S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8471
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             November 17, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. KELLES -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Higher Education
 
 AN ACT in relation to establishing the "New York Local News Act"
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the  "New  York
 local news act".
   § 2. Definitions. As used in this act:
   (a)  "Board  of  directors" or "board" means the board of directors of
 the New York commission on local news and civic information.
   (b) "Commission" means the New York commission on local news and civic
 information.
   (c) "In-kind contribution" means a contribution of goods or  services,
 other than a cash grant.
   (d)  "Local community organization" means a locally-based organization
 serving a community of people having shared interests that  is  incorpo-
 rated,  organized,  and  operated  in  such  a manner as to qualify as a
 nonprofit corporation described in  section  501(c)(3)  of  the  federal
 Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3).
   (e)  "Member university" means the University of the State of New York
 and the City University of New York.
   § 3. New York commission on local news and  civic  information  estab-
 lished.    There  is hereby established the New York commission on local
 news and civic information which shall consist of the  member  universi-
 ties.  The  purpose  of  the commission shall be to advance research and
 innovation in the field of media and technology to benefit  the  state's
 civic life and evolving information needs.
   §  4.  Board  of  directors.  (a) The commission shall have a board of
 directors that shall set strategic priorities and metrics to  guide  the
 commission's  grant-making  and other initiatives, as well as to approve
 grants.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13448-02-1
              

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   (b) The board of directors shall consist of 17 members as follows:
   (i) two members appointed by the governor;
   (ii)  two  members appointed by the temporary president of the senate,
 and one member appointed by the minority leader of the senate;
   (iii) two members appointed by the speaker of the  assembly,  and  one
 member appointed by the minority leader of the assembly;
   (iv)  five members appointed by the chancellor of the state university
 of New York and the chancellor of the city university of New York,  each
 of  whom shall have background or experience in the field of journalism,
 media, or technology; and
   (v) four members appointed by a majority  vote  of  the  eleven  board
 members appointed pursuant to paragraphs (i) through (iv) of this subdi-
 vision, of which:
   (1) one member shall represent the media sector;
   (2) one member shall represent the technology sector; and
   (3)  two  members, not employed by the state or a member university at
 the time of the member's appointment, shall have demonstrated  a  record
 of  commitment  to public service and understand the importance of media
 and technology to the state's future.
   (c) Each board member shall serve a term of four  years,  except  that
 the member representing the New York media sector shall serve an initial
 term  of  one  year  and the member representing the New York technology
 sector shall serve an initial term of two years. No board  member  shall
 serve  more  than  two four-year terms. In the appointment of members to
 the board, every effort shall  be  made  to  strive  for  diversity  and
 balance  of  representation  according  to  gender, race, ethnicity, and
 geography within any limits allowed under  law.  Any  vacancies  in  the
 appointed  membership of the board occurring other than by expiration of
 term shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment, but
 for the unexpired term only. Board members shall serve  without  compen-
 sation  but  may  be  reimbursed  for necessary expenses incurred in the
 performance of their duties within the limits of funds available to  the
 board.
   §  5.  Executive  director.  (a) The board shall appoint and employ an
 executive director and fix the  executive  director's  compensation  and
 conditions  of  employment.  The  executive  director shall be the chief
 executive, administrative, and operational officer of the commission and
 shall direct and supervise the administrative affairs  and  the  general
 management  of  the commission. The executive director shall oversee the
 commission's day-to-day operations,  which  includes  working  with  the
 board  to  meet  the  commission's  goals and grant-making requirements,
 hiring and managing program officers and administrative  staff  pursuant
 to  subdivision  (b)  of  this  section,  acting as spokesperson for the
 commission's work, and raising funds from external sources.  The  execu-
 tive director shall attend all meetings of the board.
   (b) (i) The executive director shall employ program officers who shall
 be experienced practitioners with a strong understanding of the media or
 civic  technology fields. The executive director shall strive to appoint
 program officers that represent the state's racial, ethnic, gender,  and
 geographic  diversity  within  any limits allowed under law. The program
 officers shall manage the grant-making process, in accordance  with  the
 commission's  goals.  The grant-making process shall include soliciting,
 recommending, and processing grant proposals, working with  grantees  to
 ensure  work on grant project ideas, and directing public engagement and
 evaluation efforts.
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   (ii) The executive director shall employ no more than  three  adminis-
 trative staff to provide operational support for the commission, includ-
 ing  office  management,  support for the executive director and program
 officers, coordination among member universities, payment  to  grantees,
 human resources, and logistics.
