S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    21
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 6, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M. of A. CAHILL, PERRY -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
   CYMBROWITZ, GALEF, MONTESANO, PEOPLES-STOKES, THIELE -- read once  and
   referred to the Committee on Education
 
 AN  ACT  in  relation to establishing the commission on education in the
   twenty-first century; and providing for the repeal of such  provisions
   upon expiration thereof
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Commission established. (a) There is hereby created in  the
 executive  department  a  commission  to  be known as the "commission on
 education in the twenty-first century", hereafter  referred  to  as  the
 "commission", which shall be charged with examining the system of school
 districts  and  the  delivery  of education related services in New York
 state and recommending changes  to  that  system  in  light  of  factors
 submitted  pursuant  to  section  four  of  this  act and any additional
 factors established by the commission.
   (b) The commission shall consist of eighteen  statewide  members,  and
 regional  members  appointed  pursuant  to  section six of this act. The
 eighteen statewide members  shall  be  appointed  as  follows:  (i)  two
 members  shall  be  appointed  by the temporary president of the senate;
 (ii) two members shall be appointed by  the  speaker  of  the  assembly;
 (iii)  one  member  shall  be  appointed  by  the minority leader of the
 senate; (iv) one member shall be appointed by the minority leader of the
 assembly; (v) two members shall be appointed by the governor;  and  (vi)
 ten  members  shall  be  appointed by the board of regents. The board of
 regents shall designate the chair from among the  statewide  members  of
 the commission.
   (c)  The  members  of the commission shall receive no compensation for
 their services as members, but shall be allowed their actual and  neces-
 sary  expenses  incurred in the performance of their duties.  Members of

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01297-01-1

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 the commission shall be  considered  public  officers  for  purposes  of
 section 17 of the public officers law.
   (d)  The  commission shall begin to act forty-five days after this act
 shall have become a law. A quorum shall consist of  a  majority  of  the
 members of the commission entitled to vote on the matter under consider-
 ation.  Approval  of  any matter shall require the affirmative vote of a
 majority of the members voting thereon.
   (e) The statewide members of the commission shall  adopt  by-laws  for
 the management and regulation of its affairs.
   §  2.  Appointments  to  commission.  The  legislative leaders and the
 governor shall submit their appointments to the board  of  regents,  and
 the  board  of regents shall make appointments, no later than forty-five
 days after this act becomes a law. If any such appointment is  not  made
 by such date, the person or board responsible for making the appointment
 pursuant  to  subdivision  (b)  of  section one of this act may make the
 appointment after that date, but the vacant appointment shall not  count
 for calculation of a quorum until it is filled. Vacancies in the commis-
 sion  shall  be filled in the same manner as the member whose vacancy is
 being filled was appointed.
   § 3. Commission staff and agency  liaison.  (a)  The  commissioner  of
 education  shall designate such employees of the state education depart-
 ment as are reasonably necessary to  provide  support  services  to  the
 commission.  The  commission, acting by the chair of the commission, may
 employ additional staff and consultants, who shall be paid from  amounts
 available to the commission for that purpose.
   (b)  The commissioner of education shall appoint one or more represen-
 tatives of the department of education to serve as liaison between  such
 department  and  the  commission. All state agencies, public authorities
 and public benefit corporations shall provide such assistance as may  be
 reasonably requested by the chair of the commission.
   §  4.  Factors and information for consideration. (a) The commissioner
 of education shall submit to the commission, no later than  ninety  days
 after  this act becomes a law, a list of factors to be considered in its
 deliberations, which shall include but not be limited to: (i) geography,
 including  physical  proximity  and  the  size  of  the  current  school
 districts  and boards of cooperative educational services in each region
 of the state; (ii) demographics, including student enrollment trends and
 the  composition  and  nature  of  communities  in  the  current  school
 districts  and boards of cooperative educational services in each region
 of the state; (iii) economics, including existing collaborations  to  be
 preserved  or  enhanced  and  opportunities  to  deliver commodities and
 services through boards of cooperative  educational  services  or  other
 entities; (iv) transportation and the potential for regional transporta-
 tion  services;  (v)  special  education  and the potential for regional
 special education services; (vi) population  density;  and  (vii)  other
 unique circumstances including the need to preserve existing or develop-
 ing  relationships,  meet  the  needs  of students, maximize educational
 opportunities for students, assure local control, maintain the character
 of community schools and ensure equitable access  to  rigorous  programs
 for all students.
   (b)  The  commissioner  of  education  may  submit additional relevant
 factors to be considered in the deliberations  of  the  commission.  The
 commission  may  also  adopt  additional factors to be considered in its
 deliberations.
   § 5. Deliberations of  commission.  The  deliberations,  meetings  and
 other  proceedings  of the commission and any committee thereof shall be

