Bill Text: NY S05899 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Dissolves the West Park union free school district, in the town of Esopus in the county of Ulster; provides for the payment of the debts and obligations of such school district.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-05-28 - PRINT NUMBER 5899A [S05899 Detail]
Download: New_York-2013-S05899-Amended.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5899--A
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
June 20, 2013
___________
Introduced by Sen. TKACZYK -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules -- recommitted to
the Committee on Education in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to provide for the payment of the debts and obligations of the
West Park union free school district in the town of Esopus in the
county of Ulster; to amend chapter 566 of the laws of 1967, relating
to providing for the apportionment of funds to certain special school
districts, in relation to eliminating references to the West Park
union free school district; and to repeal chapter 744 of the laws of
1973 relating to establishing and constituting as a separate union
free school district certain territory in the town of Esopus in the
county of Ulster, in relation thereto
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. Chapter 744 of the laws of 1973 relating to establishing
2 and constituting as a separate union free school district certain terri-
3 tory in the town of Esopus in the county of Ulster is REPEALED.
4 S 2. Section 1 of chapter 566 of the laws of 1967, relating to provid-
5 ing for the apportionment of funds to certain special school districts,
6 as amended by chapter 478 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as
7 follows:
8 Section 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 3602 and 3602-b
9 of the education law, and in lieu of any apportionments to which such
10 school districts might otherwise be entitled under such sections or
11 under any other provisions of law, the commissioner of education is
12 hereby authorized to include the following school districts in the annu-
13 al apportionment of public moneys and such apportionment shall be
14 computed in accordance with the provisions of sections two, three and
15 four of this act: union free school district number twenty-seven of the
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11379-03-4
S. 5899--A 2
1 town of Dryden, Tompkins county; union free school district number eight
2 of the town of Canaan, Columbia county; union free school districts
3 numbers ten, eleven, twelve and thirteen of the town of Greenburgh,
4 Westchester county; union free school districts numbers three and four
5 of the town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester county; union free school
6 district number six, Blythedale, town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester
7 county; and Randolph Children's Home union free school district of the
8 town of Randolph, Cattaraugus county; [West Park union free school
9 district number two, town of Esopus, Ulster county;] common school
10 district number seven of the town of Oyster Bay, Nassau county; the
11 Hopevale union free school district, town of Hamburg, Erie county; and
12 union free school district number three, town of Riverhead, Suffolk
13 county.
14 S 3. Section 1 of chapter 566 of the laws of 1967, relating to provid-
15 ing for the apportionment of funds to certain special school districts,
16 as amended by chapter 213 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as
17 follows:
18 Section 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 3602 and 3602-b
19 of the education law, and in lieu of any apportionments to which such
20 school districts might otherwise be entitled under such sections or
21 under any other provisions of law, the commissioner of education is
22 hereby authorized to include the following school districts in the annu-
23 al apportionment of public moneys and such apportionment shall be
24 computed in accordance with the provisions of sections two, three and
25 four of this act: union free school district number twenty-seven of the
26 town of Dryden, Tompkins county; union free school district number eight
27 of the town of Canaan, Columbia county; union free school districts
28 numbers ten, eleven, twelve and thirteen of the town of Greenburgh,
29 Westchester county; union free school districts numbers three and four
30 of the town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester county; union free school
31 district number six, Blythedale, town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester
32 county; and Randolph Children's Home union free school district of the
33 town of Randolph, Cattaraugus county; [West Park union free school
34 district number two, town of Esopus, Ulster county;] common school
35 district number seven of the town of Oyster Bay, Nassau county; and
36 union free school district number three, town of Riverhead, Suffolk
37 county.
38 S 4. Any funds remaining in the possession of the West Park union free
39 school district number two, after all of its debts and obligations have
40 been paid, shall be paid over to each social services district and
41 school district having resident children served by the West Park union
42 free school district number two in the 2010-2011 school year in the same
43 proportion as the number of students placed by each such social services
44 district or school district and served by the West Park union free
45 school district number two in the 2010-2011 school year bears to the
46 total number of students served by the West Park union free school
47 district number two in the 2010-2011 school year. Though the West Park
48 union free school district number two be dissolved, section 1518 of the
49 education law shall be deemed to apply, and it shall continue to exist
50 in law for the purpose of providing for and paying all its just debts;
51 provided that the board of cooperative educational services of the sole
52 supervisory district of the county of Ulster (Ulster BOCES) shall be
53 authorized to act on behalf of the school district pursuant to section
54 four of this act.
