Bill Text: NY A00148 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Prohibits state reimbursement of campaign and political committees, or legal defense funds, for payments made on behalf of the criminal or civil defense of a state employee.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-06-04 - print number 148a [A00148 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A00148-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 148--A 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 4, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. CRUZ, SILLITTI, SIMONE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations -- recommitted to the Committee on Governmental Operations in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the public officers law, in relation to prohibiting reimbursement of campaign and political committees and legal defense funds for defense costs incurred on behalf of state employees The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 19 of the public officers law, as 2 amended by chapter 769 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 2. (a) Upon compliance by the employee with the provisions of subdivi- 5 sion three of this section, and subject to the restrictions set forth in 6 paragraph (b) of this subdivision and the conditions set forth in para- 7 graph [(b)] (c) of this subdivision, it shall be the duty of the state 8 to pay reasonable attorneys' fees and litigation expenses incurred by or 9 on behalf of an employee in [his or her] such employee's defense of a 10 criminal proceeding in a state or federal court arising out of any act 11 which occurred while such employee was acting within the scope of [his] 12 such employee's public employment or duties upon [his] such employee's 13 acquittal or upon the dismissal of the criminal charges against [him] 14 the employee or reasonable attorneys' fees incurred in connection with 15 an appearance before a grand jury which returns no true bill against the 16 employee where such appearance was required as a result of any act which 17 occurred while such employee was acting within the scope of [his] the 18 employee's public employment or duties unless such appearance occurs in 19 the normal course of the public employment or duties of such employee. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01880-03-4A. 148--A 2 1 (b) No reimbursement shall be paid pursuant to this section to any 2 campaign or political committee or legal defense fund that pays all or 3 any portion of an employee's reasonable attorneys' fees and/or liti- 4 gation expenses. Reimbursements received pursuant to this section by the 5 employee or their legal counsel shall not be paid by such employee or 6 legal counsel to a campaign or political committee or legal defense 7 fund. Furthermore, an employee on whose behalf a legal defense fund or 8 legal defense funds have been established shall not be eligible for 9 reimbursement pursuant to this section until all moneys in such fund or 10 funds have been expended for the employee's reasonable attorneys' fees 11 and/or litigation expenses. Prior to reimbursement being issued, an 12 employee and their legal counsel shall certify to both the attorney 13 general and the comptroller that there are no funds remaining in any 14 legal defense fund established on behalf of the employee and that no 15 monies requested pursuant to this section will be used to reimburse a 16 campaign or political committee or legal defense fund. 17 (c) Upon the application for reimbursement for reasonable attorneys' 18 fees or litigation expenses or both made by or on behalf of an employee 19 as provided in subdivision three of this section, the attorney general 20 shall determine, based upon [his] their investigation and [his] their 21 review of the facts and circumstances, whether such reimbursement shall 22 be paid. The attorney general shall notify the employee in writing of 23 such determination. Upon determining that such reimbursement should be 24 provided, the attorney general shall so certify to the comptroller. Upon 25 such certification, reimbursement shall be made for such fees or 26 expenses or both upon the audit and warrant of the comptroller. On or 27 before January fifteenth the comptroller, in consultation with the 28 department of law and other agencies as may be appropriate, shall submit 29 to the governor and the legislature an annual accounting of judgments, 30 settlements, fees, and litigation expenses paid pursuant to this section 31 during the preceding and current fiscal years. Such accounting shall 32 include, but not be limited to the number, type and amount of claims so 33 paid, as well as an estimate of claims to be paid during the remainder 34 of the current fiscal year and during the following fiscal year. Any 35 dispute with regard to entitlement to reimbursement or the amount of 36 litigation expenses or the reasonableness of attorneys' fees shall be 37 resolved by a court of competent jurisdiction upon appropriate motion or 38 by way of a special proceeding. 