Legislative Amendments for the New York State Constitution

• AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to enacting the comptroller campaign finance reform act to provide for public financing for campaigns for the office of state comptroller; to amend the general business law, in relation to authorizing the imposition of an additional surcharge on recoveries for fraudulent practices relating to stocks, bonds and other securities; to amend the state finance law, in relation to establishing the NewYork state campaign finance fund; and to amend the tax law, in relation to providing for a New York state campaign finance fund checkoff

2012 Redistricting Cuomo Amendment

• Redistricting Statute
• Senate Bill S2107- Creates the independent redistricting commission to establish senate, assembly and congressional districts.
• Assembly Bill 9526- Creates the independent redistricting commission to establish senate, assembly and congressional districts.

Attorney General

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Legislature must provide provide protection against unfair sales, marketing and financing practices

Budget

• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides an alternative procedure for adoption of a state budget in instances where existing provisions have not been completed prior to April 1 (Assembly Bill A.1992)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides for adoption of previous year's budget in certain cases (Assembly Bill A.4110)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Changes the fiscal year to begin on the first of May and require the use of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the state fiscal plan (Assembly Bill A.1210)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Reforms the state budget process to provide that upon failure by the legislature to act upon a budget within 72 hours from the beginning of the state fiscal year a default budget shall take effect (Assembly Bill A.5650)
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Bonds issued, debt ceiling, community development programs, grants for public purposes
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Citizens have constitutional protection over their right to sue the state if they suspect unconstitutional spending by the government
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: State and local governments' community economic development is constitutionally specified and supported
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Removes requirement for state debt approval but imposes constitutional limit on aggregate state and public authority debt
• Reform the Budget Process.

Casino Gambling

• Amend the Constitutional Provisions Regarding Casino Gambling

Casino Gambling Funded Fair Elections

• New York State Partial Campaign Funding Proposed by Governor Cuomo

Constitutional Change

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Requires question of whether or not another constitutional convention is necessary, prohibits court of appeals judges as serving as convention delegates

Convention

• Assembly Minority Conference: To put the question of whether New York should convene a State Constitutional Convention before the voters during the next general election.
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Prohibition Against Statewide Elected Officials and Court of Appeals Judges Serving as Delegates
• Amend Constitution With Regards to a Constitutional Convention

Debt

• Assembly Minority Conference: Prohibits certain borrowing arrangements such as "Backdoor Borrowing" (Assembly Bill A.1517)

Education

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Eliminates prohibition against aid to denominational schools
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Constitutional status for public higher education

Elections

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Removed Literacy and Property Requirements (with Exception), Created Permanent Registration, and Adds 30-day Domicile Requirement
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Voting takes place where people are "domiciled," with "domicile" defined in the constitution
• Change the Constitution with regards to Elections Administration

Environment

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Maintains "forever wild" status of Adirondack and Catskill Preserves and now includes localities within the "blue lines" without a new constitutional amendment
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Conservation and protection of of natural resources

Ethics

• Assembly Bill S.5679 Enacts the Public Integrity Reform Act of 2011

Executive Powers

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Grants authority to the governor to reorganize state government, subject to legislative veto

Judiciary

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Improved structure of the court system with more judicial staffing
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Counties have the option to adopt district courts outside of New York City
• S4587: Increases the mandatory retirement age for all judges and justices of the unified court system, except for justices of town and village courts, from 70 to 74; permits justices of the supreme court and judges of the court of appeals to continue in service past the mandatory retirement age for three two year terms.
• S5827 To restructure the Judiciary in New York to implement the recommendations of the Special Commission on the Future of New York State Courts (2007).

Lawmaking

• Assembly Minority Conference: Allows for the electronic display of bills at Legislator’s desks (Assembly Bill A.4817)

Lieutenant Governor

• List of Existing Amendments Proposed in New York State Legislature

Majority Leadership

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Establishes Election of Legislative Officers in December Prior to January Term

Message of Necessity for Immediate Vote

• Enacts the NY Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement (SAFE) Act of 2013.

