4 calculate scope three emissions. Fashion sellers shall meet targets and 5 report their compliance on an annual basis in their due diligence 6 report, as required pursuant to subdivision three of this section. If 7 found to be out of compliance, fashion sellers shall have eighteen 8 months to remedy their emissions and return to the necessary reduction 9 pathway to deliver on their targets. In non-target years, non-compliance 10 shall mean an increase in absolute emissions in three consecutive years, 11 for companies over a billion dollars in revenue. In target years, non- 12 compliance shall mean not reaching the target; 13 (B) being in compliance with, at a minimum, the Zero Discharge of 14 Hazardous Chemicals Program's most recent wastewater guidelines, fashion 15 sellers shall be required, for all significant tier two dyeing, finish- 16 ing and garment washing suppliers, to sample and report on wastewater 17 chemical concentrations and water usage, within two years of the effec- 18 tive date of this section. Such reports shall be independently verified. 19 Fashion sellers shall also provide corrective action plans for their 20 wastewater treatment within thirty months of the effective date of this 21 section. After three years of the effective date of this section, fash- 22 ion sellers shall be considered out of compliance if their significant 23 tier two dyeing, finishing and garment suppliers have not made adequate 24 progress in remediation of wastewater pollution concentrations. Signif- 25 icant suppliers shall mean suppliers representing seventy-five percent 26 of fabric by volume; 27 (C) utilizing responsible exit or disengagement strategies; 28 (D) consulting and engaging with impacted and potentially impacted 29 stakeholders and rights holders and their representatives; 30 (5) track implementation and results; 31 (6) provide for or co-operate in remediation in the event of an 32 adverse impact: 33 (A) remedies shall seek to restore the affected person or persons, 34 where practicable, to the situation they would have been in had the 35 adverse impact not occurred and shall enable remediation that is propor- 36 tionate to the significance and scale of the adverse impact; and 37 (B) remedies shall include, depending on the nature and extent of the 38 adverse impact, remediation, restitution or financial or non-financial 39 compensation, including establishing compensation funds for victims or 40 for future outreach and educational programs, punitive sanctions includ- 41 ing the dismissals of staff responsible for wrongdoing, and establishing 42 and undertaking measures to prevent future adverse impacts, which may 43 include, but are not limited to the development of internal protocols, 44 practices and procedures to prevent future adverse impacts. 45 (b) The due diligence requirements pursuant to this subdivision shall 46 not be conditional upon the company being effectively involved in the 47 subsidiary's day-to-day operations or exercising a sufficient degree of 48 control on companies within its supply chain. 49 3. Reporting. Every fashion seller shall develop and submit to the 50 department of state annually, beginning within eighteen months of the 51 effective date of this section, a due diligence report. 52 (a) Such report, excluding the information required in clause three of 53 subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision two of this section, 54 shall also be made publicly available on the fashion seller's website in 55 a machine readable and reusable format, published in line with open data 56 principles through a clear and easily discoverable link to the requiredS. 4746--A 6 1 information. In the event the fashion seller does not have an internet 2 website, the company shall provide a written disclosure to any person 3 who has requested information within thirty days of receiving a request. 4 Such report shall also include the fashion seller's annual volume of 5 material produced, including breakdown by material type. 6 (b) Such report shall contain annual activities and financial spending 7 to support supply chain due diligence. 8 (c) The department of state shall identify and notify fashion sellers 9 that have failed to file a due diligence report that they have thirty 10 days to file such report before being placed on a public non-compliant 11 list and that they may be referred to the attorney general for investi- 12 gation. 13 (d) The department of state shall review the due diligence reports for 14 completeness. 15 (e) Fashion sellers shall have twelve months from the introduction of 16 any updated guidance documents to integrate such guidance into the next 17 annual due diligence report. 18 4. Regulations. (a) The department of state shall, in consultation 19 with the department of environmental conservation, promulgate all rules 20 and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section 21 within six months from the effective date of this section. 22 (b) The department of state, in consultation with the department of 23 environmental conservation, shall also develop and disseminate educa- 24 tional materials to fashion sellers, including providing alerts on time 25 sensitive issues, emerging issues, and high-risk country situations, and 26 assisting fashion sellers in improving the quality of their due dili- 27 gence processes. 28 (c) The department of state shall consult the most recent Greenhouse 29 Gas Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard to develop 30 methodologies to calculate data capture as laid out in item (A) of 31 clause four of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision two of 32 this section, prior to that requirement becoming effective. 