Requires the electronic and print publication of certain school district reports within 7 days after approval; defines "local officer or employee" to include certain school officials.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1775
SPONSOR: Fitzpatrick (MS) TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the education law, in relation to electronic and print
publication of certain school district reports; and to amend the general
municipal law, in relation to additional definitions
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To improve public accountability and credibility of school district
finances by requiring districts to post all audit reports, proposed and
enacted budgets, expenditure reports, union contracts, superintendent
contracts, and board minutes online within seven days of approval and
have those documents available in printed form at the district office.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill adds a new Section 2-f to the Education Law to
require all school districts, including charter schools, to make the
following documents available, within seven days of approval, on a
school or district sponsored website and in printed form at the district
office: all audit reports; proposed and enacted budgets; expenditure
reports; union contracts; superintendent contracts; and board meeting
minutes.
Section 2 amends subdivision 3 of Section 810 of the General Municipal
Law to require superintendents, district superintendents and school
business officials to be subject to financial disclosure requirements.
Section 3 authorizes this act to take effect 180 days after enactment.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IF APPLICABLE):
JUSTIFICATION:
New York State's taxpayers invest more than $39 billion per year for
education in New York State. It is an investment that New Yorkers make
because of their longstanding commitment to ensuring a quality education
for all their children and because of the recognition of the crucial
role that education plays in ensuring the continued vitality of the
state.
Because the investment is so important, it is crucial that we do every-
thing we can to ensure that money is spent in a fiscally prudent and
financially responsible manner. Unfortunately, events have underscored
the fact that financial oversight of school districts is woefully inade-
quate, and that fundamental change is required in order to ensure the
continued confidence of New Yorkers in their education investment.
Although the Legislature enacted laws to improve the fiscal oversight of
school district finances in the 2005 Legislation Session, this legis-
lation did not substantially improve accountability and financial
disclosures to the public New York taxpayers can only be expected to
invest in education if they know their money is being spent wisely,
prudently, and in a manner consistent with the priorities they have
voted to fund. Passage of this bill would go a long way to accomplish
all these goals.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024 - A4683 - Referred to Education Committee
2022 - A5628 - Referred to Education Committee
2020 - A5357 - Held in Education Committee
2018 - A7343 - Held in Education Committee
2016 - A3296 - Held in Education Committee
2014 - A3218 - Held in Education Committee
2012 - A2683 - Held in Education Committee
2010 - A2619 - Held in Education Committee
2008 - A5051 - Held in Education Committee
2006 - A9483 - Held in Education Committee
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect 180 days after enactment.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1775
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. FITZPATRICK, TAGUE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of
A. BARCLAY, DeSTEFANO, HAWLEY, MANKTELOW -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to electronic and print
publication of certain school district reports; and to amend the
general municipal law, in relation to additional definitions
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 2-f to
2 read as follows:
3 § 2-f. Publication of school reports. Notwithstanding any contrary
4 provision of law or regulation, no later than seven calendar days after
5 the approval by any trustee, principal, officer, or board of education
6 of any public school in any BOCES, city, union free, common or central
7 school district or any charter school, such school shall make available
8 on a school or district sponsored website and in printed form at the
9 district office all audit reports, proposed and enacted budgets, expend-
10 iture reports, union contracts, superintendent contracts, and the
11 minutes of all school board meetings.
12 § 2. Subdivision 3 of section 810 of the general municipal law, as
13 amended by section 5 of part J of chapter 59 of the laws of 2013, is
14 amended to read as follows:
15 3. The term "local officer or employee" shall mean a superintendent,
16 district superintendent or school business official as well as the heads
17 (other than local elected officials) of any agency, department, divi-
18 sion, council, board, commission, or bureau of a political subdivision
19 and their deputies and assistants, and the officers and employees of
20 such agencies, departments, divisions, boards, bureaus, commissions or
21 councils who hold policy-making positions, as annually determined by the
22 appointing authority and set forth in a written instrument which shall
23 be filed with the appropriate body during the month of February; except
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04365-01-5
A. 1775 2
1 that the term "local officer or employee" shall not mean a judge,
2 justice, officer or employee of the unified court system. Members, offi-
3 cers, and employees of each industrial development agency and authority
4 established by this chapter or created by the public authorities law
5 shall be deemed officers or employees of the county, city, village, or
6 town for whose benefit such agency or authority is established or
7 created.
8 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
9 it shall have become a law.
