Bill Text: NY A00792 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to conducting a study on the access of state public libraries and library systems to capital funding; the department of education, in consultation with the dormitory authority, the office of the state comptroller, and the public library systems of the state, shall assess and report on the capital needs of such public library systems, including public libraries and association libraries.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to libraries and education technology [A00792 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A00792-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                           792
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 11, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. QUART, SOLAGES, OTIS -- read once and referred to
          the Committee on Libraries and Education Technology
        AN  ACT to amend the education law, in relation to conducting a study on
          the access of state public libraries and library  systems  to  capital
          funding
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 273-a of the education law is amended by  adding  a
     2  new subdivision 8 to read as follows:
     3    8.  There  shall  be a study conducted relating to the access of state
     4  public libraries and library systems to capital funding.
     5    a. The department, in consultation with the dormitory  authority,  the
     6  office  of  the state comptroller, and the public library systems of the
     7  state, shall assess and report on  the  capital  needs  of  such  public
     8  library  systems,  including public libraries and association libraries.
     9  Such study shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
    10    (1) identification of  current  options  available  to  libraries  and
    11  library systems for financing capital projects;
    12    (2)  the projected capital needs of libraries and library systems over
    13  a five year period;
    14    (3) identification of alternative options for  libraries  and  library
    15  systems to finance capital projects;
    16    (4)  information  related  to  dormitory authority financing of public
    17  libraries and public library systems in the past ten years including but
    18  not limited to: the total number of public libraries and library systems
    19  that have applied for dormitory authority financing; what percentage  of
    20  public  libraries and library systems are denied funding from the dormi-
    21  tory authority and the reasons for such denials; the total cost  of  the
    22  proposed projects; and the amount of financing provided for the projects
    23  and the number of project applications submitted each year;
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01426-01-9
        A. 792                              2
     1    (5)  identification  of special needs, barriers to accessing financing
     2  and options for financing for public libraries serving communities  with
     3  populations of less than seventy-five hundred; and
     4    (6)  recommendations  for the improvement of access to capital funding
     5  for public libraries and library systems.
     6    b. For the purposes of this subdivision, the following terms shall  be
     7  defined as follows:
     8    (1)  "public  library"  shall  mean any public or association library,
     9  other than a professional, technical or public  school  library,  estab-
    10  lished  for free public purposes by official action of a municipality or
    11  district or the legislature, where the whole  interests  belong  to  the
    12  public;  the  term  "association  library"  shall be construed to mean a
    13  library established and controlled, in whole or in part, by a  group  of
    14  private  individuals  operating as an association, closed corporation or
    15  as trustees under the provisions of a will or deed  of  trust;  and  the
    16  term "free" as applied to a library shall be construed to mean a library
    17  maintained for the benefit and free use on equal terms of all the people
    18  of the community in which the library is located.
    19    (2) "public library system" shall mean:
    20    (i) A library established by one or more counties.
    21    (ii)  A group of libraries serving an area including one or more coun-
    22  ties in whole or in part.
    23    (iii) A library of a city containing one or more counties.
    24    (iv) A cooperative library system established pursuant to section  two
    25  hundred  fifty-five  of this part, the plan of library service of any of
    26  which shall have been approved by the commissioner.
    27    c. The study required by this subdivision shall be completed by  Janu-
    28  ary first, two thousand twenty-one.  The findings of such study shall be
    29  provided  to  the  governor,  the speaker of the assembly, the temporary
    30  president of the senate, the chair of the assembly libraries and  educa-
    31  tion  technology committee, and the chair of the senate select committee
    32  on libraries.  The findings of such study shall also be  posted  on  the
    33  New York state library's website.
    34    §  2.  This  act shall take effect immediately, provided, however that
    35  the amendments to section 273-a of the education law made by section one
    36  of this act shall not affect the expiration of such section and shall be
    37  deemed repealed therewith.