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 governed by article 7 of the  public  officers  law.  Any  one  or  more
 members of a committee may participate in a meeting of such committee by
 means  of  a  conference telephone, conference video or similar communi-
 cations  equipment  allowing all persons participating in the meeting to
 hear each other at the same time.   Participation by  such  means  shall
 constitute  presence  in  person  at  a  meeting. At any meetings of the
 commission conducted by means  of  a  conference  telephone,  conference
 video   or   similar  communications  equipment,  other  than  executive
 sessions, the public shall be given an opportunity to listen. If a meet-
 ing other than an executive session is to be conducted  by  means  of  a
 conference  telephone, conference video or similar communications equip-
 ment, the public notice for the meeting shall  inform  the  public  that
 such  equipment will be used, and identify the means by which the public
 may listen to such meeting.
   § 6. Regional input. (a) There shall be eight regional members of  the
 commission  for  each  region  established pursuant to this section. For
 each region, two regional members shall be appointed  by  the  governor,
 two  regional  members  shall be appointed by the temporary president of
 the senate, two regional members shall be appointed by  the  speaker  of
 the  assembly,  and two regional members shall be appointed by the board
 of regents. Regional members shall be considered to be  members  of  the
 commission for purposes of this act, provided that:
   (i)  Regional  members  shall  vote and be counted for quorum purposes
 only when the commission is acting on recommendations relating solely to
 the regional members' respective region; and
   (ii) Regional members shall not be considered to  be  members  of  the
 commission  for purposes of participation in commission meetings, except
 where items relating specifically to that member's  region  are  on  the
 agenda of a commission meeting.
   (b) For purposes of this act, there shall be six regions:
   (i) Long Island, consisting of the Eastern Suffolk, Nassau and Western
 Suffolk boards of cooperative educational services;
  (ii) New York City;
   (iii)  Hudson  Valley,  consisting  of  the  Dutchess,  Orange-Ulster,
 Putnam-Northern Westchester, Rockland,  Southern  Westchester,  Sullivan
 and Ulster boards of cooperative educational services;
   (iv)  Eastern, consisting of the Capital Region, Clinton-Essex-Warren-
 Washington,  Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego,  Franklin-Essex-Hamilton,
 Hamilton-Fulton-Montgomery,   Otsego-Delaware-Schoharie-Greene,  Questar
 III, St.  Lawrence-Lewis  and  Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex
 boards of cooperative educational services;
   (v)  Central, consisting of the Broome-Tioga, Cayuga-Onondaga, Jeffer-
 son-Lewis-Hamilton-Herkimer-Oneida,     Herkimer-Hamilton-Fulton-Oswego,
 Madison-Oneida,    Oneida-Herkimer-Madison,   Onondaga-Cortland-Madison,
 Oswego, Schuyler, Chemung, Tioga  and  Tompkins-Seneca-Tioga  boards  of
 cooperative educational services;
   (vi)  Western,  consisting  of  the Cattaraugus-Allegany-Erie-Wyoming,
 Erie 1, Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus, Genesee Valley, Monroe 1,  Monroe
 2-Orleans, Ontario-Seneca-Yates-Cayuga-Wayne, Orleans-Niagara and Great-
 er Southern Tier boards of cooperative educational services.
   (c)  The  commission shall establish a regional advisory committee for
 each region. The maximum number of members  of  each  regional  advisory
 committee  shall  be  determined  by  the  commission.  Members  of each
 regional advisory committee shall be appointed in equal numbers  by  the
 governor,  the  temporary  president  of  the senate, the speaker of the
 assembly and the board of regents. The governor, the temporary president

