Bill Text: NY A01797 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Allows Westchester county to require bidders for public works, construction or purchase contracts to hire and retain persons residing in certain targeted communities based on the combined average poverty rate and unemployment rate.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - referred to local governments [A01797 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A01797-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1797

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 11, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Local Governments

        AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to allowing West-
          chester county to require bidders for public  works,  construction  or
          purchase  contracts  to  hire  and  retain persons residing in certain
          targeted communities

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

     1    Section  1.  The  general  municipal  law  is  amended by adding a new
     2  section 103-h to read as follows:
     3    § 103-h. Contracts for public works in  Westchester  county;  targeted
     4  communities. 1. For the purposes of this section, a "targeted community"
     5  shall  mean  any city, town, or village or census tract within a munici-
     6  pality, within a county where the combined average of  the  unemployment
     7  rate and the poverty rate of such community is greater than the combined
     8  countywide average of unemployment and poverty rate by ten percent.
     9    2. Notwithstanding any provision of law, the county of Westchester may
    10  require the lowest responsible bidder for all public works, construction
    11  or  purchase  contracts  to  hire and retain persons residing in certain
    12  targeted communities having the highest  rates  of  unemployment  within
    13  such county.
    14    3. The county may require that:
    15    a.  at  least ten percent of the labor costs of construction contracts
    16  awarded by the county be spent to hire persons residing in the  targeted
    17  communities within that county;
    18    b.  at  least  twenty  percent  of  the  labor  costs  of construction
    19  contracts be spent to hire persons residing in the targeted communities,
    20  if the combined average unemployment and poverty  rate  for  a  targeted
    21  community  is  greater  than  twenty  percent of the combined countywide
    22  average of unemployment rate and the poverty rate; and

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00148-01-1
        A. 1797                             2

     1    c. at  least  thirty  percent  of  the  labor  costs  of  construction
     2  contracts  cost be spent to hire persons residing in the targeted commu-
     3  nities if the combined average community unemployment and  poverty  rate
     4  is  greater  than  thirty  percent of the combined countywide average of
     5  unemployment rate and the poverty rate.
     6    4.  The  combined  average unemployment rate and poverty rate shall be
     7  computed annually based on statistics published by the  New  York  state
     8  bureau of labor statistics or similar government agencies for the period
     9  ending December thirty-first of the year preceding the year in which the
    10  contract  is  awarded.  The  county, in its sole discretion, may use the
    11  most recent United States census data in  determining  the  unemployment
    12  rate  and  poverty  rate  of a targeted community or combined countywide
    13  unemployment rate and poverty rate instead of data published by the  New
    14  York state bureau of labor statistics. The combined average shall be the
    15  sum  of the preceding year end unemployment rate plus the preceding year
    16  end poverty rate divided by two.
    17    5. The combined average unemployment rate and poverty  rate  shall  be
    18  established  annually  by  resolution  or  local law of the county.  The
    19  county may require bidders to hire and retain persons who were previous-
    20  ly incarcerated and who are participating in a re-entry program in  such
    21  county.
    22    6.  The  county may require the lowest responsible bidder to establish
    23  apprenticeship and training programs for  workers  residing  within  the
    24  targeted  communities  in  certain  construction  trades  specified in a
    25  resolution or local law passed by such county.
    26    § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    27  have become a law.