Party Primaries

• California Proposition 14: The Top Two Candidates Open Primary Act is intended to implement an open primary system in California

Pensions

• Assembly Minority Conference: Remove pension and retirement benefits from elected officials and officers of the state convicted of felonies in relation to their assigned duties (Assembly Bill A.702)

Private Participation in Public Pensions

• California Bill AB 2940- Creates the California Employee Savings Program
• Michigan HOUSE BILL No. 4135

Property Tax Reform

• Assembly Minority Conference: To reform real property tax administration in New York State in order to assure property owners that their real property taxes are based on the fair and equitable assessment of their property.

Public Information

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Accounts of public authorities are made public by comptroller

Recall

• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides for initiative and referendum and recall (Assembly Bill A.6526)

Redistricting

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Establishes a Commission for Redistricting and Forbids Gerrymandering
• City Bar Amendment Sponsored by Senator Dilan in 2010: Independent nine member commission without legislative approval.
• 2012 Redistricting Amendment: A09526

Redistricting Local Standards

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Retains existing powers of local governments, requires local redistricting, allows legislature to perform assessment or tax collection functions

Redistricting Population Deviation

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Mandates equal population districts

Redistricting Prisoners

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Forbids gerrymandering

Redistricting Senate Size

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Establishes Senate Size at 60

Referendum

• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides for initiative and referendum petitions for electors (Assembly Bill A.6501)
• New York State Bill S709: "CONCURRENT RESOLUTION OF THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY proposing amendments to the constitution, in relation to providing the electors with the power of initiative and referendum"
• To revise the Constitution with regards to Initiative and Referendum.

Rights

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Protections against discrimination on the basis of age, sex, or physical or mental handicap
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Inserts stricter controls over wiretapping and electronic eavesdropping
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Right to counsel "at every stage of the proceeding" in all criminal matters

Selection

• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Selection of District Judges

Small Donor Empowerment

• amend the election law, in relation to enacting the comptroller campaign finance reform act to provide for public financing for campaigns for the office of state comptroller; to amend the general business law, in relation to authorizing the imposition of an additional surcharge on recoveries for fraudulent practices relating to stocks, bonds and other securities; to amend the state finance law, in relation to establishing the New York state campaign finance fund; and to amend the tax law, in relation to providing for a New York state campaign finance fund checkoff

Spending Cap

• Assembly Minority Conference: Establish a State Spending Cap to limit the growth of State Operating Funds spending to no more than the average rate of inflation of the three previous calendar years
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Requires a budget to be submitted 60 days before the fiscal year
• Proposed Spending Cap Amendments to the New York State Constitution

Tax and Spending

• Assembly Minority Conference: Requires that any bill which provides revenue to the state in a non-recurring manner shall pass by a two-thirds majority in order to become law (Assembly Bill A.1623)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Relates to the procedure for voting increases in the rate of state taxes (Assembly Bill A.8230)

Term Limits

• Assembly Bill A.4816: Limits the time a legislator may serve as a legislative leader to 4 consecutive two year terms.

Unfunded Mandates

• Assembly Minority Conference: Prohibits legislature from enacting laws with local government fiscal impact unless fiscal burden is computed and imprinted on bill (Assembly Bill A.3382)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Relates to acts of the Legislature having fiscal impacts on local governments (Assembly Bill A.5983)
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: All public assistance and Medicaid costs not paid for by the national government would be borne by the state budget
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: More equitable assessment of real property for taxation

Vacancies

• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides a procedure for filling vacancies in the offices of State Comptroller and State Attorney General (Assembly Bill A.1251)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides process for filling of vacancies in the office of Governor and Lt. Governor (Assembly Bill A.1356)
• Assembly Minority Conference: Provides for the Governor to fill a vacancy for the offices of State Comptroller and State Attorney General (Assembly Bill A.1511)
• 1967 Constitutional Convention Amendment: Provides for succession of Governor

Youth Voter Registration

• Youth Voter Pre-Registration