33 (d) The department of state shall develop regulations on reporting 34 requirements that minimize duplication of effort and allows a fashion 35 seller to submit a due diligence report to the department of state that 36 is prepared to meet other national and international reporting require- 37 ments, including any reports required by the federal government, as long 38 as such reports satisfy all of the requirements of subdivision two of 39 this section. 40 5. Verification. (a) The department of state shall, in consultation 41 with the department of environmental conservation, develop a process for 42 accrediting verification bodies authorized to provide verification 43 services for the purposes of this section, including which requirements 44 the entity is authorized to verify. 45 (b) Such process shall at a minimum consider: 46 (i) the demonstrated qualifications of verification staff, including 47 their education, experience, and professional licenses. Verification 48 bodies must employ and retain at least five total full-time staff with 49 expertise in the requirements they seek to verify under this section; 50 (ii) any judicial proceedings, enforcement actions, or administrative 51 actions filed against the body within the previous five years; and 52 (iii) the policies and mechanisms in place to prevent conflicts of 53 interest and to identify and resolve potential conflict of interest 54 situations if they arise. The department shall require applicants to 55 submit the following information, at a minimum:S. 4746--A 7 1 (1) identification of services provided by the verification body, the 2 industries that the body serves, and the locations where those services 3 are provided; 4 (2) a detailed organizational chart that includes the verification 5 body, its management structure, and any related entities; and 6 (3) the verification body's internal conflict of interest policy that 7 identifies activities and limits to monetary or non-monetary gifts that 8 apply to all employees and procedures to monitor conflicts of interest. 9 (c) Verification bodies shall not be authorized to provide services to 10 a company where a conflict of interest exists. A conflict of interest 11 shall include: 12 (i) where the verification body and reporting entity share any manage- 13 ment staff or board of directors membership, or any of the senior 14 management staff of the reporting entity have been employed by the 15 verification body, or vice versa, within the previous five years; 16 (ii) any employee of the verification body, or any employee of a 17 related entity, or a subcontractor who is a member of the verification 18 team has provided the reporting entity with services related to the 19 areas of verification, or any services designated by the department of 20 state, within the previous five years; 21 (iii) any staff member of the verification body provides any type of 22 non-monetary incentive to a reporting entity to secure a verification 23 services contract; and 24 (iv) any additional criteria provided by the department of state. 25 (d) Verification bodies that have been accredited by the department of 26 state shall notify the department within thirty days if they no longer 27 meet the verification requirements set forth by this section. 28 6. Monitoring and enforcement. (a) The requirements imposed on fashion 29 sellers by this section shall be monitored, investigated, and enforced 30 by the attorney general or an administrator designated by the attorney 31 general to bring civil proceedings for an injunction, or fines for mone- 32 tary damages as described in this section, or civil performance of a 33 statutory duty. Fashion sellers shall be deemed non-compliant with this 34 section if they fail to conduct effective due diligence pursuant to 35 subdivision two of this section or fail to file a due diligence report 36 pursuant to subdivision three of this section. 37 (b) The department of state shall identify and notify fashion sellers 38 that have failed to file a complete due diligence report. If such fash- 39 ion sellers fail to file a complete report, after a period of three 40 months, the department of state shall refer fashion sellers to the 41 attorney general for enforcement for failure to file a complete report. 42 (c) The department of environmental conservation shall review and 43 certify effective due diligence for environmental matters in the due 44 diligence report and identify fashion sellers for referral to the secre- 45 tary of state for any failures. 46 (d) The department of state shall compile and maintain a list of non- 47 compliant fashion sellers on the department's website. The department of 48 state shall refer to the attorney general for investigation any fashion 49 seller who fails to file a due diligence report or fails to conduct 50 effective due diligence, once any grace period lapses and the fashion 51 seller remains in non-compliance. 52 (e) Fashion sellers found to be out of compliance with this section 53 after the attorney general, or the attorney general's designated admin- 54 istrator as applicable, has provided notice of non-compliance, and after 55 a three-month period to meet obligations under this section has lapsed, 56 may be fined up to two percent of annual revenues. Such fines shall beS. 4746--A 8 1 deposited in the community benefit fund established by section ninety- 2 seven-ccc of the state finance law. 3 (f) The attorney general, or the attorney general's designated admin- 4 istrator shall use a risk-based approach in enforcement and shall 5 publish enforcement guidelines. 6 (g) Any person may report a violation of this section to the attorney 7 general's office. 8 § 399-mmm. Fashion environmental accountability act compact. 