S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1958
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 13, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M. of A. BARNWELL, MONTESANO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M.
   of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred  to  the  Committee  on  Corpo-
   rations, Authorities and Commissions
 
 AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to the metropol-
   itan  transportation  authority's  voting  members  and  requires such
   authority to approve new financial obligations by a  two-thirds  vote;
   and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision  1  of  section  1263  of  the
 public  authorities  law is REPEALED and a new paragraph (a) is added to
 read as follows:
   (A)(1)  THERE  IS  HEREBY  CREATED  THE  "METROPOLITAN  TRANSPORTATION
 AUTHORITY."  THE AUTHORITY SHALL BE A BODY CORPORATE AND POLITIC CONSTI-
 TUTING A PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION.  THE AUTHORITY SHALL CONSIST  OF  A
 CHAIRMAN,  EIGHT OTHER VOTING MEMBERS OR COLLECTIVES, AND TWO NON-VOTING
 AND FOUR ALTERNATE NON-VOTING MEMBERS, AS DESCRIBED IN SUBPARAGRAPH  TWO
 OF  THIS  PARAGRAPH APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR BY AND WITH THE ADVICE AND
 CONSENT OF THE SENATE. ANY MEMBER APPOINTED TO A TERM COMMENCING  ON  OR
 AFTER  JUNE THIRTIETH, TWO THOUSAND NINE SHALL HAVE EXPERIENCE IN ONE OR
 MORE OF THE FOLLOWING AREAS:    TRANSPORTATION,  PUBLIC  ADMINISTRATION,
 BUSINESS  MANAGEMENT,  FINANCE,  ACCOUNTING, LAW, ENGINEERING, LAND USE,
 URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNING, MANAGEMENT OF LARGE CAPITAL PROJECTS, LABOR
 RELATIONS, OR HAVE EXPERIENCE IN SOME OTHER AREA OF ACTIVITY CENTRAL  TO
 THE MISSION OF THE AUTHORITY. TWO OF THE EIGHT VOTING MEMBERS OR COLLEC-
 TIVES  OTHER THAN THE CHAIRMAN SHALL BE MEMBERS APPOINTED ON THE WRITTEN
 RECOMMENDATION OF THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK UPON THE ADVICE  AND
 CONSENT  OF  THE  NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL; TWO OF THE VOTING MEMBERS OTHER
 THAN THE CHAIRMAN SHALL BE MEMBERS APPOINTED BY THE  GOVERNOR  UPON  THE
 ADVICE  AND  CONSENT OF THE SENATE; ONE OF THE VOTING MEMBERS OTHER THAN
 THE CHAIRMAN SHALL BE THE COMPTROLLER FOR NEW  YORK  CITY;  ONE  OF  THE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD07006-01-1

