S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
9045
I N S E N A T E
May 5, 2022
___________
Introduced by Sen. MANNION -- (at request of the State Comptroller) --
read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to
the Committee on Finance
AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in relation to the investment
standard for investments of the New York state college choice tuition
savings program and the New York achieving a better life experience
(ABLE) savings account program
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 78 of the state
finance law, as amended by chapter 328 of the laws of 2003, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The comptroller, as trustee, shall invest the assets of the trust
fund [in investments authorized by article four-A of the retirement and
social security law, provided however, that:
(i) the provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivision two of section one
hundred seventy-seven of the retirement and social security law shall
not apply except for the first clause of subparagraph (ii) of such para-
graph; and
(ii) notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision seven of section
one hundred seventy-seven of the retirement and social security law or
any other law to the contrary, the assets of the trust fund may be
invested in any funding agreement issued in accordance with section
three thousand two hundred twenty-two of the insurance law by a domestic
life insurance company or a foreign life insurance company doing busi-
ness in this state, subject to the following:
(1) such a funding agreement may provide for a guaranteed minimum rate
of return;
(2) such a funding agreement may be allocated as either a separate
account or a general account of the issuer, as the comptroller may
decide;
(3) total investments of the trust fund pursuant to this paragraph in
any funding agreements issued by a single life insurance company which
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10690-01-1
S. 9045 2
are allocated as a general account of the issuer shall not, in the
aggregate, exceed three hundred fifty million dollars; and
(4) no assets of the trust fund shall be invested in any such funding
agreement unless, at the time of such investment, the general obli-
gations or financial strength of the issuer have received either the
highest or second highest rating by two nationally recognized rating
services or by one nationally recognized rating service in the event
that only one such service rates such obligations] WITH THE CARE, SKILL,
PRUDENCE AND DILIGENCE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES THEN PREVAILING THAT A
PRUDENT PERSON ACTING IN A LIKE CAPACITY AND FAMILIAR WITH SUCH MATTERS
WOULD USE IN THE CONDUCT OF AN ENTERPRISE OF A LIKE CHARACTER AND WITH
LIKE AIMS.
§ 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 99-x of the state
finance law, as added by chapter 576 of the laws of 2015, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The comptroller, as trustee, shall invest the assets of the trust
fund [in investments authorized by article four-A of the retirement and
social security law, provided however, that: (i) the provisions of para-
graph (a) of subdivision two of section one hundred seventy-seven of the
retirement and social security law shall not apply except for the first
clause of subparagraph (ii) of such paragraph; and (ii) notwithstanding
the provisions of subdivision seven of section one hundred seventy-seven
of the retirement and social security law or any other law to the
contrary, the assets of the trust fund may be invested in any funding
agreement issued in accordance with section three thousand two hundred
twenty-two of the insurance law by a domestic life insurance company or
a foreign life insurance company doing business in this state, subject
to the following: (1) such a funding agreement may provide for a guaran-
teed minimum rate of return; (2) such a funding agreement may be allo-
cated as either a separate account or a general account of the issuer,
as the comptroller may decide; (3) total investments of the trust fund
pursuant to this paragraph in any funding agreements issued by a single
life insurance company which are allocated as a general account of the
issuer shall not, in the aggregate, exceed three hundred fifty million
dollars; and (4) no assets of the trust fund shall be invested in any
such funding agreement unless, at the time of such investment, the
general obligations or financial strength of the issuer have received
either the highest or second highest rating by two nationally recognized
rating services or by one nationally recognized rating service in the
event that only one such service rates such obligations] WITH THE CARE,
SKILL, PRUDENCE AND DILIGENCE UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES THEN PREVAILING
THAT A PRUDENT PERSON ACTING IN A LIKE CAPACITY AND FAMILIAR WITH SUCH
MATTERS WOULD USE IN THE CONDUCT OF AN ENTERPRISE OF A LIKE CHARACTER
AND WITH LIKE AIMS.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.