39 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 17 of the public officers law, as added 40 by chapter 466 of the laws of 1978 and paragraph (a) as amended by chap- 41 ter 768 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows: 42 2. (a) Upon compliance by the employee with the provisions of subdivi- 43 sion four of this section, the state shall provide for the defense of 44 the employee in any civil action or proceeding in any state or federal 45 court arising out of any alleged act or omission which occurred or is 46 alleged in the complaint to have occurred while the employee was acting 47 within the scope of [his] the employee's public employment or duties; or 48 which is brought to enforce a provision of section nineteen hundred 49 eighty-one or nineteen hundred eighty-three of title forty-two of the 50 United States code and the act or omission underlying the action 51 occurred or is alleged in the complaint to have occurred while the 52 employee was acting within the scope of [his] the employee's public 53 employment or duties. This duty to provide for a defense shall not 54 arise where such civil action or proceeding is brought by or on behalf 55 of the state.A. 148--A 3 1 (b) Subject to the conditions set forth in paragraph (a) of this 2 subdivision, the employee shall be entitled to be represented by the 3 attorney general, provided, however, that the employee shall be entitled 4 to representation by private counsel of [his] the employee's choice in 5 any civil judicial proceeding whenever the attorney general determines 6 based upon [his] their investigation and review of the facts and circum- 7 stances of the case that representation by the attorney general would be 8 inappropriate, or whenever a court of competent jurisdiction, upon 9 appropriate motion or by a special proceeding, determines that a 10 conflict of interest exists and that the employee is entitled to be 11 represented by private counsel of [his] the employee's choice. The 12 attorney general shall notify the employee in writing of such determi- 13 nation that the employee is entitled to be represented by private coun- 14 sel. The attorney general may require, as a condition to payment of the 15 fees and expenses of such representation, that appropriate groups of 16 such employees be represented by the same counsel. If the employee or 17 group of employees is entitled to representation by private counsel 18 under the provisions of this section, the attorney general shall so 19 certify to the comptroller. Reasonable attorneys' fees and litigation 20 expenses shall be paid by the state to such private counsel from time to 21 time during the pendency of the civil action or proceeding subject to 22 certification that the employee is entitled to representation under the 23 terms and conditions of this section by the head of the department, 24 commission, division, office or agency in which such employee is 25 employed [and] upon the audit and warrant of the comptroller, and 26 subject to the restrictions set forth in paragraph (c) of this subdivi- 27 sion. Any dispute with respect to representation of multiple employees 28 by a single counsel or the amount of litigation expenses or the reason- 29 ableness of attorneys' fees shall be resolved by the court upon motion 30 or by way of a special proceeding. 31 (c) No funds shall be paid pursuant to this section to any campaign or 32 political committee or legal defense fund. Funds received pursuant to 33 this section by the employee or their legal counsel shall not be paid by 34 such employee or legal counsel to a campaign or political committee or 35 legal defense fund. Furthermore, an employee on whose behalf a legal 36 defense fund or legal defense funds have been established, shall not be 37 eligible for payment pursuant to this section until all moneys in such 38 fund or funds have been expended for the employee's reasonable attor- 39 neys' fees and/or litigation expenses. Prior to payment being issued, an 40 employee and their legal counsel shall certify to both the attorney 41 general and the comptroller that there are no funds remaining in any 42 legal defense fund established on behalf of the employee and that no 43 monies requested pursuant to this section will be used to reimburse a 44 campaign or political committee or legal defense fund. 45 (d) Where the employee delivers process and a request for a defense to 46 the attorney general as required by subdivision four of this section, 47 the attorney general shall take the necessary steps including the 48 retention of private counsel under the terms and conditions provided in 49 paragraph (b) of subdivision two of this section on behalf of the 50 employee to avoid entry of a default judgment pending resolution of any 51 question pertaining to the obligation to provide for a defense. 52 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to any 53 pending claim not paid by the state before such effective date, and to 54 any new claim submitted to the state on or after such effective date.