 A. 1958                             2
 
 VOTING  MEMBERS  OTHER  THAN THE CHAIRMAN SHALL BE THE STATE COMPTROLLER
 EXCEPT WHERE SUCH MEMBER HAS A CONFLICT OF  INTEREST  WHERE  THE  DEPUTY
 STATE  COMPTROLLER  SHALL  BE  A  VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD; ONE OF THE
 COLLECTIVES,  WHICH  SHALL HOLD ONE COLLECTIVE VOTE, SHALL BE MADE UP OF
 THE COUNTY EXECUTIVES FOR ORANGE COUNTY, PUTNAM COUNTY, ROCKLAND COUNTY,
 DUTCHESS COUNTY, AND WESTCHESTER COUNTY; AND THE OTHER COLLECTIVE, WHICH
 SHALL HOLD ONE COLLECTIVE VOTE, SHALL BE MADE UP OF  THE  NASSAU  COUNTY
 COMPTROLLER  AND  THE  SUFFOLK COUNTY COMPTROLLER. THE CHAIRMAN SHALL BE
 APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR AND CONFIRMED BY THE STATE  SENATE  AND  SHALL
 NOT  VOTE UNLESS THERE IS A TIE IN THE NUMBER OF VOTES BETWEEN THE OTHER
 EIGHT VOTING MEMBERS AND COLLECTIVES. OF THE TWO VOTING  MEMBERS,  OTHER
 THAN  THE CHAIRMAN, APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR, ONE SHALL BE, AT THE TIME
 OF APPOINTMENT, A RESIDENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK AND ONE SHALL BE,  AT
 THE TIME OF APPOINTMENT, A RESIDENT OF SUCH CITY OR OF ANY OF THE AFORE-
 MENTIONED COUNTIES IN THE METROPOLITAN COMMUTER TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT.
 THE  CHAIRMAN AND EACH OF THE APPOINTED MEMBERS SHALL BE APPOINTED FOR A
 TERM OF FOUR YEARS, PROVIDED HOWEVER, THAT THIRTY DAYS AFTER THE  EFFEC-
 TIVE  DATE  OF THIS SUBPARAGRAPH, THE TERM OF THE CHAIRMAN SHALL EXPIRE;
 PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT SUCH CHAIRMAN  MAY  CONTINUE  TO  DISCHARGE  THE
 DUTIES  OF HIS OR HER OFFICE UNTIL THE POSITION OF CHAIRMAN IS FILLED BY
 APPOINTMENT BY THE GOVERNOR UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT  OF  THE  SENATE
 AND  THE  TERM  OF SUCH NEW CHAIRMAN SHALL TERMINATE JUNE THIRTIETH, TWO
 THOUSAND TWENTY-FIVE. THE TWO NON-VOTING AND FOUR  ALTERNATE  NON-VOTING
 MEMBERS SHALL SERVE UNTIL JANUARY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-FIVE.
   (2)(I)  THERE  SHALL BE TWO NON-VOTING MEMBERS AND FOUR ALTERNATE NON-
 VOTING MEMBERS OF THE AUTHORITY, AS REFERRED TO IN SUBPARAGRAPH  ONE  OF
 THIS PARAGRAPH.
   (II)  THE FIRST NON-VOTING MEMBER SHALL BE A REGULAR MASS TRANSIT USER
 OF THE FACILITIES OF THE AUTHORITY AND BE RECOMMENDED TO THE GOVERNOR BY
 THE NEW YORK CITY TRANSIT AUTHORITY ADVISORY COUNCIL. THE  FIRST  ALTER-
 NATE  NON-VOTING  MEMBER  SHALL  BE  A  REGULAR MASS TRANSIT USER OF THE
 FACILITIES OF THE AUTHORITY AND BE RECOMMENDED TO THE  GOVERNOR  BY  THE
 METRO-NORTH  COMMUTER  COUNCIL.   THE SECOND ALTERNATE NON-VOTING MEMBER
 SHALL BE A REGULAR MASS TRANSIT USER OF THE FACILITIES OF THE  AUTHORITY
 AND  BE  RECOMMENDED  TO  THE  GOVERNOR  BY  THE  LONG  ISLAND RAIL ROAD
 COMMUTER'S COUNCIL.
   (III) THE SECOND NON-VOTING MEMBER SHALL BE RECOMMENDED TO THE  GOVER-
 NOR  BY THE LABOR ORGANIZATION REPRESENTING THE MAJORITY OF EMPLOYEES OF
 THE LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD. THE THIRD ALTERNATE NON-VOTING  MEMBER  SHALL
 BE  RECOMMENDED  TO  THE GOVERNOR BY THE LABOR ORGANIZATION REPRESENTING
 THE MAJORITY OF EMPLOYEES OF THE NEW YORK CITY  TRANSIT  AUTHORITY.  THE
 FOURTH  ALTERNATE NON-VOTING MEMBER SHALL BE RECOMMENDED TO THE GOVERNOR
 BY THE LABOR ORGANIZATION REPRESENTING THE MAJORITY OF EMPLOYEES OF  THE
 METRO-NORTH COMMUTER RAILROAD COMPANY. THE CHAIRMAN OF THE AUTHORITY, AT
 HIS  DIRECTION, MAY EXCLUDE SUCH NON-VOTING MEMBER OR ALTERNATE NON-VOT-
 ING MEMBER FROM ATTENDING ANY PORTION OF A MEETING OF THE  AUTHORITY  OR
 OF  ANY  COMMITTEE  ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (B) OF SUBDIVISION
 FOUR OF THIS SECTION HELD FOR THE  PURPOSE  OF  DISCUSSING  NEGOTIATIONS
 WITH LABOR ORGANIZATIONS.
   (IV)  THE  NON-VOTING  MEMBER AND THE TWO ALTERNATE NON-VOTING MEMBERS
 REPRESENTING THE NEW YORK YORK CITY TRANSIT AUTHORITY ADVISORY  COUNCIL,
 THE  METRO-NORTH  COMMUTER  COUNCIL,  AND  THE  LONG  ISLAND  RAIL  ROAD
 COMMUTER'S COUNCIL SHALL SERVE  EIGHTEEN  MONTH  ROTATING  TERMS,  AFTER
 WHICH  TIME  AN  ALTERNATE NON-VOTING MEMBER SHALL BECOME THE NON-VOTING
 MEMBER AND THE ROTATION SHALL CONTINUE UNTIL EACH ALTERNATE  MEMBER  HAS
 SERVED  AT  LEAST  ONE  EIGHTEEN MONTH TERM AS A NON-VOTING MEMBER.  THE

 A. 1958                             3
 
 OTHER NON-VOTING MEMBER AND ALTERNATE  NON-VOTING  MEMBERS  REPRESENTING
 THE  NEW  YORK  CITY  TRANSIT  AUTHORITY,  METRO-NORTH COMMUTER RAILROAD
 COMPANY, AND THE LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD LABOR ORGANIZATIONS  SHALL  SERVE
 EIGHTEEN  MONTH ROTATING TERMS, AFTER WHICH TIME AN ALTERNATE NON-VOTING
 MEMBER SHALL BECOME THE NON-VOTING MEMBER AND THE ROTATION SHALL CONTIN-
 UE UNTIL EACH ALTERNATE MEMBER HAS SERVED AT LEAST  ONE  EIGHTEEN  MONTH
 TERM  AS  A  NON-VOTING  MEMBER.  THE TRANSIT AUTHORITY AND THE COMMUTER
 RAILROADS SHALL NOT BE REPRESENTED CONCURRENTLY BY  THE  TWO  NON-VOTING
 MEMBERS DURING ANY SUCH EIGHTEEN MONTH PERIOD.
   §  2.  Paragraph  (a)  of  subdivision 3 of section 1263 of the public
 authorities law, as amended by chapter 929  of  the  laws  of  1986,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   (a) A majority of the whole number of members of the authority then in
 office  shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business or
 the exercise of any power of the authority. Except as  otherwise  speci-
 fied  in this title, for the transaction of any business or the exercise
 of any power of the authority, the authority shall have power to act  by
 a  majority vote of the members present at any meeting at which a quorum
 is in attendance and except further, [that in the event of  a  tie  vote
 the  chairman  shall  cast one additional vote] THAT ALL VOTES INVOLVING
 THE AUTHORITY TAKING ON ANY NEW FINANCIAL OBLIGATION MUST BE BY  A  TWO-
 THIRDS VOTE OF ITS MEMBER THEN IN OFFICE.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.