S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
3959--B
Cal. No. 907
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
February 1, 2021
___________
Introduced by Sens. KENNEDY, BROUK, COONEY, MANNION, RAMOS -- read twice
and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee
on Transportation -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted
to the Committee on Transportation in accordance with Senate Rule 6,
sec. 8 -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and
second report, ordered to a third reading, passed by Senate and deliv-
ered to the Assembly, recalled, vote reconsidered, restored to third
reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the
order of third reading
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to various
transportation authorities
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 1299-a of the public authorities law is amended by
adding a new subdivision 18 to read as follows:
18. "TRANSIT DEPENDENT" SHALL MEAN AN INDIVIDUAL WHO IS LIMITED TO
PUBLIC TRANSIT AS THEIR PRIMARY MODE OF TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE THE INDI-
VIDUAL HAS EITHER A PERMANENT OR TEMPORARY DISABILITY.
§ 2. Subdivision 1 of section 1299-c of the public authorities law, as
amended by chapter 220 of the laws of 2012, paragraph (b) as amended by
chapter 197 of the laws of 2017, and paragraph (c) as amended by chapter
176 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
1. (a) There is hereby created the "Niagara Frontier transportation
authority." The authority shall be a body corporate and politic consti-
tuting a public benefit corporation. The authority shall consist of a
chairman, ten [other] VOTING members and shall have [two] ONE non-voting
[members] MEMBER as described in [paragraphs] PARAGRAPH (b) [and (c)] of
this subdivision appointed by the governor by and with the advice and
consent of the senate. The chairman and all members shall be residents
of the district. Of the ten VOTING members other than the chairman, one
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07644-08-2
S. 3959--B 2
shall be appointed upon the written recommendation of the Erie county
executive [and], one shall be appointed upon the written recommendation
of the Erie county legislature, AND AT LEAST ONE SHALL BE A TRANSIT
DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL. The chairman and each of the members shall be
appointed for a term of eight years, provided however, that the chairman
first appointed shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen
hundred seventy-three, and of the eight other members first appointed,
one shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred
sixty-eight, two shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen
hundred sixty-nine, one shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth,
nineteen hundred seventy, two shall serve for a term ending June thirti-
eth, nineteen hundred seventy-one, one shall serve for a term ending
June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-two and one shall serve for a
term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-three. The term of
one of the members appointed to memberships first created by law after
April first, nineteen hundred sixty-nine shall end on June thirtieth,
nineteen hundred seventy-four, and the term of the other such member
shall end on June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-five. Following
the expiration of any term ending on or after June thirtieth, nineteen
hundred eighty-seven, each member shall be appointed for a term of five
years beginning on the day after the expiration date of such prior term;
provided, however, that the term of the member first appointed upon the
written recommendation of the Erie county executive and the term of the
member first appointed upon the written recommendation of the Erie coun-
ty legislature shall be for a term ending on June thirtieth, nineteen
hundred ninety-six.
(b) The [first] non-voting member of the authority, who shall not be
considered in determining a quorum, shall be recommended to the governor
by the labor organization representing the plurality of the employees
within the authority and shall be a resident of the Niagara Frontier
transportation district as described in section twelve hundred ninety-
nine-b of this title. Such [first] non-voting member shall be appointed
for a term of five years, provided, however, that if at any time during
the term of appointment such non-voting member ceases to be affiliated
with the labor organization representing the plurality of employees
within the authority, then such labor organization may at any time
during such term recommend a new member to the governor who shall serve
the remainder of the term. If the local bargaining unit decertifies its
existing union affiliation and certifies a new union, the union which
represents the plurality of the employees may recommend a new member to
the governor who shall serve the remainder of the term. The chairman of
the authority, at his or her discretion, may exclude such non-voting
member from attending any portion of a meeting of the authority or of
any committee held for the purpose of discussing negotiations with labor
organizations, pending litigation involving the labor organization, or
the investigation, evaluation, or discipline of an employee.
