New York Senate Bill S01296 Latest Draft

   
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1296 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 9, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, LANZA, OBERACKER, O'MARA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in relation to establishing a spending cap The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The state finance law is amended by adding a new article 17 2 to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 17 4 ANNUAL SPENDING GROWTH CAP ACT 5 Section 244. Definitions. 6 245. Establishment of annual spending growth cap. 7 246. Provisions regarding declaration of emergency. 8 § 244. Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall 9 have the following meanings, unless otherwise specified: 10 1. "Annual spending growth cap" shall mean a percentage determined by 11 adding the inflation rates from each of the three calendar years imme- 12 diately prior to the commencement of a given fiscal year and then divid- 13 ing that sum by three or two percent, whichever is less. 14 2. "State operating funds spending" shall mean annual disbursements of 15 all governmental fund types included in the cash-basis financial plan of 16 the state, excluding disbursements from federal funds and capital 17 project funds. 18 3. "Inflation rate" shall mean the percentage change in the twelve- 19 month average of the consumer price index for all urban consumers as 20 published by the United States department of labor, bureau of labor 21 statistics or any successor agency for a given calendar year compared to 22 the prior calendar year. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01635-01-5 
 S. 1296 2 1 4. "Executive budget" shall mean the budget submitted annually by the 2 governor pursuant to section one of article VII of the state constitu- 3 tion. 4 5. "State budget as enacted" shall mean the budget acted upon by the 5 legislature in a given fiscal year, as subject to section four of arti- 6 cle VII of the state constitution and section seven of article IV of the 7 state constitution. 8 6. "Emergency" shall mean an extraordinary, unforeseen, or unexpected 9 occurrence, or combination of circumstances, including but not limited 10 to a natural disaster, invasion, terrorist attack, or economic calamity. 11 § 245. Establishment of annual spending growth cap. 1. There is here- 12 by established an annual spending growth cap. 13 2. The governor shall not submit, and the legislature shall not act 14 upon, a budget that contains a percentage increase over the prior fiscal 15 year in state operating funds spending which exceeds the annual spending 16 growth cap. 17 3. The governor shall certify in writing that state operating funds 18 spending in the executive budget does not exceed the annual spending 19 growth cap. If final inflation rate data for the prior calendar year is 20 not yet available at the time the governor submits their executive budg- 21 et, the governor shall furnish a reasonable estimate of such prior 22 calendar year inflation rate. 23 4. The comptroller shall provide, within five days of action by the 24 legislature upon the budget, a determination as to whether the state 25 operating funds spending as set forth in the state budget as enacted 26 exceeds the annual spending growth cap. 27 5. If the comptroller finds that state operating funds spending as set 28 forth in the state budget as enacted exceeds the annual spending growth 29 cap, the governor shall take corrective action to ensure that funding is 30 limited to the amount of the annual spending cap. 31 § 246. Provisions regarding declaration of emergency. 1. Upon a find- 32 ing of an emergency by the governor, the governor may declare an emer- 33 gency by an executive order which shall set forth the reasons for such 34 declaration. 35 2. Based upon such declaration, the governor may submit, and the 36 legislature may authorize, by a two-thirds supermajority, a budget 37 containing a percentage increase over the prior fiscal year in state 38 operating funds spending that exceeds the annual spending growth cap. 39 § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 40 have become a law.