STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7093--A Cal. No. 697 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 18, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sens. CHU, MAY, MURRAY, O'MARA, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Libraries -- recommitted to the Committee on Libraries in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, passed by Senate and delivered to the Assembly, recalled, vote reconsidered, restored to third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to state aid eligibility for library construction and making technical corrections thereto; to amend chapter 498 of the laws of 2011 amending the education law relating to the public library construction grant program, in relation to the effectiveness thereof; and to repeal certain provisions of the education law relating thereto The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 273-a of the education law, as amended by chapter 2 381 of the laws of 2019, subdivision 1 as amended by section 1 of chap- 3 ter 333 of the laws of 2022, subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 627 of 4 the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows: 5 § 273-a. State aid for library construction. 1. State aid shall be 6 provided for up to fifty percent of the total project approved costs, 7 excluding feasibility studies, plans or similar activities, for projects 8 for the installation and infrastructure of broadband services, and for 9 the acquisition of vacant land and the acquisition, construction, reno- 10 vation or rehabilitation, including leasehold improvements, of buildings 11 of public libraries and library systems chartered by the regents of the 12 state of New York or established by act of the legislature subject to 13 the limitations provided in subdivision six of this section and upon 14 approval by the commissioner, except that state aid may be provided for 15 up to [seventy-five] ninety percent of the total project approved costs EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD09166-02-4
S. 7093--A 2 1 for buildings of public libraries that are located in an economically 2 disadvantaged community [and that state aid may be provided for up to 3 ninety percent of the total project approved costs for buildings of 4 public libraries that are located in an economically distressed communi- 5 ty]. Provided however that the state liability for aid paid pursuant to 6 this section shall be limited to funds appropriated for such purpose. 7 Aid shall be provided on approved expenses incurred during the period 8 commencing July first and ending June thirtieth for up to six years, or 9 until the project is completed, whichever occurs first. Provided, howev- 10 er, that public libraries that received aid for projects pursuant to 11 this section commencing July first, two thousand seventeen through July 12 first, two thousand nineteen and are unable to complete such projects 13 due to the state disaster emergency declared pursuant to executive order 14 number two hundred two of two thousand twenty, as amended, shall be 15 provided an additional twelve months from the statutory project end date 16 to complete such projects. Fifty percent of such aid shall be payable 17 to each system or library upon approval of the application by the 18 department. Forty percent of such aid shall be payable in the next state 19 fiscal year. The remaining ten percent shall be payable upon project 20 completion. 21 2. Each single building project application for state aid shall be 22 submitted by the board of trustees of the library or library system 23 responsible for the operation of the subject building to the commission- 24 er for [his or her] the commissioner's review and approval, after having 25 been reviewed and approved by the governing board of the public library 26 system of which such library is a member. Each single building project 27 application shall: 28 a. demonstrate that resources are or shall be available to provide for 29 maximum utilization of the project if approved; 30 b. contain verification in such form as may be acceptable to the 31 commissioner that the total cost of the project, exclusive of state aid, 32 has been or will be obtained; 33 c. demonstrate that library operations would be made more economical 34 as a consequence of approval; 35 d. be limited to one project concerning such building, provided that 36 no building shall be the subject of more than one single building 37 project application per year; 38 e. contain documentation, where such an application requests state aid 39 in an amount greater than [fifty] seventy-five percent, demonstrating 40 how the project will address the service needs of one or more econom- 41 ically disadvantaged communities. Such documentation may demonstrate 42 need through poverty rates, concentrations of English language learners, 43 low high school graduation rates, limited fiscal capacity or other rele- 44 vant factors; and 45 f. [contain documentation, where such an application requests state 46 aid in an amount greater than seventy-five percent, demonstrating how 47 the project will address the service needs of one or more economically 48 distressed communities. An application must demonstrate that the average 49 poverty rate within the library's service area is equal to or greater 50 than the New York state average poverty rate using federal census data; 51 and the library must demonstrate that it lacks the capacity to provide 52 twenty-five percent of the project costs; and 53 g.] provide such other information as may be required by the commis- 54 sioner. 55 3. Coordinated applications for state aid allocated under paragraph b 56 of subdivision six of this section shall be submitted by the public
S. 7093--A 3 1 library system. The public library system shall be responsible for 2 managing all coordinated projects. Each coordinated project application 3 shall be approved by the board of trustees of each participating library 4 and library system responsible for the operation of the said buildings. 5 Coordinated project applications shall be submitted to the commissioner 6 for the commissioner's review and approval, after having been reviewed 7 and approved by the governing board of the public library system of 8 which such libraries are members. Each coordinated project application 9 shall: 10 a. demonstrate that resources are or shall be available to provide for 11 maximum utilization of the project if approved; 12 b. contain verification in such form as may be acceptable to the 13 commissioner that the total cost of the project, exclusive of state aid, 14 has been or will be obtained; 15 c. demonstrate that library operations would be made more economical 16 as a consequence of approval; 17 d. provide that no one building shall be the subject of more than one 18 coordinated project application per year; 19 e. contain documentation, where such an application requests state aid 20 in an amount greater than seventy-five percent, demonstrating how the 21 project will address the service needs of one or more economically 22 disadvantaged communities. Such documentation may demonstrate need 23 through poverty rates, concentrations of English language learners, low 24 high school graduation rates, limited fiscal capacity or other relevant 25 factors; and 26 f. provide such other information as may be required by the commis- 27 sioner. 