Proposed Legislative Amendment on Spending Cap

                          S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________

                                         5370

                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y

                                   February 16, 2011
                                      ___________

       Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  KOLB,  AMEDORE,  FITZPATRICK, HAYES, JORDAN,
         J. MILLER, CASTELLI -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BARCLAY,  BOYLE,
         BURLING,  BUTLER,  CALHOUN,  CONTE,  CORWIN,  CROUCH,  DUPREY,  FINCH,
         GIGLIO, HAWLEY, P. LOPEZ, McKEVITT, MOLINARO, OAKS, RABBITT,  REILICH,
         SAYWARD,  TEDISCO,  THIELE,  TOBACCO  -- read once and referred to the
         Committee on Ways and Means

       AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in  relation  to  establishing  a
         spending cap and increasing the maximum capacity of the rainy day fund

         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

    1    Section 1. The state finance law is amended by adding a new article 17
    2  to read as follows:
    3                                ARTICLE XVII
    4                           SPENDING GROWTH CAP ACT
    5  SECTION 250. DEFINITIONS.
    6          251. ESTABLISHMENT OF ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
    7          252. PROVISIONS REGARDING DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY.
    8    S 250. DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL
    9  HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS, UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED:
   10    1. "ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP" SHALL MEAN A PERCENTAGE DETERMINED  BY
   11  ADDING  THE  INFLATION RATES FROM EACH OF THE THREE CALENDAR YEARS IMME-
   12  DIATELY PRIOR TO THE COMMENCEMENT OF A GIVEN FISCAL YEAR AND THEN DIVID-
   13  ING THAT SUM BY THREE.
   14    2. "STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING" SHALL MEAN ANNUAL DISBURSEMENTS OF
   15  ALL GOVERNMENTAL FUND TYPES INCLUDED IN THE CASH-BASIS FINANCIAL PLAN OF
   16  THE STATE,  EXCLUDING  DISBURSEMENTS  FROM  FEDERAL  FUNDS  AND  CAPITAL
   17  PROJECT FUNDS.
   18    3.   "INFLATION   RATE"  SHALL  MEAN  THE  PERCENTAGE  CHANGE  IN  THE
   19  TWELVE-MONTH AVERAGE OF THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX FOR ALL URBAN CONSUMERS
   20  AS PUBLISHED BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, BUREAU  OF  LABOR

        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD05190-01-1
       A. 5370                             2

    1  STATISTICS OR ANY SUCCESSOR AGENCY FOR A GIVEN CALENDAR YEAR COMPARED TO
    2  THE PRIOR CALENDAR YEAR.
    3    4.  "EXECUTIVE BUDGET" SHALL MEAN THE BUDGET SUBMITTED ANNUALLY BY THE
    4  GOVERNOR  PURSUANT  TO SECTION ONE OF ARTICLE VII OF THE STATE CONSTITU-
    5  TION.
    6    5.  "STATE BUDGET AS ENACTED" SHALL MEAN THE BUDGET ACTED UPON BY  THE
    7  LEGISLATURE  IN A GIVEN FISCAL YEAR, AS SUBJECT TO SECTION FOUR OF ARTI-
    8  CLE VII OF THE STATE CONSTITUTION AND SECTION SEVEN OF ARTICLE IV OF THE
    9  STATE CONSTITUTION.
   10    6. "EMERGENCY" SHALL MEAN AN EXTRAORDINARY, UNFORESEEN, OR  UNEXPECTED
   11  OCCURRENCE,  OR  COMBINATION OF CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED
   12  TO A NATURAL DISASTER, INVASION, TERRORIST ATTACK, OR ECONOMIC CALAMITY.
   13    S 251. ESTABLISHMENT OF ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.  1. THERE IS HERE-
   14  BY ESTABLISHED AN ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
   15    2. THE GOVERNOR SHALL NOT SUBMIT, AND THE LEGISLATURE  SHALL  NOT  ACT
   16  UPON, A BUDGET THAT CONTAINS A PERCENTAGE INCREASE OVER THE PRIOR FISCAL
   17  YEAR IN STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING WHICH EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING
   18  GROWTH CAP.
   19    3.  THE  GOVERNOR  SHALL CERTIFY IN WRITING THAT STATE OPERATING FUNDS
   20  SPENDING IN THE EXECUTIVE BUDGET DOES NOT  EXCEED  THE  ANNUAL  SPENDING
   21  GROWTH  CAP. IF FINAL INFLATION RATE DATA FOR THE PRIOR CALENDAR YEAR IS
   22  NOT YET AVAILABLE AT THE TIME THE GOVERNOR SUBMITS HIS OR HER  EXECUTIVE
   23  BUDGET,  HE  OR  SHE  SHALL  FURNISH A REASONABLE ESTIMATE OF SUCH PRIOR
   24  CALENDAR YEAR INFLATION RATE.
   25    4. THE COMPTROLLER SHALL PROVIDE, WITHIN FIVE DAYS OF  ACTION  BY  THE
   26  LEGISLATURE  UPON  THE  BUDGET,  A DETERMINATION AS TO WHETHER THE STATE
   27  OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING AS SET FORTH IN THE  STATE  BUDGET  AS  ENACTED
   28  EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
   29    5. IF THE COMPTROLLER FINDS THAT STATE OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING AS SET
   30  FORTH  IN THE STATE BUDGET AS ENACTED EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH
   31  CAP, THE GOVERNOR SHALL TAKE CORRECTIVE ACTION TO ENSURE THAT FUNDING IS
   32  LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT OF THE ANNUAL SPENDING CAP.
   33    S 252. PROVISIONS REGARDING DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY.  1. UPON A FIND-
   34  ING OF AN EMERGENCY BY THE GOVERNOR, HE OR SHE MAY DECLARE AN  EMERGENCY
   35  BY  AN EXECUTIVE ORDER WHICH SHALL SET FORTH THE REASONS FOR SUCH DECLA-
   36  RATION.
   37    2. BASED UPON SUCH DECLARATION,  THE  GOVERNOR  MAY  SUBMIT,  AND  THE
   38  LEGISLATURE  MAY  AUTHORIZE,  BY  A  TWO-THIRDS SUPER MAJORITY, A BUDGET
   39  CONTAINING A PERCENTAGE INCREASE OVER THE PRIOR  FISCAL  YEAR  IN  STATE
   40  OPERATING FUNDS SPENDING THAT EXCEEDS THE ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP.
   41    S 2. Subdivision 2 of section 92-cc of the state finance law, as added
   42  by chapter 1 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
   43    2.  Such  fund  shall have a maximum balance not to exceed [three] TEN
   44  per centum of the aggregate amount projected to be  disbursed  from  the
   45  general  fund during the fiscal year immediately following the then-cur-
   46  rent fiscal year.
   47    S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.