Relates to the appointment of members of the Battery Park city authority; increases the number of members to nine; requires five of the nine members be primary residents of Battery Park city.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A4396
SPONSOR: Fall TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to the appoint-
ment of members of the Battery Park city authority
PURPOSE:
This bill would expand the Battery Park City Authority's Board of Direc-
tors by two members and require the appointment of Battery Park City
residents until a majority of members of the Board are Battery Park City
residents.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill would amend § 1973 of the Public Authorities Law
to expand the membership of the Battery Park City Authority Board of
Directors from seven to nine members and to provide that appointments
shall be of primary residents of Battery Park City until the Board
includes at least five members who are residents.
Section 2 sets forth the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) is a public benefit corporation
that owns and manages the 92-acres that comprise Battery Park City in
Lower Manhattan. The BPCA's Board of Directors makes decisions that
impact the residents and businesses of Battery Park City, such as manag-
ing the Authority's assets and investments, and evaluating bids and
awarding contracts for services for residents and visitors to the commu-
nity.
This bill would require majority representation of primary residents of
Battery Park City on the BPCA Board. As required by Chapter 63 of the
Laws of 2018 (S7284/A8986 Kavanagh/Glick), enacted in connection with
the first statutory requirement that board members be residents, all
resident-members, along with all other board members, would have appro-
, priate experience to serve on the board and would be required to
recuse themselves in the event of a conflict of interest. Increasing
local representation would therefore include more resident voices in
decisions that affect the community while ensuring the Board includes
the necessary expertise and without resulting in decisions that raise
conflicts of interest.
In 2022, the legislature passed a bill similar to this one, but the
Governor vetoed it (Veto Memo 37 of 2022), citing as a reason "this bill
could give rise to increased conflicts of interest, which would impede
the Board's ability to manage its business affairs in an orderly
manner." However, as the veto memo acknowledges, the BPCA Board current-
ly has two Battery Park City residents. To date, these members' tenure
has not hindered the functioning of the Board. Residency in the commu-
nity is not unique in raising potential conflicts of interest that must
be protected against, as there are numerous other potential factors,
such as business interests that could give rise to potential conflicts.
On any welt functioning board, all potential conflicts of interest must
be identified and managed. With respect to the BPCA, this requirement is
spelled out in statute with respect to residents and all Board members
must comply with the BPCA's existing Conflicts of Interest Policy.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
06/07/24 reported referred to rules
2022: S9031A (Kavanagh) / Al 0371A (Niou) -- vetoed by Governor, Veto
Memo 37 of 2022
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
