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A07569 Summary:

BILL NOA07569
 
SAME ASSAME AS S06183
 
SPONSORGallagher
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Amd 13, Rel Corp L
 
Requires the Catholic Archdiocese follow certain procedures during the consolidation or merger of churches including requiring a vote by the parish councils and trustees of the consolidating or merging churches.
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A07569 Actions:

BILL NOA07569
 
05/25/2023referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
01/03/2024referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
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A07569 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          7569
 
                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                      May 25, 2023
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  GALLAGHER  --  read once and referred to the
          Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
 
        AN ACT to amend the religious corporations law, in relation to requiring
          the Catholic Archdiocese follow certain procedures during the  consol-
          idation or merger of churches

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Section 13 of the religious corporations law, as amended by
     2  chapter 549 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 13. Consolidation or merger of incorporated churches.  Two  or  more
     4  incorporated  churches  may enter into an agreement, under their respec-
     5  tive corporate seals, for the consolidation or  merger  of  such  corpo-
     6  rations,  setting  forth  the  name  of  the proposed new corporation or
     7  surviving corporation, the denomination, if  any,  to  which  it  is  to
     8  belong,  and  if  the  churches  of such denomination have more than one
     9  method of choosing trustees, by which of such methods the  trustees  are
    10  to  be  chosen, the number of such trustees, the names of the persons to
    11  be the first trustees of the new corporation, and the date of its  first
    12  annual  corporate  meeting.  Such  an  agreement  shall not be valid for
    13  United Methodist churches unless proposed by  a  majority  vote  of  the
    14  charge  conference  of each church and approved by the superintendent or
    15  superintendents of the district or districts in which the  consolidating
    16  churches are located, and by the majority of the members of each of such
    17  churches,  over  the  age  of  twenty-one years, present and voting at a
    18  meeting thereof held in the usual place of public worship and called for
    19  the purpose of considering such agreement by announcement made at public
    20  service in such churches on two Sundays, the first  not  less  than  ten
    21  days  next  preceding  the date of such meeting. Such an agreement shall
    22  not be valid for Roman Catholic churches unless proposed by  a  majority
    23  vote  of the parish councils and trustees of each church and approved by
    24  the cardinal or cardinals of the archdiocese or  archdioceses  in  which
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10643-01-3

        A. 7569                             2
 
     1  the  consolidating  churches  are  located,  and  by the majority of the
     2  members of each of such churches, over  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,
     3  present  and  voting  at  a  meeting  thereof held in the usual place of
     4  public  worship and called for the purpose of considering such agreement
     5  by announcement made at public service in such churches on two  Sundays,
     6  the  first  not less than ten days next preceding the date of such meet-
     7  ing. Such agreement shall not be valid unless approved in  the  case  of
     8  Protestant  Episcopal  churches  by the bishop and standing committee of
     9  the diocese in which such churches are  situated  and  in  the  case  of
    10  churches  of  other  denominations  by the governing body of the denomi-
    11  nation, if any, to which each church belongs, having  jurisdiction  over
    12  such  church.  Each corporation shall thereupon make a separate petition
    13  to the supreme court for an order consolidating or  merging  the  corpo-
    14  rations,  setting  forth  the  denomination, if any, to which the church
    15  belongs, that the consent of the governing body to the consolidation  or
    16  merger,  if  any,  of  that  denomination  having jurisdiction over such
    17  church has been obtained, the agreement therefor, and a statement of all
    18  the property and liabilities and the amount and sources  of  the  annual
    19  income  of such petitioning corporation. In its discretion the court may
    20  direct that notice of the hearing of  such  petition  be  given  to  the
    21  parties  interested  therein  in such manner and for such time as it may
    22  prescribe. After hearing all the parties interested, present and  desir-
    23  ing  to  be  heard, the court may make an order for the consolidation or
    24  merger of the corporations on the terms of such agreement and such other
    25  terms and conditions as it may prescribe, specifying the  name  of  such
    26  new or surviving corporation and the trustees thereof, and the method by
    27  which their successors shall be chosen and the date of its first or next
    28  annual  corporate meeting. When such order is made and duly entered, the
    29  persons constituting such consolidated or merged corporations  shall  be
    30  or become an incorporated church by, and said petitioning churches shall
    31  become  consolidated  or merged under, the name designated in the order,
    32  and the trustees therein named shall be the trustees  thereof,  and  the
    33  future  trustees  thereof  shall  be chosen by the method therein desig-
    34  nated, and all the estate, rights, powers  and  property  of  whatsoever
    35  nature belonging to either corporation shall without further act or deed
    36  be  vested  in  and  transferred  to the new or surviving corporation as
    37  effectually as they were vested in or belonging  to  the  former  corpo-
    38  rations;  and  the said new or surviving corporation shall be liable for
    39  all the debts and liabilities of the former  corporations  in  the  same
    40  manner  and  as  effectually  as  if  said debts or liabilities had been
    41  contracted or incurred by the new or surviving corporation. A  certified
    42  copy  of  such order shall be recorded in the book for recording certif-
    43  icates of incorporation in each  county  clerk's  office  in  which  the
    44  certificate of incorporation of each consolidating or merging church was
    45  recorded; or if no such certificate was so recorded, then in the clerk's
    46  office  of the county in which the principal place of worship or princi-
    47  pal office of the new or surviving corporation is, or is intended to be,
    48  situated.
    49    § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    50  have become a law.
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