STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6296
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 3, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. R. CARROLL, DeSTEFANO, REYES, TAGUE, WILLIAMS --
Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, SAYEGH, SIMON -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Develop-
ment
AN ACT to amend the arts and cultural affairs law, in relation to the
establishment of regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks grants
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The arts and cultural affairs law is amended by adding a
2 new article 6 to read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 6
4 REGIONAL ARTS, CULTURAL AFFAIRS, AND PARKS GRANTS
5 Section 6.01. Definitions.
6 6.03. Establishment of arts, cultural affairs, and parks
7 regions.
8 6.05. Regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks competitive
9 grants.
10 § 6.01. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following
11 terms shall have the following meanings:
12 1. "Regions" shall mean the arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions
13 established in section 6.03 of this article.
14 2. "Regional councils" shall mean the councils which issue grants
15 under section 6.05 of this article.
16 § 6.03. Establishment of arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions.
17 Ten arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions shall be established with-
18 in the state, one for each of the following regions:
19 1. Long Island (which consists of Suffolk and Nassau counties);
20 2. the city of New York (which consists of Bronx, New York, Queens,
21 Kings, and Richmond counties);
22 3. the Mid-Hudson region (which consists of Sullivan, Ulster, Dutch-
23 ess, Orange, Putnam, Westchester, and Rockland counties);
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08872-01-5
A. 6296 2
1 4. the Southern tier (which consists of Steuben, Schuyler, Tompkins,
2 Chemung, Tioga, Chenango, Broome, and Delaware counties);
3 5. the Capital region (which consists of Warren, Washington, Saratoga,
4 Schenectady, Rensselaer, Albany, Columbia, and Greene counties);
5 6. the Mohawk valley (which consists of Oneida, Herkimer, Fulton,
6 Montgomery, Otsego, and Schoharie counties);
7 7. the North country (which consists of Clinton, Franklin, St.
8 Lawrence, Jefferson, Lewis, Hamilton, and Essex counties);
9 8. the Central region (which consists of Oswego, Cayuga, Onondaga,
10 Madison, and Cortland counties);
11 9. the Finger Lakes region (which consists of Orleans, Monroe, Wayne,
12 Genesee, Wyoming, Livingston, Ontario, Seneca, and Yates counties); and
13 10. the Western region (which consists of Niagara, Erie, Chautauqua,
14 Cattaraugus, and Allegany counties).
15 § 6.05. Regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks competitive grants.
16 1. The governor shall, in each region, establish a council who shall
17 issue competitive grants within the region. The members of each regional
18 council shall be local experts and stakeholders from arts and cultural
19 affairs organizations and parks organizations within the region. Each
20 regional council shall have seven total members appointed to such coun-
21 cil. Five members of each regional council shall be appointed by the
22 governor and shall serve at the pleasure of the governor, one member of
23 each regional council shall be appointed by the speaker of the assembly
24 and serve at the pleasure of the assembly, and one member of each
25 regional council shall be appointed by the temporary president of the
26 senate and serve at the pleasure of the senate. All members of the
27 regional councils shall be subject to the provisions of section seven-
28 ty-three-a of the public officers law.
29 2. The regional councils shall, with approval from the governor, issue
30 competitive grants to arts and cultural affairs organizations and parks
31 organizations within their region for capital projects such that:
32 (a) in the city of New York region, an equal amount of grant money is
33 issued to organizations with operating budgets of ten million dollars or
34 more as is issued to organizations with operating budgets of less than
35 ten million dollars; and
36 (b) in all other regions, an equal amount of grant money is issued to
37 organizations with operating budgets of five million dollars or more as
38 is issued to organizations with operating budgets of less than five
39 million dollars.
40 3. The regional councils shall determine which organization shall
41 receive a competitive grant based on criteria established by the gover-
42 nor for such purpose.
43 4. No regional council shall issue a grant to an organization which
44 has received a grant under this article within the prior three years.
45 5. No regional council shall issue grants totaling more than fifty
46 percent of such council's grant money issued in a calendar year to parks
47 organizations.
48 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