1. Rules 9 of construction. (a) This compact shall not be construed to displace 10 federal rules or regulations relating to the regulation of garments or 11 other such products covered by the fashion environmental accountability 12 act. 13 (b) This compact shall be construed in a manner to achieve the 14 purposes and intent enunciated in the fashion environmental accountabil- 15 ity act. It is the intent of this compact to establish a basic structure 16 by which the commission may achieve those purposes through the applica- 17 tion, adaptation, and development of the regulatory techniques pursuant 18 to the fashion environmental accountability act and to afford the 19 commission sufficient flexibility to devise regulatory mechanisms to 20 achieve the purposes of this compact in line with the intent of the 21 fashion environmental accountability act. In accordance with this 22 intent, the commission shall use the terms and purpose defined in this 23 act, solely for the intent of coordinating rules and regulations exclud- 24 ing implementation, which shall be the responsibility of the participat- 25 ing states. The commission may further define the terms used in this 26 compact, develop additional concepts and define additional terms as it 27 may find appropriate to achieve its purposes and responsibilities. 28 (c) This compact shall come into force upon entry of two or more 29 participating states. 30 2. Interstate fashion environmental accountability commission. There 31 is hereby created an interstate fashion environmental accountability 32 commission to administer the compact, composed of representatives from 33 each participating state. A representative shall be appointed by a 34 participating state at such state's discretion. A state's representative 35 shall be a resident of such state with relevant expertise or scientific 36 knowledge in the areas including but not limited to fashion environ- 37 mental sustainability, environmental protection, international supply 38 chains, the establishment of by-laws, rules, and regulations for inter- 39 state compacts, interstate commerce, and subject to such confirmation 40 process as is provided for in the appointing state. In all other 41 respects, such representative shall serve in accordance with the laws of 42 the participating state and for a time as determined by the participat- 43 ing state. The compensation, if any, shall be determined by the by-laws 44 of the compact. Each state representative shall be entitled to one vote 45 in the conduct of the commission's affairs. Any expenses incurred for 46 the purposes of participation shall be paid by the commission and shall 47 be shared equitably across participating states. 48 3. Voting requirements. All actions taken by the commission, shall be 49 by majority vote of the representatives present, except for the adoption 50 of by-laws, which shall be by a two-thirds vote. A majority of the 51 representatives from the participating states shall constitute a quorum 52 for the conduct of the commission's business. 53 4. Administration and management. (a) The commission shall elect annu- 54 ally from among the representatives of the participating states a chair- 55 person, a vice-chairperson, a secretary, and a treasurer. The commission 56 shall appoint an executive director and fix their duties in carrying outS. 4746--A 9 1 the intent of the compact as well as compensation. The executive direc- 2 tor shall serve at the pleasure of the commission, and, together with 3 the treasurer, shall be bonded in an amount determined by the commis- 4 sion. 5 (b) The commission shall adopt by-laws for the conduct of its business 6 by a two-thirds vote, and shall have the power by the same vote to amend 7 or rescind sections of such by-laws. The commission shall publish its 8 by-laws in a convenient form which shall be accessible to the public 9 with the appropriate agency or officer in each of the participating 10 states. The by-laws shall provide for appropriate notice, to the state 11 representatives, of all commission meetings and hearings and of the 12 business to be transacted at such meetings or hearings. Notice also 13 shall be given to other agencies or officers of participating states as 14 provided by the laws of those states. 15 (c) The commission shall file an annual report with respect to its 16 activities and outcomes for the preceding year with each of the partic- 17 ipating states by submitting copies to the governor, both houses of the 18 legislature, and the head of the state's departments deemed necessary by 19 each respective participating state for the implementation of this act. 20 (d) In addition to the powers and duties elsewhere prescribed in this 21 compact, the commission shall have the power to: 22 (i) acquire, hold, and dispose of real and personal property by gift, 23 purchase, lease, license, or other similar manner, for the exclusive 24 purpose of coordinating implementation of the act between participating 25 states; 26 (ii) appoint such officers, agents, and employees as it may deem 27 necessary and prescribe their powers, duties, and qualifications; and 28 (iii) create and abolish such employments and positions as it deems 29 necessary for the purposes of the compact and provide for the removal, 30 term, tenure, compensation, fringe benefits, pension, and retirement 31 rights of its employees and positions. The commission may also retain 32 personal services on a contract basis for the exclusive purpose of coor- 33 dinating implementation of the fashion environmental accountability act 34 between participating states. 