Bill Text: NY A06294 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Establishes permitted variations from generally accepted accounting principles for the purposes of determining a deficit with respect to the budget and accounts of the city of New York.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-10-23 - SIGNED CHAP.406 [A06294 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A06294-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6294--A 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 4, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. WEINSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Cities -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the New York state finan- cial emergency act for the city of New York, in relation to certain variations from generally accepted accounting principles as applied to the budget and accounts of the city of New York 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 25 to read as follows: 3 § 25. Treatment of capital costs and restricted fund balances. 4 Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special state law or 5 local law to the contrary, including but not limited to the New York 6 city charter, the following shall apply with respect to the budget and 7 accounts of the city of New York: 8 1. All costs that would be capital costs in accordance with generally 9 accepted accounting principles, but for the application of governmental 10 accounting standards board statement number forty-nine, shall be deemed 11 to be capital costs for purposes of this chapter and any other provision 12 of state or local law, including but not limited to the New York city 13 charter, relevant to the treatment of such costs; and 14 2. The determination as to the existence of a deficit pursuant to the 15 New York state financial emergency act for the city of New York, while 16 such act remains in effect, and any other provision of state or local 17 law, including but not limited to the New York city charter, shall be 18 made without regard to changes in restricted fund balances, as defined 19 by the governmental accounting standards board, where restrictions in 20 relation to such fund balances are imposed by state or federal law or 21 regulation, or otherwise by private or governmental parties other than 22 the city of New York, and without regard to funds held in the health EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10352-02-9A. 6294--A 2 1 stabilization fund, the school crossing guards health insurance fund and 2 the management benefits fund established by the city of New York. 3 § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 8 of section 2 of chapter 4 868 of the laws of 1975, constituting the New York state financial emer- 5 gency act for the city of New York, as amended by section 1 of part PP 6 of chapter 56 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows: 7 a. For its fiscal years ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seven- 8 ty-nine through June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one, the city's 9 budget covering all expenditures other than capital items shall be 10 prepared and balanced so that the results thereof would not show a defi- 11 cit when reported in accordance with the accounting principles set forth 12 in the state comptroller's uniform system of accounts for munici- 13 palities, as the same may be modified by the comptroller, in consulta- 14 tion with the city comptroller, for application to the city; subject to 15 the provision of subdivision four of section three thousand thirty-eight 16 of the public authorities law with respect to contributions by the city 17 or other public employer to any retirement system or pension fund and 18 subject to the provision of paragraph (c) of subdivision five of section 19 three thousand thirty-eight of the public authorities law with respect 20 to expense items included in the capital budget of the city. For the 21 fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two, and for 22 each fiscal year thereafter, the city's budget covering all expenditures 23 other than capital items shall be prepared and balanced so that the 24 results thereof would not show a deficit when reported in accordance 25 with generally accepted accounting principles and would permit compar- 26 ison of the budget with the report of actual financial results prepared 27 in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. With 28 respect to financial plans that include the fiscal years ending June 29 thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-nine through June thirtieth, nine- 30 teen hundred eighty-one, the city's budget covering all expenditures 31 other than capital items shall be prepared in accordance with generally 32 accepted accounting principles and there shall be substantial progress 33 in each such fiscal year towards achieving a city budget covering all 34 expenditures other than capital items the results of which would not 35 show a deficit when reported in accordance with generally accepted 36 accounting principles. The city shall eliminate expense items from its 37 capital budget not later than the commencement of the fiscal year ending 38 June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two. For the fiscal year ending 39 June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-nine, and for each fiscal year 40 thereafter, the budgets covering all expenditures other than capital 41 items of each of the covered organizations shall be prepared and 42 balanced so that the results thereof would not show a deficit when 43 reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; 44 and for each fiscal year prior thereto, there shall be substantial 45 progress towards such goal. Notwithstanding the foregoing and the 46 provisions of any general or special state law or local law to the 47 contrary, including but not limited to the New York city charter[,]: (i) 48 all costs that would be capital costs in accordance with generally 49 accepted accounting principles, but for the application of governmental 50 accounting standards board statement number forty-nine, shall be deemed 51 to be capital costs for purposes of this [chapter] act and any other 52 provision of state or local law, including but not limited to the New 53 York city charter, relevant to the treatment of such costs; and (ii) the 54 determination as to the existence of a deficit pursuant to this act and 55 any other provision of state or local law, including but not limited to 56 the New York city charter, shall be made without regard to changes inA. 6294--A 3 1 restricted fund balances, as defined by the governmental accounting 2 standards board, where restrictions in relation to such fund balances 3 are imposed by state or federal law or regulation, or otherwise by 4 private or governmental parties other than the city of New York, and 5 without regard to funds held in the health stabilization fund, the 6 school crossing guards health insurance fund and the management benefits 7 fund established by the city of New York. 8 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.