   (c)  To  save on startup, operating, and ongoing administrative costs,
 one member university shall be responsible for  housing  the  commission
 and providing back-office support.
   §  6. Collaboration among member universities. The commission shall be
 a collaborative  effort  among  the  member  universities.  Each  member
 university  shall focus its initiatives on one area of expertise and the
 board of directors shall decide on each  member  university's  focus  of
 expertise  in  order  to  allow  for  greater collaboration among member
 universities, decrease competition for grants, and reduce redundancy  of
 efforts.  Member  universities  may collaborate on projects together, as
 well as seek out other academic institutions to partner with on  seeking
 grants.
   §  7.  Eligibility for grants; project goals. (a) To be eligible for a
 grant from the commission, a grant proposal application  shall  include,
 but not be limited to:
   (i)  evidence  of  a  collaboration between at least one member of the
 faculty or graduate student of a member  university  and  at  least  one
 local  community  organization,  media organization, or technology-based
 organization;
   (ii) information demonstrating that the collaboration would be a mutu-
 ally respectful partnership wherein all community and member  university
 participants  invest  in  a  project  designed to serve the commission's
 mission and the goals cited pursuant to subdivision (b) of this section;
 and
   (iii) proof that the member university or universities in  total  will
 provide  an  amount  of funding or make an in-kind contribution having a
 value that matches 10 percent of the amount of grant funding  for  which
 the applicant has applied, if an application is sponsored by one or more
 member  universities.  For  a  grant proposal application sponsored by a
 member university  housing  the  commission  and  providing  back-office
 support,  the cost of that housing and support to that member university
 shall count towards the funding or in-kind contribution match from  that
 member university.
   (b)  The commission shall provide grants for projects that achieve the
 following goals:
   (i) improve the quantity and quality of civic information in New  York
 communities;
   (ii)  give  residents  enhanced  access  to useful government data and
 public information through innovative applications, platforms, and tech-
 nologies;
   (iii) train students, professionals,  and  community  members  in  the
 practice of community storytelling, journalism, and media production;
   (iv)  become  sustainable  without  government  support while offering
 substantial civic information;
   (v) better meet the information needs of  low-income  communities  and
 racial  and  ethnic communities that have been underserved by the media;
 and
   (vi) invest in research and practices  that  can  help  media  outlets
 become  more  closely  connected to their audiences and more sustainable
 without government support.
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   § 8. Grant agreement. A grant issued by the commission shall be in the
 form of a grant agreement. A grant agreement shall include  a  provision
 establishing  a  set of metrics for assessing the goals contained in the
 agreement to ensure evaluation of a grantee project on  how  well  those
 metrics  are  being  met and any other relevant accountability measures.
 The set of metrics shall be established by the board in conjunction with
 the executive director and program officers. The agreement shall include
 the expectations stated between the commission and  the  grantee,  which
 shall include, but not be limited to, a statement that:
   (a)  the grantee shall be independent from the influence of the state,
 a member university, and any other grantor or contributor  of  funds  or
 outside source; and
   (b)  any  grantor  or  other contributor of funds to the grantee shall
 acknowledge in writing the grantor's or contributor's understanding that
 the grant or donation does not entitle the  grantor  or  contributor  to
 dictate or influence the content of any work the grantee produces or may
 produce.
   §  9.  Annual  report  to the governor, the temporary president of the
 senate, and the speaker  of  the  assembly;  public  hearings.  (a)  The
 commission  shall  annually  report to the governor and to the temporary
 president of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly, on the  activ-
 ities  of  the  commission  and make the report available on the commis-
 sion's website. Such report shall include, but not be limited to:
   (i) a list of all grant applicants and approved grant applicants;
   (ii) the grant amounts of approved grant applicants;
   (iii) the amount of matching funds and types of in-kind  contributions
 provided to approved grant applicants; and
   (iv)  a  status  report  on the activities funded by an approved grant
 applicant.
   (b) The commission shall make available on its website its  grant-mak-
 ing criteria and other relevant documents.
   (c)  The board, in conjunction with the executive director and program
 officers, shall hold  one  public  hearing  annually  in  the  northern,
 central,  and  southern  regions of the state. The public hearings shall
 provide a forum for the board to report on how the public funds that the
 commission receives are spent and to gather public  input  on  what  the
 commission's mission should be and whether the commission is meeting its
 mission.  Public  input shall be used to assess whether the commission's
 grant-making metrics and process for issuing grants needs to be changed.
   § 10. This act shall take effect immediately.