(c) [There shall also be a second non-voting member of the authority,
who shall not be considered in determining a quorum. The second non-vot-
ing member shall be appointed by the governor as a representative of the
transit dependent community and/or people with disabilities. The second
non-voting member shall be appointed for a term of five years.] THE
TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL APPOINTED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION (A) OF
THIS SECTION SHALL BE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF
A LOCAL OR STATEWIDE TRANSIT ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION. SUCH MEMBER SHALL BE
A RESIDENT OF A COUNTY DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
IF A VACANCY SHALL OCCUR, A REPLACEMENT SHALL BE APPOINTED WITHIN SIX
S. 3959--B 3
MONTHS, SUBJECT TO THE SAME APPOINTMENT PROCESS SET FORTH IN THIS PARA-
GRAPH.
§ 3. Section 1299-bb of the public authorities law is amended by
adding a new subdivision 25 to read as follows:
25. "TRANSIT DEPENDENT" SHALL MEAN AN INDIVIDUAL WHO IS LIMITED TO
PUBLIC TRANSIT AS THEIR PRIMARY MODE OF TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE THE INDI-
VIDUAL HAS EITHER A PERMANENT OR TEMPORARY DISABILITY.
§ 4. Subdivisions 1 and 4 of section 1299-dd of the public authorities
law, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 495 of the laws of 2019 and
subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 1115 of the laws of 1971, are
amended to read as follows:
1. (a) There is hereby created the Rochester-Genesee regional trans-
portation authority. The authority shall be a body corporate and politic
constituting a public benefit corporation. It shall consist of at least
one member from each county that elects to join the authority except
that the county of Monroe shall have seven members of whom three shall
be appointed from the city of Rochester and four at large from the coun-
ty of Monroe, AND A VOTING MEMBER WHO IS A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL
APPOINTED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (C) OF THIS SUBDIVISION and shall have
[two] ONE non-voting [members] MEMBER as described in [paragraphs] PARA-
GRAPH (b) [and (c)] of this subdivision. The members shall be appointed
by the governor by and with the advice and consent of the senate. The
governor shall make initial appointments to the authority in such number
and from lists submitted as follows: three members shall be appointed to
the authority from a list of not less than six names, all of whom must
be residents of the city of Rochester, submitted to the governor by the
council of the city of Rochester; four persons from a list of not less
than eight persons, all of whom must be residents of the county of
Monroe submitted by the legislature of the county of Monroe. Other coun-
ties electing to participate shall each submit to the governor a list of
not less than two persons for each one hundred thousand or major frac-
tion of the total population, as determined by the last federal decenni-
al or federal county-wide special census. From the counties outside the
county of Monroe which shall elect to participate, the governor shall
appoint one member for each one hundred thousand or major fraction of
the total population, as determined by the last federal decennial or
federal county-wide special census, with a minimum of one member to
represent each county outside the county of Monroe so electing to
participate. All members of the authority shall be residents of the area
from which they are nominated.
(b) The [first] non-voting member of the authority, who shall not be
considered in determining a quorum, shall be recommended to the governor
by the labor organization representing the plurality of the employees
within the authority and shall be a resident of the Rochester-Genesee
regional transportation district as described in section twelve hundred
ninety-nine-cc of this title. Such [first] non-voting member shall be
appointed for a term of five years, provided, however, that if at any
time during the term of appointment such non-voting member ceases to be
affiliated with the labor organization representing the plurality of
employees within the authority, then such labor organization may at any
time during such term recommend a new member to the governor who shall
serve the remainder of the term. If the local bargaining unit decerti-
fies its existing union affiliation and certifies a new union, the union
which represents the plurality of the employees may recommend a new
member to the governor who shall serve the remainder of the term. The
chairman of the authority, at his or her discretion, may exclude such
S. 3959--B 4
non-voting member from attending any portion of a meeting of the author-
ity or of any committee held for the purpose of discussing negotiations
with labor organizations, pending litigation involving the labor organ-
ization, or the investigation, evaluation, or discipline of an employee.
[(c) There shall also be a second non-voting member of the authority,
who shall not be considered in determining a quorum. The second non-vot-
ing member shall be appointed by the governor as a representative of the
transit dependent and/or disabled community. The second non-voting
member shall be appointed for a term of five years. The chair of the
authority, at his or her discretion, may exclude such non-voting member
from attending any portion of a meeting of the authority or of any
committee held pursuant to the executive session provisions of the open
meetings law.]
