Bill Text: NY A07989 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

New York Assembly Bill 7989 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Relates to the adjustment of penalties due to inflation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-01-03 - ordered to third reading cal.568 [A07989 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A07989-Introduced.html

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          7989
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                      May 24, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. BARNWELL, WEINSTEIN -- (at request of the Depart-
          ment of Law) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  state finance law, in relation to adjustment of
          penalties due to inflation
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature finds that
     2  adjustment  of  the  minimum and maximum penalty amounts provided in New
     3  York's False Claims Act is necessary in order for New York  to  maintain
     4  compliance  with the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Social Secu-
     5  rity Act § 1090(a) (the  "DRA")  by  providing  for  penalty  provisions
     6  equally  effective  to  the federal False Claims Act.  The federal False
     7  Claims Act, amended effective August 1, 2016, provides for adjustment of
     8  federal civil penalties based on inflation; the New  York  False  Claims
     9  Act  currently  provides  only  for  fixed  penalties. When state law is
    10  compliant with the DRA, the state  is  entitled  to  receive  a  greater
    11  percentage share of recoveries from enforcement actions concerning Medi-
    12  caid  program funds, regardless of the actual amount of penalty imposed.
    13  When state law falls out of compliance, the state is at risk  of  losing
    14  tens of millions of dollars annually.  It is the legislative intent that
    15  this act maintains the state's compliance with federal Deficit Reduction
    16  Act  and  federal False Claims Act penalties without the need for legis-
    17  lation enactments to adjust for inflation.
    18    § 2. Paragraph (h) of subdivision  1  of  section  189  of  the  state
    19  finance law, as amended by section 8 of part A of chapter 56 of the laws
    20  of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
    21    (h) knowingly conceals or knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases
    22  an  obligation  to  pay  or transmit money or property to the state or a
    23  local government, or conspires to do the same; shall be  liable  to  the
    24  state  or  a local government, as applicable, for a civil penalty of not
    25  less than six  thousand  dollars  and  not  more  than  twelve  thousand
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10852-02-7

        A. 7989                             2
     1  dollars,  except  that  these  lower and upper limits on liability shall
     2  automatically be adjusted to equal the civil penalty allowed  under  the
     3  federal  False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. sec.  3729, et seq., as amended, if
     4  and  as  the penalties in said federal False Claims Act are adjusted for
     5  inflation by the Federal Civil Penalties  Inflation  Adjustment  Act  of
     6  1990,  as amended (28 U.S.C. 2461 note; Pub. L. No. 101-410), plus three
     7  times the amount of all damages, including consequential damages,  which
     8  the  state  or  local  government  sustains  because  of the act of that
     9  person.
    10    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.