NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6420 REVISED 4/5/10
SPONSOR: Weisenberg TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend chapter 415 of the laws of 1913,
relating to establishing a state commission for the blind and visually
handicapped, in relation to the operation of vending facilities
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Amendment to the mini Randolph Shep-
pard act of 1992, an act which created the Business Enterprise Program.
The bill seeks to increase employment opportunities for members of the
Business Enterprise Program by adding locations where vending facilities
may be located.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: SEE BILL.
JUSTIFICATION: The Business Enterprise Program (B.E.P.) was estab-
lished as a way to provide people who are visually impaired with jobs as
retail facility managers in various state buildings.
Unfortunately, due to recent government down-sizing there has been a 25%
decrease in job opportunities for B.E.P. members. With unemployment
rates increasing and available jobs slim for the average New Yorker,
options for those with visual impairments are extremely scarce.
Property owned by the State University of New York and the New York
state Thruway Authority are both viable locations for vending facilities
which require the employment of the visually impaired managers who oper-
ate and maintain them. These locations should be utilized in order to
provide independence and a career opportunity to those with visual
impairment.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New Bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: To Be Determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6420
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 3, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WEISENBERG -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend chapter 415 of the laws of 1913, relating to establish-
ing a state commission for the blind and visually handicapped, in
relation to the operation of vending facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subparagraph (A) of paragraph 3 of subdivision b of section
2 11-a of chapter 415 of the laws of 1913, relating to establishing a
3 state commission for the blind and visually handicapped, as added by
4 chapter 693 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
5 (A) Wherever feasible, permits shall be issued to the department of
6 social services for one or more vending facilities to be established on
7 all state property or any building which houses any authority, agency or
8 entity whose board of directors or executives are appointed by the
9 governor, or any airport located in the state of New York, to the extent
10 that any such facility or facilities would not adversely affect the
11 interests of the state.
12 § 2. Subparagraph (B) of paragraph 3 of subdivision c of section 11-a
13 of chapter 415 of the laws of 1913, relating to establishing a state
14 commission for the blind and visually handicapped, as added by chapter
15 693 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
16 (B) The provisions of this section shall not apply [(1) where to the
17 number of state employees (including employees of a state department
18 agency or instrumentality) regularly employed at a site is to be less
19 than four hundred or (2) to property of the state university of New
20 York, the department of correctional services or the New York state
21 thruway authority or (3)] where prior to the execution of such lease,
22 the lessor or any tenant has had in operation a vending facility
23 (regardless of the operator thereof) in a part of the building not
24 included in such lease and the operation of a vending facility by a
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09904-02-9
A. 6420 2
1 blind person would be in proximate and substantial direct competition
2 with such vending facility except that each such department, agency or
3 instrumentality shall give due consideration to leasing property in
4 privately owned buildings capable of accommodating a vending facility
5 and shall give due consideration to providing for the lease of a vending
6 facility and shall give due consideration to providing for the lease of
7 a vending facility not operated by a blind person to be made available
8 to a blind person upon the vacating of such facility by the current
9 operator. Current arrangements by a state department, agency or instru-
10 mentality, as to property occupied by it, subject to a term of years or
11 other time limitation, shall not be affected by this section during the
12 period of such term or other time limitation.
13 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