35 5. Rulemaking power. The commission is further empowered to adopt 36 uniform administrative procedures and rules and regulations for the 37 implementation of the fashion environmental accountability act and to 38 make and enforce such additional rules and regulations as it deems 39 necessary to implement any provisions of this compact. The commission 40 shall also provide a concise general statement of basis and purpose as 41 required by section 4(b) of the Federal Administrative Procedure Act, as 42 amended (5 U.S.C. Sec. 553(c)). 43 6. Powers to promote regulatory uniformity, simplicity, and interstate 44 cooperation. The commission is hereby empowered to: 45 (a) conduct monitoring and evaluation of the relevant laws and rules 46 and regulations of the participating states, including the quality and 47 extent of their implementation and their impact related to regulated 48 entities to ensure compliance with the intent of the fashion environ- 49 mental accountability act; 50 (b) prepare and transmit to participating states model rules and regu- 51 lations to ensure the effective administration of the fashion environ- 52 mental accountability act and its intent; 53 (c) study and recommend to the participating states joint or coordi- 54 nated programs for the administration of the fashion environmental 55 accountability act and to prepare estimates of cost savings and benefits 56 of such programs;S. 4746--A 10 1 (d) encourage collaborative relationships between the regulated enti- 2 ties of the fashion environmental accountability act and participating 3 states for the proper compliance of fashion sellers pursuant to the 4 fashion environmental accountability act and participating states' mutu- 5 al challenges to enforcement, including through meetings, symposiums or 6 conferences designed to improve industry relations, coordination between 7 participating states, or a better understanding of challenges with 8 regards to the achieving intent of the fashion environmental account- 9 ability act; 10 (e) prepare and release periodic reports on activities and results of 11 the commission's efforts with the participating states which shall be 12 readily accessible to the public; 13 (f) review the interpretation and implementation of due diligence 14 procedures and compliance with the fashion environmental accountability 15 act between participating states and make recommended changes as neces- 16 sary to ensure uniformity and continuity of compliance between such 17 participating states in keeping with the intent of the fashion environ- 18 mental accountability act; and 19 (g) facilitate the sharing between participating states of data 20 regarding regulated entities and the implementation of the intent of the 21 act. 22 7. Rulemaking procedure. Upon entry into force of this compact, the 23 commission shall conduct an informal rulemaking proceeding, including no 24 less than one public hearing per participating state, to provide inter- 25 ested persons with an opportunity to present data and views. Such rule- 26 making proceeding shall be governed by section four of the Federal 27 Administrative Procedure Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. Sec. 553). In addi- 28 tion, the commission shall publish notice of rulemaking proceedings in 29 the official register and websites of the designated departments of each 30 participating state, at minimum. The commission may commence a rulemak- 31 ing proceeding on its own initiative or may in its sole discretion act 32 upon the petition of any person or regulated entity, consumer or public 33 interest groups, and local, state, or federal officials. 34 8. Records, reports, access to premises. (a) The commission may by 35 rule and regulation prescribe recordkeeping and reporting requirements 36 for all participating states for the purposes of coordinating implemen- 37 tation. For purposes of the administration and implementation of this 38 compact, the commission is authorized to examine the books and records 39 of any participating state relating to the enforcement of the fashion 40 environmental accountability act. The commission's properly designated 41 employees or agents shall have full access during normal business hours 42 to the premises and relevant records of all relevant departments of 43 participating states. 44 (b) Information furnished to or acquired by the commission officers, 45 employees, or its agents pursuant to this section shall be available to 46 all participating states but confidential with respects to any law, 47 rule, or regulation regarding proprietary information and not subject to 48 public disclosure except to the extent that the commission deems disclo- 49 sure to be necessary in any administrative or judicial proceeding 50 involving the administration or implementation of this compact or other 51 regulations of the commission. The commission may promulgate regulations 52 further defining the confidentiality of information pursuant to this 53 subdivision. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to prohibit the 54 publication by direction of the commission of the name of any partic- 55 ipating state violating any regulation of the commission, together with 56 a statement of the particular provisions violated by such state. TheS. 4746--A 11 1 commission is authorized to require compliance of a participating state 2 violating any regulation of the commission by majority vote of the 3 commission. Failure to adhere to such compliance shall deem such partic- 4 ipating state not-in-good standing with the compact and be void of all 5 participation or requirements pursuant to the by-laws established by the 6 commission. 7 (c) No officer, employee, or agent of the commission shall inten- 8 tionally disclose information, by inference or otherwise, which is made 9 confidential pursuant to this section. Any person violating the 10 provisions of this section, upon conviction, shall be removed from 11 office. 