S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2959
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 1, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of A. WOERNER, OTIS -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation  to  facilitating
   school districts in purchasing local agricultural products
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraphs (b), (b-1) and (c) of subdivision 9  of  section
 103  of the general municipal law, paragraphs (b) and (c) as amended and
 paragraph (b-1) as added by chapter 90 of the laws of 2017, are  amended
 to read as follows:
   (b)  [the  amount  that  may  be  expended by a school district in any
 fiscal year for such purchases shall not exceed an amount equal to twen-
 ty cents multiplied by the total number  of  days  in  the  school  year
 multiplied by the total enrollment of such school district;
   (b-1) the amount that may be expended by a board of cooperative educa-
 tional  services  in any fiscal year for such purchases shall not exceed
 an amount equal to twenty cents multiplied by the total number  of  days
 in  the  school  year  multiplied  by  the  number of students receiving
 services by such board of cooperative educational services at facilities
 operated by a board of cooperative educational services;
   (c)] all such purchases shall be administered pursuant to  regulations
 promulgated by the commissioner of education. Such regulations shall: be
 developed  in  consultation  with  the  commissioner  of agriculture and
 markets to accommodate and promote the provisions of the  farm-to-school
 program established pursuant to subdivision five-b of section sixteen of
 the  agriculture  and  markets law and subdivision thirty-one of section
 three hundred five of the education law as added by chapter two  of  the
 laws  of  two  thousand  [two]  ONE;  ensure  that  the prices paid by a
 district or board of cooperative educational services for any  items  so
 purchased  do  not  exceed  the prices of comparable local farm products
 that are available to districts through their usual  purchases  of  such
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06353-01-3
              

 A. 2959                             2
 
 items;  ensure  that  all  producers  and  growers who desire to sell to
 school districts or boards of cooperative educational services can read-
 ily access  information  in  accordance  with  the  farm-to-school  law;
 include  provisions for situations when more than one producer or grower
 seeks to sell the same product to a district  or  board  of  cooperative
 educational  services  to ensure that all such producers or growers have
 an equitable opportunity to do so in  a  manner  similar  to  the  usual
 purchasing  practices  of such districts or boards of cooperative educa-
 tional services; develop guidelines for approval of purchases  of  items
 from  associations  of  more than ten growers and producers; and, to the
 maximum extent practicable, minimize additional paperwork, recordkeeping
 and other similar requirements on both growers and producers and  school
 districts.
   §  2.  Section 103 of the general municipal law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 17 to read as follows:
   17. (A) WHEN A BOARD OF EDUCATION, ON BEHALF OF  A  SCHOOL  OR  SCHOOL
 DISTRICT, ADVERTISES AN OFFER FOR BIDS, IT MAY INCLUDE IN ITS SPECIFICA-
 TIONS LANGUAGE FAVORING LOCAL OR REGIONAL PROCUREMENT WHERE PROXIMITY TO
 THE  OFFEROR IS REASONABLY RELATED TO THE PERFORMANCE OF THE SERVICES OR
 THE PROVISION OF THE GOODS, INCLUDING THE  TYPE  OR  QUALITY  OF  GOODS,
 BEING SOUGHT.
   (B)  UPON A DETERMINATION BY THE BOARD OF EDUCATION ADVERTISING SUCH A
 BID THAT THE GOODS OR SERVICES INCLUDED IN SUCH AN OFFER ARE NOT  AVAIL-
 ABLE  LOCALLY  OR  REGIONALLY,  ANY LANGUAGE SPECIFYING PROXIMITY TO THE
 OFFEROR SHALL BE WAIVED UNTIL  THE  NEXT  CONTRACT  FOR  SUCH  GOODS  OR
 SERVICES IS LET OUT FOR BID.
   (C) IN THE EVENT THAT A BOARD OF EDUCATION RECEIVES NO ACCEPTABLE BIDS
 IT  MAY WAIVE THE LANGUAGE SPECIFYING PROXIMITY TO THE OFFEROR AND SHALL
 AWARD A CONTRACT IN ACCORDANCE WITH OTHER APPLICABLE STATUTES.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have  become  a  law.    Effective  immediately the addition, amendment,
 and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
 of this act on  its  effective  date  are  authorized  to  be  made  and
 completed  by  the  commissioner  of  the  department of agriculture and
 markets in consultation with  the  commissioner  of  the  department  of
 education on or before such effective date.