Senator Kathy Marchione’s legislation allowing municipalities to lease naming rights to generate new revenues passes State Senate

For Release: Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Albany, NY – Senator Kathy Marchione (R,C,I,Reform-Halfmoon), Chair of the Senate’s Local Government Committee, today announced the State Senate’s passage of her legislation allowing municipalities to lease naming rights of government-owned property. The measure passed the State Senate during today’s Session by a vote of 52-10.

Senator Marchione’s legislation, Senate Bill S.3865, amends the State’s General Municipal Law to allow municipalities to lease naming rights for government-owned property to help localities generate new revenues to support and strengthen local services and rely less upon property taxes. The measure sponsored by Senator Marchione allows municipalities – counties, cities, towns and villages – the option to lease naming rights for governmentally owned properties and facilities such as waterfront property, parks, rail-trails, railroad tracks, city buses and stadiums.

Under the bill, municipalities may enter into contracts to lease naming rights for facilities it owns, and the municipality’s chief executive officer is responsible for negotiating a contract subject to ratification of a majority of the municipality’s legislative body. The legislation also specifies that the leasing agreement shall be for a period of not less than one year, and not more than five years.

In addition, Senator Marchione’s legislation contains important provisions to ensure transparency. The bill includes specific requirements that, prior to the ratification of a contract regarding naming rights for municipal-owned facilities, the legislative body of the municipality shall convene a public hearing, with 30 days’ notice, announcing the intention to enter a contract with a third party, and for the public hearing to take place 90 days prior to contract ratification.

“Having served in local government, and now serving as Chair of the Senate’s Local Government Committee, I know that localities have been doing more, with less, for years. They have led the way in successfully innovating, working together and effectively sharing resources. Despite these successes, many local governments still struggle to balance their budgets. Granting municipalities additional flexibility to lease naming rights for facilities they own is a common sense way to assist them in generating new revenues to support and strengthen essential local services, balance their budgets and rely less upon local property taxes. My legislation would help local governments achieve these important real results,” Senator Marchione said.

The Assembly companion measure for Senate Bill S.3865 is Assembly Bill A.7832, sponsored by Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli (D-Syracuse), Chair of the Assembly’s Local Government Committee. The Assembly version was referred to the Assembly Committee on Local Governments for consideration.

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