(C) THE VOTING MEMBER WHO IS A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL AS
DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE APPOINTED BY THE
GOVERNOR AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF A LOCAL OR STATEWIDE TRANSIT ADVOCACY
ORGANIZATION FOR A TERM OF FIVE YEARS. IF A VACANCY OCCURS FOR SUCH
POSITION, A REPLACEMENT SHALL BE APPOINTED WITHIN SIX MONTHS PURSUANT TO
THIS PROCESS.
4. A majority of the whole number of votes of members of the
authority, INCLUDING THE VOTING MEMBER WHO IS A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDI-
VIDUAL AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION, shall constitute
a quorum for the transaction of business or the exercise of any power of
the authority. Except as otherwise specified in this act, for the trans-
action 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. Each member
of the authority shall have one vote for each thirty-five thousand or
major fraction thereof of the population of the county or city from
which he is appointed based upon the results of the last federal decen-
nial or federal county-wide special census divided by the total number
of members appointed from such county or city, EXCEPT THAT THE VOTING
MEMBER WHO IS A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION
ONE OF THIS SECTION SHALL HAVE ONE VOTE IN TOTAL. The minimum number of
votes each member shall have, regardless of population, is one. The
votes of all members shall be calculated with fractions being rounded to
the nearest whole number. The population of a county for the purposes of
this provision is the total population of such county less the popu-
lation of any city which is entitled to have members appointed on the
authority.
§ 5. Section 1301 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
new subdivision 26 to read as follows:
26. "TRANSIT DEPENDENT" SHALL MEAN AN INDIVIDUAL WHO IS LIMITED TO
PUBLIC TRANSIT AS THEIR PRIMARY MODE OF TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE THE INDI-
VIDUAL HAS A TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT DISABILITY.
§ 6. Subdivision 1 of section 1303 of the public authorities law, as
amended by chapter 388 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as
follows:
1. (a) There is hereby created the Capital District transportation
authority. The authority shall be a body corporate and politic consti-
tuting a public benefit corporation. It shall consist of not less than
eight nor more than fifteen members, including a chairman and shall have
one non-voting member as described in paragraph (b) of this subdivision.
AT LEAST ONE VOTING MEMBER SHALL BE A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL WHO
SHALL BE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF A LOCAL OR
STATEWIDE TRANSIT ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION, PROVIDED THAT IF A VACANCY
S. 3959--B 5
OCCURS FOR SUCH TRANSIT DEPENDENT MEMBER POSITION, A REPLACEMENT SHALL
BE APPOINTED WITHIN SIX MONTHS, SUBJECT TO THE SAME APPOINTMENT
PROCESS WITHIN THIS PARAGRAPH. The members shall be appointed by the
governor by and with the advice and consent of the senate. The governor
shall make initial appointments to the authority in such number and from
lists submitted as follows: three members shall be appointed to the
authority from a list of six names, all of whom shall be residents of
the county of Albany, four of which names shall be submitted to the
governor by the majority party of the legislature of the county of Alba-
ny and two of which names shall be submitted by the minority party of
such legislature; two members shall be appointed to the authority from a
list of four names, all of whom shall be residents of the county of
Schenectady, three of which names shall be submitted to the governor by
the majority party of the legislature of the county of Schenectady and
one of which names shall be submitted by the minority party of such
legislature; two members shall be appointed to the authority from a list
of four names, all of whom shall be residents of the county of Rensse-
laer, three of which names shall be submitted to the governor by the
majority party of the legislature of the county of Rensselaer and one of
which names shall be submitted by the minority party of such legisla-
ture; two members shall be appointed to the authority from a list of
four names, all of whom shall be residents of the county of Saratoga,
three of which names shall be submitted to the governor by the majority
party of the legislature of the county of Saratoga and one of which
names shall be submitted by the minority party of such legislature.
Other counties electing to participate shall each submit to the governor
a list of two persons each of whom shall be a resident of such county,
one of which names shall be submitted to the governor by the majority
party of the legislature of such county and one of which names shall be
submitted by the minority party of such legislature, from which number
the governor shall appoint one member for each such county so electing
to participate.
