S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8037
I N S E N A T E
January 5, 2024
___________
Introduced by Sen. PERSAUD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to requiring one
voting member of the metropolitan transportation authority be a trans-
it dependent individual; and to amend a chapter of the laws of 2023
amending the public authorities law relating to requiring one voting
member of the metropolitan transportation authority be a transit
dependent individual, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S.
5069-A and A. 4504-A, in relation to the effectiveness thereof
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section
1263 of the public authorities law, as amended by a chapter of the laws
of 2023 amending the public authorities law relating to requiring one
voting member of the metropolitan transportation authority be a transit
dependent individual, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5069-A
and A. 4504-A, is amended to read as follows:
(1) There is hereby created the "metropolitan transportation authori-
ty." The authority shall be a body corporate and politic constituting a
public benefit corporation. The authority shall consist of a chair-
person, sixteen other voting members, and two non-voting and four alter-
nate non-voting members, as described in subparagraph two of this para-
graph appointed by the governor by and with the advice and consent of
the senate. Any member appointed to a term commencing on or after June
thirtieth, two thousand nine shall have experience in one or more of the
following areas: transportation, public administration, business manage-
ment, finance, accounting, law, engineering, land use, urban and
regional planning, management of large capital projects, labor
relations, or have experience in some other area of activity central to
the mission of the authority. Four of the sixteen voting members other
than the chairperson shall be appointed on the written recommendation of
the mayor of the city of New York; and each of seven other voting
members other than the chairperson shall be appointed after selection
from a written list of three recommendations from the chief executive
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05301-04-4
S. 8037 2
officer of the county in which the particular member is required to
reside pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision. Of the members
appointed on recommendation of the chief executive officer of a county,
one such member shall be, at the time of appointment, a resident of the
county of Nassau, one a resident of the county of Suffolk, one a resi-
dent of the county of Westchester, one a resident of the county of
Dutchess, one a resident of the county of Orange, one a resident of the
county of Putnam and one a resident of the county of Rockland, provided
that the term of any member who is a resident of a county that has with-
drawn from the metropolitan commuter transportation district pursuant to
section twelve hundred seventy-nine-b of this title shall terminate upon
the effective date of such county's withdrawal from such district. Of
the five voting members, other than the chairperson, appointed by the
governor without recommendation from any other person, three shall be,
at the time of appointment, residents of the city of New York and two
shall be, at the time of appointment, residents of such city or of any
of the aforementioned counties in the metropolitan commuter transporta-
tion district. Provided however, notwithstanding the foregoing residency
requirement, one of the five voting members appointed by the governor
without recommendation from any other person, other than the chair-
person, may be the director of the New York state division of the budg-
et, and provided further that, in the event of such appointment, the
budget director's membership in the authority shall be deemed ex-offi-
cio. Provided further, one of the [five] TWELVE voting members, other
than the chairperson, appointed by the governor without recommendation
by any other person, OR ON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE MAYOR OF THE CITY
OF NEW YORK, OR OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE COUNTIES OF WEST-
CHESTER, NASSAU, OR SUFFOLK shall be a transit dependent individual. A
"transit dependent individual" shall mean an individual who is limited
to public transit as their primary mode of transportation because the
individual has a permanent disability, provided that any local or state-
wide transit advocacy organization may recommend one or more transit
dependent individuals to be considered for appointment pursuant to this
section. The chairperson and each of the members shall be appointed for
a term of six years, provided however, that the chairperson first
appointed shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred
eighty-one, provided that thirty days after the effective date of the
chapter of the laws of two thousand nine which amended this subpara-
graph, the term of the chairperson shall expire; provided, further, that
such chairperson may continue to discharge the duties of his or her
office until the position of chairperson is filled by appointment by the
governor upon the advice and consent of the senate and the term of such
new chairperson shall terminate June thirtieth, two thousand fifteen.
The sixteen other members first appointed shall serve for the following
terms: The members from the counties of Nassau and Westchester shall
each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
five; the members from the county of Suffolk and from the counties of
Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall each serve for a term ending
June thirtieth, nineteen hundred ninety-two; two of the members
appointed on recommendation of the mayor of the city of New York shall
each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
four and, two shall each serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nine-
teen hundred eighty-one; two of the members appointed by the governor
without the recommendation of any other person shall each serve for a
term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two, two shall each
serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty and one
S. 8037 3
shall serve for a term ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-
five. The two non-voting and four alternate non-voting members shall
serve until January first, two thousand one. The members from the coun-
ties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam and Rockland shall cast one collective
vote.
§ 2. Subdivision 1 of section 1263 of the public authorities law is
amended by adding a new paragraph (b-1) to read as follows:
(B-1) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY INCONSISTENT PROVISION OF THIS SECTION, IN
THE EVENT THAT, UPON A VACANCY TO BE FILLED BY THE GOVERNOR WITHOUT
RECOMMENDATION, OTHER THAN THE CHAIRPERSON, THERE IS NO TRANSIT DEPEND-
ENT MEMBER SERVING, THE GOVERNOR SHALL APPOINT A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDI-
VIDUAL TO FILL THE VACANCY, CONSISTENT WITH PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDI-
VISION. PROVIDED FURTHER THAT IN THE EVENT THAT THERE IS NO TRANSIT
DEPENDENT MEMBER SERVING AND THERE IS NO VACANCY TO BE FILLED BY THE
GOVERNOR WITHOUT RECOMMENDATION OTHER THAN THE CHAIRPERSON, THEN UPON A
VACANCY IN A SEAT FILLED BY THE GOVERNOR UPON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE
MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK SHALL
RECOMMEND A TRANSIT DEPENDENT INDIVIDUAL TO FILL THE VACANCY, CONSISTENT
WITH PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
§ 3. Section 2 of a chapter of the laws of 2023 amending the public
authorities law relating to requiring one voting member of the metropol-
itan transportation authority be a transit dependent individual, as
proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5069-A and A. 4504-A, is
amended to read as follows:
§ 2. This act shall take effect [immediately] ON THE TWO HUNDRED
SEVENTIETH DAY AFTER IT SHALL HAVE BECOME A LAW; provided, however, that
the amendments to subparagraph 1 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of
section 1263 of the public authorities law made by section one of this
act shall not affect the expiration of such paragraph and shall be
deemed expired therewith.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided however, that
the amendments to subparagraph 1 of paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of
section 1263 of the public authorities law made by section 1 of this act
shall not affect the expiration of such paragraph and shall be deemed
expired therewith; and provided further, sections one and two of this
act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as section
one of a chapter of the laws of 2023 amending the public authorities law
relating to requiring one voting member of the metropolitan transporta-
tion authority be a transit dependent individual, as proposed in legis-
lative bills numbers S. 5069-A and A. 4504-A, takes effect.