12 (d) The commission shall refer any allegation of a violation of a 13 representative pursuant to this subdivision to the respective partic- 14 ipating state and appropriate state enforcement authority. 15 9. Finance of startup and regular costs. In order to finance the costs 16 of administration and implementation of this compact the commission is 17 hereby empowered to collect an assessment from each participating state, 18 pursuant to rules and regulations enacted by the commission. Such rules 19 and regulations shall provide for establishment of a reserve for the 20 commission's ongoing operating expenses. Participating states may fund 21 the initial expenses associated with the establishment of the by-laws, 22 rules and regulations of the compact and commission staff. 23 10. Audit and accounts. (a) The commission shall keep accurate 24 accounts of all receipts and disbursements, which shall be subject to 25 the audit and accounting procedures established under its rules and 26 regulations. In addition, all receipts and disbursements of funds 27 handled by the commission shall be audited yearly by a qualified public 28 accountant and the report of the audit shall be included in and become 29 part of the annual report and the annual budget of the commission. 30 (b) The accounts of the commission shall be open at any reasonable 31 time for inspection by duly constituted representatives of the partic- 32 ipating states and by any persons authorized by the commission. 33 (c) Nothing contained in this compact shall be construed to prevent 34 commission compliance with laws relating to audit or inspection of 35 accounts by or on behalf of any participating state or of the United 36 States. 37 11. Entry into force; additional members. The compact shall enter into 38 force for a participating state effective when enacted into law by such 39 state, district, or territory of the United States of America. 40 12. Voluntary withdrawal from compact. Any participating state may 41 withdraw from this compact by enacting a statute repealing the same, but 42 no such withdrawal shall take effect until one year after notice in 43 writing of the withdrawal is given to the commission and the governors 44 of all other participating states. No withdrawal shall affect any 45 liability already incurred by or chargeable to a participating state 46 prior to the time of such withdrawal. 47 13. Reservation of rights; in general. The right to alter, amend, or 48 repeal this compact is expressly reserved. 49 § 3. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-ccc 50 to read as follows: 51 § 97-ccc. Fashion remediation fund. 1. There is hereby established in 52 the joint custody of the comptroller, the commissioner of taxation and 53 finance, the commissioner of environmental conservation, and the commis- 54 sioner of labor a special fund to be known as the fashion remediation 55 fund.S. 4746--A 12 1 2. Such fund shall consist of all moneys deposited pursuant to para- 2 graph (c) of subdivision six of section three hundred ninety-nine-mm of 3 the general business law. 4 3. The moneys in the fund shall be expended by the comptroller for the 5 purpose of implementing one or more environmental benefit projects or 6 environmental remediation projects that directly and verifiably benefit 7 the workers and communities directly impacted, to the extent practica- 8 ble, at the location the injury has occurred. 9 4. On or before the first day of February each year, the comptroller 10 shall certify to the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker 11 of the assembly, the amount of money deposited by source in the fund 12 during the preceding calendar year, as well as all disbursements from 13 the fund during the preceding calendar year. 14 5. Moneys shall be payable from the fund on the audit and warrant of 15 the comptroller on vouchers certified and approved by the commissioner 16 of environmental conservation as applicable. 17 § 4. The attorney general shall certify to the governor that the 18 office of the attorney general is prepared to execute the duties 19 assigned in subdivision 6 of section 399-mm of the general business law 20 within one year following the effective date of this act. If, after the 21 expiration of one year, the attorney general requires more time to 22 certify that the office of the attorney general is prepared to execute 23 such duties, the attorney general may, for good cause shown, apply to 24 the governor for an extension of time. The governor may grant or deny an 25 extension of up to one year according to their discretion. 26 § 5. Severability. If any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, 27 section, or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent 28 jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or 29 invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation 30 to the word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, section, or part ther- 31 eof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall 32 have been rendered. 33 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 34 subdivision 6 of section 399-mm of the general business law as added by 35 section two of this act shall take effect one year after the attorney 36 general certifies that the office of the attorney general is prepared to 37 execute the duties assigned in such subdivision. The attorney general 38 shall notify the legislative bill drafting commission upon the occur- 39 rence of such certification in order that the commission may maintain an 40 accurate and timely effective data base of the official text of the laws 41 of the state of New York in furtherance of effectuating the provisions 42 of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the public 43 officers law.