(b) [There shall also be one] THE non-voting member of the authority,
[which] WHO shall not be considered in determining a quorum[. The non-
voting member], shall be recommended to the governor by the labor organ-
ization representing the plurality of the employees within the authority
and shall be a resident of the Capital District transportation district
as described in section thirteen hundred two of this title. The non-vot-
ing member shall be appointed for a term of five years, provided, howev-
er, that if at any time during the term of appointment the non-voting
member ceases to be affiliated with the labor organization representing
the plurality of employees within the authority, then such labor organ-
ization may at any time during such term recommend a new member to the
governor who shall serve the remainder of the term. If the local
bargaining unit decertifies its existing union affiliation and certifies
a new union, the union which represents the plurality of the employees
may recommend a new member to the governor who shall serve the remainder
of the term. The chairman of the authority, at his or her discretion,
may exclude such non-voting member from attending any portion of a meet-
ing of the authority or of any committee held for the purpose of
discussing negotiations with labor organizations, pending litigation
involving the labor organization, or the investigation, evaluation, or
discipline of an employee.
§ 7. Section 1326 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
new subdivision 26 to read as follows:
S. 3959--B 6
26. "TRANSIT DEPENDENT" SHALL MEAN AN INDIVIDUAL WHO IS LIMITED TO
PUBLIC TRANSIT AS THEIR PRIMARY MODE OF TRANSPORTATION BECAUSE THE INDI-
VIDUAL HAS A TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT DISABILITY.
§ 8. Subdivision 1 of section 1328 of the public authorities law, as
separately amended by chapters 388 and 396 of the laws of 2007, is
amended to read as follows:
1. (a) There is hereby created the central New York regional transpor-
tation authority. The authority shall be a body corporate and politic
constituting a public benefit corporation. It shall consist of not more
than twelve members, including a chairman and shall have one non-voting
member as described in paragraph (b) of this subdivision. AT LEAST ONE
VOTING MEMBER SHALL BE A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL WHO SHALL BE
APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF A LOCAL OR STATEWIDE
TRANSIT ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION, PROVIDED THAT IF A VACANCY OCCURS FOR
SUCH TRANSIT DEPENDENT MEMBER POSITION, A REPLACEMENT SHALL BE APPOINTED
WITHIN SIX MONTHS, SUBJECT TO THE SAME APPOINTMENT PROCESS WITHIN
THIS PARAGRAPH. The members shall be appointed by the governor by and
with the advice and consent of the senate. The governor shall make
initial appointments to the authority in such number and from lists
submitted as follows: three members shall be appointed to the authority
from a list of not less than six names, submitted to the governor by the
common council of the city of Syracuse, five persons from a list of not
less than ten names, submitted by the legislature of the county of Onon-
daga and two members shall be appointed from a list of not less than
four names submitted by the legislature of the county of Oneida. Other
counties electing to participate shall each submit to the governor a
list of not less than two persons for each one hundred thousand or major
fraction of the total population, as determined by the nineteen hundred
seventy or any subsequent federal decennial or federal county-wide
special census, of the counties outside the county of Onondaga which
shall elect to participate, from which number the governor shall appoint
one member for each one hundred thousand or major fraction of the total
population, as determined by such federal decennial or federal county-
wide special census, with a maximum of three members to represent such
counties outside the county of Onondaga so electing to participate.
(b) [There shall also be one] THE non-voting member of the authority,
[which] WHO shall not be considered in determining a quorum[. The non-
voting member], shall be recommended to the governor by the labor organ-
ization representing the plurality of the employees within the authori-
ty. The non-voting member shall be appointed for a term of seven years,
provided, however, that if at any time during the term of appointment
the non-voting member ceases to be affiliated with the labor organiza-
tion representing the plurality of employees within the authority, then
such labor organization may at any time during such term recommend a new
member to the governor who shall serve the remainder of the term. If the
local bargaining unit decertifies its existing union affiliation and
certifies a new union, the union which represents the plurality of the
employees may recommend a new member to the governor who shall serve the
remainder of the term. The chairman of the authority, at his or her
discretion, may exclude such non-voting member from attending any
portion of a meeting of the authority or of any committee held for the
purpose of discussing negotiations with labor organizations, pending
litigation involving the labor organization, or the investigation, eval-
uation, or discipline of an employee.
§ 9. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
have become a law.
