Bill Text: NY A03059 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Directs the department of economic development, in conjunction with various departments and offices, to conduct a study regarding increasing public access to museums in New York city; directs a report on such study to be submitted no later than one year after the effective date.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-14 - print number 3059a [A03059 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A03059-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         3059--A

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 2, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. FALL, ANDERSON -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development --  recommit-
          ted to the Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development in
          accordance  with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill
          amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
          tee

        AN  ACT  to  direct  the department of economic development to conduct a
          study regarding increasing public access to museums in New York city

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1. Study. The department of economic development, in conjunc-
     2  tion with the empire state development corporation,  the  department  of
     3  education,  the  office  of parks, recreation and historic preservation,
     4  the department of environmental conservation, the department  of  state,
     5  the  New  York  city  department  of cultural affairs, the New York city
     6  parks department, and the New York state council on the arts, is  hereby
     7  directed to conduct a comprehensive study on increasing public access to
     8  and  laws  requiring free public access to museums in New York city. The
     9  museums that shall be identified in such  study  operate  as  and  shall
    10  include,  but  not be limited to the American Museum of Natural History,
    11  Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn  Children's
    12  Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Museum of the City of New York, New York Botan-
    13  ical  Garden,  New  York  Hall  of Science, Staten Island Museum, Staten
    14  Island Zoo, the Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  Wave  Hill,  Bronx  Zoo,
    15  Central Park Zoo, New York Aquarium, Prospect Park Zoo, and Queens Flor-
    16  ham Park Zoo. Such study shall include, but not be limited to:
    17    1.  Taking  a  census of such museums as at the end of the fiscal year
    18  2018, including information on the size, including but  not  limited  to
    19  total  land  area,  square  footage  and number of buildings, history of
    20  general operating expenses, history of municipal operating, rent actual-
    21  ly paid or the value of the rent forgiven, hours of  operation,  visitor

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05458-02-4
        A. 3059--A                          2

     1  statistics,   including  attendance  figures  calculated  using  tickets
     2  presented to cashiers  and  reported  as  complimentary,  full  fare  or
     3  discounted,  and individuals exempted from paying fees such as students,
     4  professors  and  teachers,  military  or  persons with disabilities, zip
     5  codes of visitors, identification  of  the  2018  dollar  benefits  from
     6  taxpayer  dollars from city and state agency budgets, and description of
     7  terms of free rent.
     8    2. Identifying the market value of each museum's 2018  investment  and
     9  restricted and unrestricted endowment portfolios.
    10    3. Providing information, including but not limited to, the provisions
    11  of controlling laws and contracts pertaining to such museums' initial or
    12  amended  incorporating  purpose and obligation to provide free admission
    13  and/or instruction, laws appropriating public  funds  for  operating  or
    14  capital costs, as well as offering opinions to inform the legislature as
    15  to  whether  such museums' policies and practices are in compliance with
    16  controlling laws and contracts and how to increase public access to such
    17  museums and the continued accessibility  and  availability  to  all  New
    18  Yorkers  in  consideration  for their financial support of such museums,
    19  and to craft a reporting system that ensures  effective  and  answerable
    20  oversight  of  such  museums'  compliance with statutes, codes, laws and
    21  complying agreements.
    22    § 2. Report. A report of the findings of  such  study,  opinions,  and
    23  recommendations,  shall be filed with the governor, the temporary presi-
    24  dent of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly no  later  than  one
    25  year after the effective date of this act.
    26    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.