NY State Senate Bill 2019-S957

Senate Bill S957

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms the actions of the Panama central school district regardless of the failure of such district to timely file final building cost reports

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - Stricken

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jun 06, 2019	recommit, enacting clause stricken
Jan 09, 2019	referred to education

2019-S957 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5442
Law Section:: Education
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2013-2014: A7708
2015-2016: A10045
2017-2018: A8302, A9730
2021-2022: S1798

2019-S957 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms the actions of the Panama central school district regardless of the failure of such district to timely file final building cost reports.

2019-S957 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S957

SPONSOR: YOUNG
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to legalize, validate, ratify and confirm the actions of the
Panama central school district notwithstanding the failure to timely
file final building cost reports with the education department

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

Legalizes, validates, ratifies and confirms the actions of the Panama
central school district regardless of the failure of such district to
timely file final building cost reports.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Allows the Education Department to consider the final cost
report for Panama Central School as legalized, validated, ratified and
confirmed for approved building projects completed prior to December 31,
2012 recognizing that the failure to submit the report in a timely

manner was an inadvertent administrative or ministerial oversight.

Section 2. Provides that the Commissioner of the State Education Depart-
ment shall not recover from the Panama Central School District any
penalty arising from the late filing of a final cost report pursuant to
section 31 of part A of chapter 57 of the laws of 2012, provided that
any amounts already so recovered shall be deemed a payment for money due
for prior years pursuant to paragraph c of subdivision 5 of section 3604
of the education law and shall be paid to the Panama Central School
District pursuant to such provision.

Section 3. Establishes that the act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Panama Central School District was assessed a $4.9 million penalty
as a result of a late final cost report from a 2005 capital project.  In
2005, the Panama Central School District completed a small maintenance
project that was closed out. In 2009, Panama Central School District
verified that this project was complete as shown on the state website.
Panama then started a new project in 2008.  In 2012, Panama Central
School reviewed the state's website to find that they had an "open"
project with a substantial completion certificate filed on August 28,
2002 and December 12, 2005. This information was not previously made
available to Panama Central School when they were closing out their 2005
building project. This meant that Panama Central School neglected to
file a Final Cost Report for a building project with the Office of
Facility Planning of the State Education Department (SED) within the
established time frame.

In the 2013-14 State Budget, a plan was negotiated that allowed for a
10-year repayment plan to help the school manage what remained a tremen-
dous penalty for a small rural school district. Also provided in the
2013-14 State Budget was a $500,000 Supplemental Valuation Impact Grant
through the Education Department/Aid to Localities budget bill, which
was provided for again in the 2014-15 State Budget, the 2015-16 State
Budget, the 2016-17 State Budget, the 2017-18 State Budget, and the
2018-19 State Budget. This bill would forgive the remaining amount, $1.9
million, of the assessed penalty.  Without full forgiveness of this
penalty, the students who attend Panama Central School and the
District's taxpayers will be left holding the bag for administrative
oversights made over a decade ago.

With our small, rural schools already facing the heavy burdens of limit-
ed state aid, tax revenues and loss of enrollment and tax base, Panama
Central School faces particularly significant cash flow problems that
threaten its very operations if not addressed.

Panama and Clymer Central School Districts previously laid plans to
merge but the community had voiced tremendous concern over inheriting
Panama's final cost report penalties, leading to the merger being voted
down in November 2017. As such, locally, many individuals continue to
view this overwhelming obstacle as a key factor in the merger vote's
failure.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2018: S.7383/A.9730 Vetoed Memo 357
2017: S.6779/A.8302-A Vetoed Memo 170
2015,2016: S.7416/A.10045 Passed Senate

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

$1.9 million in remaining final cost report penalty

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S957 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    957
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 9, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  YOUNG  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT to legalize, validate, ratify and  confirm  the  actions  of  the
   Panama  central  school district notwithstanding the failure to timely
   file final building cost reports with the education department

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
 all  acts done and proceedings heretofore had and taken, or caused to be
 had or taken, by the Panama central school district and by  any  of  its
 officers or agents relating to or in connection with final building cost
 reports  required to be filed with the education department for approved
 building projects completed prior to December 31,  2012,  and  all  acts
 incidental   thereto  are  hereby  legalized,  validated,  ratified  and
 confirmed, notwithstanding any failure to comply with the time  require-
 ments for the approval and filing provisions of the education law or any
 other  provision  of law, rule or regulation, relating to any omissions,
 error, defect, irregularity or illegality in such  proceedings  had  and
 taken.
   §  2. Notwithstanding section 24-a of part A of chapter 57 of the laws
 of 2013, and consistent with section one of this act,  the  commissioner
 of  education  shall not recover from the Panama central school district
 any penalty arising from the late filing of a final cost report pursuant
 to section 31 of part A of chapter 57 of the laws of 2012, provided that
 any amounts already so recovered shall be deemed a payment of moneys due
 for prior years pursuant to paragraph c of subdivision 5 of section 3604
 of the education law and shall be paid  to  the  Panama  central  school
 district pursuant to such provision, provided that such school district:
   (a)  submitted  the  late or missing final building cost report to the
 commissioner of education;
   (b) such cost report is approved by the commissioner of education;
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD04280-01-9

 S. 957                              2
 
   (c) all state funds expended by the school district, as documented  in
 such  cost  report,  were properly expended for such building project in
 accordance with the terms and conditions for such project as approved by
 the commissioner of education; and
   (d)  the failure to submit such report in a timely manner was an inad-
 vertent administrative or ministerial oversight by the school  district,
 and  there  is no evidence of any fraudulent or other improper intent by
 such district.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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