55 S 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
56 during any period in which there is no duly constituted board of educa-
S. 5899--A 3
1 tion of the West Park union free school district number two, Ulster
2 BOCES shall be authorized to take any actions on behalf of the school
3 district that are reasonably necessary to complete the close-down and
4 dissolution of the district that the board of education would have,
5 including but not limited to, the power to enter contracts, pay
6 outstanding debts, sell school district property if any, with approval
7 of the commissioner, and to bill for and receive any reimbursement due
8 and owing for tuition pursuant to article 81 of the education law or any
9 other provision of law for services rendered to students on or before
10 the school district ceased operation on February 28, 2011 and reimburse-
11 ment for closedown costs determined pursuant to this section. The Ulster
12 BOCES shall review the business records of the school district, includ-
13 ing any claims, invoices and bills submitted to the school district
14 during any period in which there was no duly constituted board of educa-
15 tion and shall audit any expenses or claims, based on invoices, bills or
16 other documentation, that were not included in an audited financial
17 statement or financial reports submitted to the department by the school
18 district, to determine if such expenses or claims are duplicative of
19 claims previously submitted for reimbursement and, if not, whether they
20 are supported by documentation that would substantiate a claim that the
21 expense was incurred by the school district or is otherwise an outstand-
22 ing debt of the school district. Such audit may be conducted by the
23 claims auditor of the BOCES or, with the approval of the commissioner,
24 by an independent auditor retained by the BOCES. The BOCES shall report
25 to the department any audited claims that were not included in an audit-
26 ed financial statement or financial report, together with the documenta-
27 tion supporting such claims. Reimbursement for costs incurred for close-
28 down of the school district, shall include only: (i) any allowable costs
29 approved by the commissioner that were included in the audited financial
30 statement and financial reports submitted by the school district in
31 conformity with the financial reporting requirements; (ii) additional
32 allowable costs, incurred in the 2010-2011 school year or subsequently
33 during the closedown period, that are approved by the commissioner in
34 accordance with the reimbursable cost manual in effect for the 2010-2011
35 school year and relate to claims that were audited by the Ulster BOCES
36 pursuant to this section and are based on supporting documentation that
37 would substantiate a claim that the expense was incurred by the school
38 district and not duplicative of claims previously reimbursed and (iii)
39 the actual documented cost to the Ulster BOCES of carrying out its
40 duties under the provisions of this section to close down the school
41 district, as approved by the commissioner based on documentation that
42 such costs were necessary to carry out such duties, shall be included in
43 a closedown rate payable by each school district or social services
44 district responsible for tuition for students attending the special act
45 school district in the 2010-2011 school year. Notwithstanding any other
46 provision of law, rule or regulation to the contrary, such closedown
47 rate may be payable in three installments which shall be as equal as
48 practicable, over three consecutive years after the closedown rate is
49 established. In such capacity, such board of cooperative educational
50 services and its officers and employees shall be entitled to defense and
51 indemnification by the state pursuant to section 18 of the public offi-
52 cers law.
53 S 6. The records of the West Park union free school district number
54 two, shall be forwarded to the district superintendent of schools of the
55 Ulster BOCES for preservation. Notwithstanding any other provision of
56 law to the contrary, such records shall be deemed to be records of the
S. 5899--A 4
1 Ulster BOCES for purposes of the management and disposition of such
2 records and local government records management grants pursuant to
3 section 57.35 of the arts and cultural affairs law.
4 S 7. The territory comprising the West Park union free school district
5 number two, town of Esopus, county of Ulster, shall revert to and become
6 a part of the Kingston city school district in the county of Ulster.
7 S 8. That certain Agency Lease dated August 12, 1998 between Mission-
8 ary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, a New York not-for-profit corporation
9 and the West Park union free school district number two is hereby termi-
10 nated.
11 S 9. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that section
12 three of this act shall take effect on the same date and in the same
13 manner as section 5 of chapter 213 of the laws of 2011, as amended,
14 takes effect.