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 of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, and  the  board  of  regents
 shall  submit to the commission their appointments to the regional advi-
 sory committees no later than ninety days  after  this  act  shall  have
 become  a  law.  If  any  such appointment is not made by such date, the
 person or board responsible for making such  appointment  may  make  the
 appointment  after that date, but the vacant appointment shall not count
 for calculation of a quorum until such position is filled.  Vacancies in
 regional advisory committees shall be filled in the same manner  as  the
 member  whose  vacancy is being filled was appointed. The regional advi-
 sory committees shall begin to act ninety days after this act shall have
 become a law.
   (d) Each regional advisory committee upon consideration of  demograph-
 ic,  geographic,  educational and fiscal indicators within each board of
 cooperative educational services region, shall  develop  recommendations
 for  reconfiguring  such  region's  school  districts and administrative
 functions to align educational services with regional and  local  needs.
 In  carrying  out  its  functions,  a  regional advisory committee shall
 foster discussions among, and conduct formal public hearings with requi-
 site public notice to solicit input from, local stakeholders' interests,
 including but not limited to, school district  administrators,  district
 superintendents  and  superintendents of schools, teachers, school board
 members, parents, students, non-pedagogical  school  support  personnel,
 representatives  from  post-secondary  institutions  and other pertinent
 groups and individuals. In developing its recommendations, each regional
 advisory committee shall as far as practicable estimate the efficiencies
 that may be derived from such school district or  administrative  recon-
 figuration. On November 15, 2023, each regional advisory committee shall
 transmit  to  the  commission  a  report containing its recommendations,
 which shall include specific recommendations  for  school  district  and
 administrative  reconfigurations. Such recommendations shall include but
 not be limited to: delivery of commodities and services; pupil transpor-
 tation; specialized  professional  development;  maintenance;  insurance
 procurement;  payroll administration; human resources and employee bene-
 fit coordination; cooperative purchasing coordination; centralization of
 business operations; printing services;  state  aid  planning;  textbook
 purchasing  and substitute teacher coordination; safety and risk manage-
 ment; the units of school administration to be included in the reconfig-
 ured school district; the units of school administration  that  will  be
 transferred  to  the  board  of  cooperative educational services; size,
 composition and apportionment of the governing  body;  the  composition,
 powers  and  duties  of  any  local school committees to be created; the
 disposition of real and personal school  property;  the  disposition  of
 existing  school  indebtedness  and  lease-purchase;  the  assignment of
 school personnel contracts, school collective bargaining agreements  and
 other school contractual obligations; the disposition of existing school
 funds  and  existing  financial obligations, including undesignated fund
 balances, trust funds, reserve funds and other  funds  appropriated  for
 school  purposes;  a transition plan that addresses the development of a
 budget for the first school year  and  interim  personnel  policies;  an
 estimate  of the cost savings to be achieved through reconfiguration and
 how costs will be reduced;  recommended  dates  by  which  such  actions
 should occur; necessary investments, if any, that should be made in each
 case to carry out the regional advisory committee's recommendations; and
 the regional advisory committee's justification for its recommendations,
 including  the  use of any factors developed pursuant to section four of
 this act.

