NY State Senate Bill 2023-S4489

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to local government
Feb 09, 2023	referred to local government

co-Sponsors

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4953
Current Committee:: Senate Local Government
Law Section:: General Municipal Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §6-n, Gen Muni L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: A10145
2019-2020: S2067, A114
2021-2022: S2065, A4940

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Authorizes school districts to establish an insurance reserve fund in an amount and manner determined by a qualified and independent actuary certified by the American Academy of Actuaries to be reasonable and necessary.

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4489

SPONSOR: GALLIVAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the general municipal law, in relation to authorizing
all school districts to establish reserve funds

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 6-n of the general municipal law by providing
that any school district may establish insurance reserve funds in
compliance with section 6-n, provisions in the education law, and
subject to a collective bargaining agreement. The provisions also
include a limit on funds reserved to be determined by an independent
actuary.

Section 2 sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Current law allows municipal corporations to self-insure to provide

health insurance to their employees, officers, and retirees. Section 6-n
of the general municipal law specifically does so by allowing these
municipal corporations to establish and make expenditures from insurance
reserve funds, but exempts accident and health insurance from these
provisions.

Previous chapters authorized specific school districts to use their
insurance reserve funds for expenses related to health and accident
insurance as defined by paragraph three of subsection (a) of section one
thousand one hundred thirteen of the insurance law. In the era of the
tax cap, several school districts have opted to adopt self-insurance to
manage rising healthcare costs, and for these districts, insurance
reserve funds are necessary to maintain their self-insurance programs.
The policy of the State should be aimed at allowing all school districts
the flexibility offered by insurance reserve funds; instead, the legis-
lature has approached the matter in a piecemeal way. In 2019 and 2020
alone, the legislature added 21 school districts to those who are
allowed to operate an insurance reserve fund over the course of 21
different pieces of legislation.  As of March 2021, an additional 4
school districts have legislation before the Senate to gain authori-
zation. This bill offers the flexibility the legislature has extended to
some school districts universally, expanding the authorization to any
school district that wishes to create or use an insurance reserve fund
for health self-insurance.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-22: S.2065a Referred to Local Government

2019-20: S.2067b/A.114a Referred to Local Government/Referred to Educa-
tion

2018: S.7702/A.10145A Reported to 3rd Reading/Referred to Education

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
The first of July next succeeding the date on which it shall have become
law.

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4489
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 9, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. GALLIVAN, TEDISCO -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the general municipal law, in relation to authorizing
   all school districts to establish reserve funds
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 6-n of the gener-
 al  municipal  law, as separately amended by chapters 251 and 338 of the
 laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
   (a) The governing board of any municipal corporation may  establish  a
 reserve  fund  to  be  known  as  the  insurance  reserve fund. Upon the
 creation of the fund, the municipality may make  expenditures  from  the
 fund  for  any  loss,  claim, action or judgment for which the municipal
 corporation is authorized or required to purchase or maintain insurance,
 except those kinds of risks for which insurance is  authorized  pursuant
 to  paragraph  one,  two,  three, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen,
 twenty-two or twenty-three of subsection (a) of section one thousand one
 hundred thirteen of the insurance  law,  or  for  payments  in  lieu  of
 contributions under article eighteen of the labor law; provided however,
 that  no  municipality  shall make an expenditure from such fund for any
 loss, claim, action or judgment for which the municipal corporation  has
 established  a  reserve fund under any other provision of law; provided,
 further that the Scarsdale union free school  district,  the  Mamaroneck
 union free school district, the Minisink Valley central school district,
 the  Vernon  Verona  Sherrill  central  school district, the Ithaca city
 school  district,  the  Kenmore-Town  of  Tonawanda  union  free  school
 district,  the Bedford central school district, the Grand Island central
 school district, the Tonawanda city school district, the  enlarged  city
 school district of Middletown, the Frontier central school district, the
 Owego  Apalachin  central  school  district,  the  Maine-Endwell central
 school district, the Binghamton city school district, the Candor central
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09087-01-3

 S. 4489                             2
 
 school district, the Depew union free  school  district,  the  Liverpool
 central  school  district, the Carmel central school district, [and] the
 Canastota central school district AND ANY OTHER SCHOOL DISTRICT,  PURSU-
 ANT  TO  A  COLLECTIVE  BARGAINING  AGREEMENT,  may  establish insurance
 reserve funds in compliance with this section and  article  seventy-four
 of  the education law, IN AN AMOUNT AND MANNER DETERMINED BY A QUALIFIED
 AND INDEPENDENT ACTUARY CERTIFIED BY THE AMERICAN ACADEMY  OF  ACTUARIES
 TO  BE  REASONABLE  AND  NECESSARY,  and  such school districts may make
 expenditures in compliance with this section and article seventy-four of
 the education law from such reserve fund for any loss, claim, action  or
 judgment  for  which  the school districts are authorized or required to
 purchase or maintain insurance for the kinds of risks for  which  insur-
 ance  is  authorized  pursuant  to  paragraph three of subsection (a) of
 section one thousand one hundred thirteen of the insurance law.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July  next  succeeding
 the date on which it shall have become a law.

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Senate Bill S4489

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

co-Sponsors

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S4489

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Sponsored By

Patrick M. Gallivan

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Local Government Committee

co-Sponsors

James Tedisco

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S4489 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments