Bill Text: NY A02828 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to licensing consequences for architects or engineers who seriously abuse their self-certification privileges; the board of regents shall immediately suspend the professional license of an individual found to have seriously abused the professional certification program of the city of New York.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to higher education [A02828 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A02828-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          2828
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 25, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  CYMBROWITZ -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
          LENTOL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to licensing consequences
          for architects or engineers who seriously abuse their  self-certifica-
          tion privileges
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1.  Section 6509 of the education law is amended by  adding  a
     2  new subdivision 2-a to read as follows:
     3    (2-a)  Serious  abuse of the professional certification program of the
     4  city of New York. Where the education law makes  a  distinction  between
     5  mere violations of the standards of New York city's professional certif-
     6  ication  program for registered design professionals and a serious abuse
     7  of such program, the term "serious abuse" shall mean that the registered
     8  design professional has:
     9    (a) knowingly or recklessly certified documents that  contained  false
    10  information  or  documents  that  were not in compliance with applicable
    11  law; or
    12    (b) certified two applications within any  twelve  month  period  that
    13  contained errors that resulted in the revocation of an associated permit
    14  or  that  otherwise demonstrated a lack of knowledge of or disregard for
    15  applicable laws; or
    16    (c) certified  an  application  or  construction  documents  while  on
    17  probation  as imposed by the board of regents pursuant to section sixty-
    18  five hundred eleven of this subpart,
    19    § 2. Section 6510 of the education law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
    20  subdivision 2-a to read as follows:
    21    2-a.  Serious  abuse  of the professional certification program of the
    22  city of New York.
    23    a. Notice to the state department of  education.  The  New  York  city
    24  department  of  buildings  is  required to provide written notice to the
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07360-01-9
        A. 2828                             2
     1  department of any professional engineer or registered architect who  was
     2  the  subject  of  any  disciplinary  proceeding  where there has been an
     3  adverse determination  or  sanction  by  the  department  including  any
     4  settlement  agreement  that is reached between the parties that resulted
     5  in a sanction of self-certification  privileges  being  imposed  by  the
     6  department.  Such  notice shall be sent within ten business days after a
     7  determination is made in any such disciplinary  proceeding  or  after  a
     8  settlement  of  such  proceeding has been reached, and shall include the
     9  name, and business firm name and address of such licensed  professional,
    10  as well as any supporting documentation for the sanction imposed.
    11    b.  Automatic  suspension for serious abuses. Where the department has
    12  received written notice from the department of buildings of the city  of
    13  New  York,  pursuant  to paragraph a of this subdivision, that a profes-
    14  sional engineer or registered architect has been sanctioned or agreed to
    15  surrender his or her self-certification privileges following a discipli-
    16  nary proceeding, and where a state professional conduct  officer  deter-
    17  mines  that  the  licensed  professional's  actions constitute a serious
    18  abuse of the professional certification program of the city of New York,
    19  as defined in section sixty-five hundred nine of this subpart, the board
    20  of regents shall immediately suspend the design  professional's  license
    21  pending  a  hearing request. The licensed professional shall be entitled
    22  to a prompt hearing to review  the  determination  of  the  professional
    23  conduct officer.
    24    c.  Prior  adjudications.  The  board of regents shall also review all
    25  notifications received from the department of buildings of the  city  of
    26  New York, pursuant to section 28-104.2.1.6 of the administrative code of
    27  the  city of New York, for the five calendar years immediately preceding
    28  the effective date of this section. Any professional engineer or  regis-
    29  tered  architect  included  in  such  notification  who has not been the
    30  subject of a state professional misconduct proceeding pursuant  to  this
    31  section shall be required to submit to a hearing pursuant to paragraph d
    32  of  this  subdivision if a state professional conduct officer determines
    33  that the registered design professional's actions constituted a  serious
    34  abuse  of the professional certification program of the city of New York
    35  as defined in section sixty-five hundred nine of this subpart.
    36    d. Hearings generally. In such cases as described in  paragraph  c  of
    37  this  subdivision,  or  where a licensed professional who has had his or
    38  her license suspended  pursuant  to  paragraph  b  of  this  subdivision
    39  requests  a  hearing, or where the existing record is insufficient for a
    40  professional conduct officer to make a determination  as  to  whether  a
    41  serious  abuse  of  the professional certification program has occurred,
    42  the department shall conduct an investigation pursuant to paragraph b of
    43  subdivision one of this section.
    44    If, after an investigation, the department  believes  that  a  serious
    45  abuse  of  the  professional  certification program of New York city has
    46  occurred, such accusation shall be included in the charges prepared  for
    47  a  disciplinary proceeding pursuant to paragraph c of subdivision one of
    48  this section. The department and the board of regents shall then  follow
    49  the  standard  procedure for a disciplinary proceeding as stated in this
    50  section.
    51    The board  of  regents  shall  immediately  suspend  the  professional
    52  license  of any architect or engineer found to have seriously abused the
    53  professional certification program of the city of New York.
    54    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.