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   (e) The failure of any regional  advisory  committee  to  perform  the
 duties  imposed  by  this section shall not affect the obligation of the
 commission to perform the duties imposed by section seven of this act.
   §  7.  Commission  recommendations. (a) The commission, upon consider-
 ation of demographic,  geographic,  educational  and  fiscal  indicators
 within  each  board  of  cooperative  educational services region, shall
 develop recommendations for reconfiguring school districts and  adminis-
 trative  functions to align educational services with regional and local
 needs.  In carrying out its functions, the commission shall  collaborate
 with  the  regional advisory committees insofar as practicable to foster
 discussions among, and conduct formal  public  hearings  with  requisite
 public  notice  to  solicit input and recommendations from statewide and
 regional stakeholder interests  including  but  not  limited  to  school
 district administrators, district superintendents and superintendents of
 schools, teachers, school board members, parents, students, non-pedagog-
 ical  school  support  personnel,  representatives  from  post-secondary
 institutions and other pertinent groups and individuals.  The commission
 shall formally solicit recommendations from school district  administra-
 tors, district superintendents and superintendents of schools, teachers,
 school  board members, parents, students, non-pedagogical school support
 personnel, representatives from post-secondary  institutions  and  other
 interested  parties  in each region of the state, and it shall take into
 account such recommendations and the  recommendations  of  the  regional
 advisory  committees  during its deliberations. In developing its recom-
 mendations, the commission shall as  far  as  practicable  estimate  the
 efficiencies  that may be derived from such school district and adminis-
 trative reconfiguration, and shall consider the recommendations  of  the
 regional advisory committees.
   (b)  The  commission  shall  make  recommendations  relating to school
 district and administrative reconfiguration,  within  each  region.  The
 regional commission members shall vote as members of the commission only
 when  the commission is acting on recommendations relating solely to the
 regional commission members' region.
   (c) Such recommendations shall include but not be limited to: delivery
 of commodities and services; pupil transportation;  specialized  profes-
 sional development; maintenance; insurance procurement; payroll adminis-
 tration;  human resources and employee benefit coordination; cooperative
 purchasing coordination; centralization of business operations; printing
 services; state aid planning; textbook purchasing and substitute teacher
 coordination; safety and risk management; the units of  school  adminis-
 tration to be included in the reconfigured school district; the units of
 school  administration  that will be transferred to the board of cooper-
 ative educational services; size, composition and apportionment  of  the
 governing  body;  the composition, powers and duties of any local school
 committees to be created; the disposition of real  and  personal  school
 property; the disposition of existing school indebtedness and lease-pur-
 chase;  the  assignment of school personnel contracts, school collective
 bargaining agreements and  other  school  contractual  obligations;  the
 disposition of existing school funds and existing financial obligations,
 including  undesignated  fund  balances,  trust funds, reserve funds and
 other funds appropriated for school purposes;  a  transition  plan  that
 addresses  the  development  of  a  budget for the first school year and
 interim personnel policies; an  estimate  of  the  cost  savings  to  be
 achieved  through  reconfiguration and how costs will be reduced; recom-
 mended dates by which such actions should occur; necessary  investments,
 if  any,  that should be made in each case to carry out the commission's

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 recommendations; the commission's response to the recommendations of the
 regional advisory committees; and the commissioner's  justification  for
 its  recommendations,  including  the  use  of  the  factors pursuant to
 section four of this act.
   (d)  On  or  before December 1, 2023, the commission shall transmit to
 the governor and the legislature a  report  containing  its  recommenda-
 tions, which shall include specific recommendations for school districts
 to  be  reconfigured  and  specific  recommendations  for administrative
 services  to  be  transferred  to  boards  of  cooperative   educational
 services.  Upon  the  transmission of the report to the governor and the
 legislature the commission shall be dissolved.
   §  8.  Implementation  of  recommendations.  (a)  Notwithstanding  any
 contrary provision of law, rule or regulation related to the reconfigur-
 ing  of school districts and administrative services the commissioner of
 education shall take all actions necessary to implement,  in  a  reason-
 able,  cost-efficient  manner,  the  recommendations  of  the commission
 pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c) of section seven of this act.  Such
 school  districts  and  boards of cooperative educational services shall
 submit to the commissioner of education, at a time  and  in  a  form  as
 determined  by  the  commissioner  of  education,  an acceptable plan of
 reconfiguration in accordance with applicable regulations.
   (b) The provisions of subdivision (a) of this section shall not apply:
 (i) unless the governor has transmitted the  commission's  report  under
 section seven of this act with his or her written approval of the recom-
 mendations  of  the  commission  pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c) of
 section seven of this act to the commissioner of education and transmit-
 ted a message to the legislature stating his  or  her  approval  of  the
 report  on  or  before  December  5, 2023; and (ii) if a majority of the
 members of each house of the legislature  vote  to  adopt  a  concurrent
 resolution  rejecting  the recommendations of the commission pursuant to
 subdivisions (b) and (c) of section seven of this act in their  entirety
 by  December 31, 2023, after receiving a message from the governor under
 this subdivision. In no event shall the commissioner of education  begin
 to  implement the recommendations of the commission pursuant to subdivi-
 sions (b) and (c) of section seven of this act  prior  to  December  31,
 2023.
   §  9.  The  commission shall be authorized and entitled to receive any
 grants offered pursuant to section 54 of the state finance law.
   § 10. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph,  subdi-
 vision,  section  or  part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of
 competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment  shall  not  affect,
 impair,  or  invalidate  the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in
 its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph,  subdivision,  section
 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
 the  legislature  that  this  act  would  have been enacted even if such
 invalid provisions had not been included herein.
   § 11. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire  and  be
 deemed repealed June 30, 2025.