28 4. In approving any single or coordinated building project application 29 that would receive state aid beyond [fifty] seventy-five percent of the 30 total project approved costs, the board of trustees of the library 31 system shall give particular attention to addressing the library service 32 needs of economically disadvantaged communities as provided for in para- 33 graph e of subdivision two of this section or paragraph e of subdivision 34 three of this section, as applicable. 35 [4. In approving any application that would receive state aid beyond 36 seventy-five percent of the total project approved costs, the board of 37 trustees of the library system shall give particular attention to 38 addressing the library service needs of economically distressed communi- 39 ties as provided for in paragraph f of subdivision two of this section. 40 No more than fifty percent of the total funds appropriated to a library 41 system in subdivision six of this section may be used to support the 42 total costs for projects that would receive state aid beyond seventy- 43 five percent of the total project approved costs.] 44 5. In approving any new single building or coordinated project appli- 45 cation the commissioner shall consider the condition of existing 46 libraries and, where appropriate, the needs of isolated or economically 47 disadvantaged communities, provided that no application shall be 48 approved for a project that is deemed by the commissioner to have been 49 completed prior to the date of the application. 50 6. Aid shall be distributed pursuant to this section as follows: 51 a. sixty percent of the funds appropriated pursuant to this section 52 shall be made available to libraries within each system by the commis- 53 sioner in such manner as to insure that the ratio of the amount received 54 within each system to the whole of the aid made available pursuant to 55 this paragraph is no greater than the ratio of the population served by 56 such system to the population of the state;
S. 7093--A 4 1 b. forty percent of the funds appropriated pursuant to this section 2 shall be made available to library systems or libraries within each 3 system by the commissioner in such manner as to insure that an equal 4 amount is received within each system in the state; 5 c. any funds made available pursuant to paragraph a or b of this 6 subdivision which by April first of each succeeding fiscal year, are 7 declined by such libraries or library systems for any reason, or which 8 cannot otherwise be used by such libraries or library systems for any 9 reason, shall be made available by the commissioner to other eligible 10 libraries within such system, or if no such library can use such funds 11 shall be reallocated among the other library systems and their libraries 12 in a manner that will to the extent possible provide from such reallo- 13 cated funds an equal amount to each such system. 14 7. The commissioner shall adopt rules and regulations as are necessary 15 to carry out the purposes and provisions of this section. 16 8. The commissioner shall submit to the temporary president of the 17 senate and the speaker of the assembly an annual report describing those 18 projects that have received state funding of greater than fifty percent 19 of project costs and the communities to be served by those projects. 20 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 273-a of the education law, as amended 21 by section 2 of chapter 333 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as 22 follows: 23 1. State aid shall be provided for up to fifty percent of the total 24 project approved costs, excluding feasibility studies, plans or similar 25 activities, for projects for the installation and infrastructure of 26 broadband services, and for the acquisition of vacant land and the 27 acquisition, construction, renovation or rehabilitation, including 28 leasehold improvements, of buildings of public libraries and library 29 systems chartered by the regents of the state of New York or established 30 by act of the legislature subject to the limitations provided in subdi- 31 vision six of this section and upon approval by the commissioner, except 32 that state aid may be provided for up to [seventy-five] ninety percent 33 of the total project approved costs for buildings of public libraries 34 that are located in an economically disadvantaged community [and that 35 state aid may be provided for up to ninety percent of the total project 36 approved costs for buildings of public libraries that are located in an 37 economically distressed community]. Provided however that the state 38 liability for aid paid pursuant to this section shall be limited to 39 funds appropriated for such purpose. Aid shall be provided on approved 40 expenses incurred during the period commencing July first and ending 41 June thirtieth for up to six years, or until the project is completed, 42 whichever occurs first. Fifty percent of such aid shall be payable to 43 each system or library upon approval of the application by the depart- 44 ment. Forty percent of such aid shall be payable in the next state 45 fiscal year. The remaining ten percent shall be payable upon project 46 completion. 47 § 3. Section 273-a of the education law, as amended by chapter 389 of 48 the laws of 2019, is REPEALED. 49 § 4. Section 2 of chapter 498 of the laws of 2011 amending the educa- 50 tion law relating to the public library construction grant program, as 51 amended by section 32-a of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of 2023, is 52 amended to read as follows: 53 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding 54 the date on which it shall have become a law [and shall expire and be 55 deemed repealed March 31, 2026].
S. 7093--A 5 1 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however that 2 the amendments to subdivision 1 of section 273-a of the education law 3 made by section one of this act shall be subject to the expiration and 4 reversion of such subdivision pursuant to section 2 of chapter 120 of 5 the laws of 2020, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of 6 section two of this act shall take effect.