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

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

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to tourism, parks, arts and sports development [A03059 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A03059-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3059

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 2, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. FALL -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development

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

          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  museums in New York state. The museums that shall be identified in  such
     9  study  shall  include,  but  not  be  limited  to the American Museum of
    10  Natural History, Brooklyn Botanic Garden,  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music,
    11  Brooklyn  Children's  Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Museum of the City of New
    12  York, New York Botanical Garden, New York Hall of Science, Staten Island
    13  Museum, Staten Island Zoo, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Wave Hill,  Bronx
    14  Zoo,  Central Park Zoo, New York Aquarium, Prospect Park Zoo, and Queens
    15  Florham Park Zoo. Such study shall include, but not be limited to:
    16    1. Taking a census of such museums as at the end of  the  fiscal  year
    17  2018,  including  information  on the size, including but not limited to
    18  total land area, square footage and number of buildings,  rent  actually
    19  paid  or  the  value  of  the rent forgiven, hours of operation, visitor
    20  statistics,  including  attendance  figures  calculated  using   tickets
    21  presented  to  cashiers  and  reported  as  complimentary,  full fare or
    22  discounted, and individuals exempted from paying fees such as  students,
    23  professors  and teachers, military or persons with disabilities, and zip
    24  codes of visitors.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05458-01-3
        A. 3059                             2

     1    2. Identifying  the  2018  dollar  benefits,  directly  from  taxpayer
     2  dollars  and  city  and state agencies' budgets, and indirectly from the
     3  value of any form of free rent, including but not  limited  to  unstated
     4  amounts  and  amounts above $1 paid per annum as provided for in laws or
     5  agreements, real estate or other tax forgiveness.
     6    3.  Identifying  the market value of each museum's 2018 investment and
     7  restricted and unrestricted endowment portfolios.
     8    4. Providing information, including but not limited to, the provisions
     9  of controlling laws and contracts pertaining to such museums' initial or
    10  amended incorporating purpose and obligation to provide  free  admission
    11  and/or  instruction,  laws  appropriating  public funds for operating or
    12  capital costs, as well as offering opinions to inform the legislature as
    13  to whether such museums' policies and practices are in  compliance  with
    14  controlling laws and contracts and how to increase public access to such
    15  museums  and  the  continued  accessibility  and availability to all New
    16  Yorkers in consideration for their financial support  of  such  museums,
    17  and  to  craft  a reporting system that ensures effective and answerable
    18  oversight of such museums' compliance with  statutes,  codes,  laws  and
    19  complying agreements.
    20    §  2. Report. A report of the findings of such study, opinions, recom-
    21  mendations, and any proposed legislation  necessary  to  implement  such
    22  recommendations  shall  be filed with the governor, the temporary presi-
    23  dent of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly no  later  than  one
    24  year after the effective date of this act.
    25    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.