STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4657
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 10, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. MAYER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
ment Operations
AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to the law revision
commission
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 70 of the legislative law, as amended by chapter
2 239 of the laws of 1944, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 70. Commission [created] continued; terms and qualifications of
4 members. A law revision commission is hereby [created] continued, [to]
5 and shall consist of the [chairman] chairs of the committees on the
6 judiciary and codes of the senate and assembly, ex-officio, and [five]
7 ten additional members, five members to be appointed by the governor,
8 one member to be appointed by the temporary president of the senate, one
9 member to be appointed by the minority leader of the senate, one member
10 to be appointed by the speaker of the assembly, one member to be
11 appointed by the minority leader of the assembly, and one member to be
12 appointed by the attorney general. The members first appointed by the
13 governor following the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two
14 thousand twenty-five that amended this section shall be appointed for
15 such terms that the term of one member will expire on each succeeding
16 thirty-first day of December. Members first appointed by the temporary
17 president of the senate and the minority leader of the senate shall be
18 appointed for a term of three years. Members first appointed by the
19 speaker of the assembly and the minority leader of the assembly shall be
20 appointed for a term of five years. The member first appointed by the
21 attorney general shall be appointed for a term of five years. The term
22 of a member thereafter appointed, except to fill a vacancy occurring
23 otherwise than by expiration of term, shall be five years from the expi-
24 ration of the term of [his] such member's predecessor. A vacancy in the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09292-01-5
S. 4657 2
1 office of a member [appointed by the governor] occurring otherwise than
2 by expiration of term, shall be filled by the [governor] appointing
3 authority for only the remainder [only] of the term of such member's
4 predecessor. [Upon making the original appointments] In July of each
5 year, the [governor] commission's membership shall designate one of the
6 appointed members as [chairman] chair of the commission. [Upon] A vacan-
7 cy in the [appointment] office of [a successor to] the [chairman] chair
8 of the commission occurring otherwise than by expiration of term, [the
9 governor] shall [designate such successor or other member of] be filled
10 by the [commission as chairman] commission's membership for only the
11 remainder of the term of such chair's predecessor. Four members
12 appointed by the governor shall be attorneys and counselors at law,
13 admitted to practice in the courts of this state, or members of law
14 faculties of universities or law schools within the state recognized by
15 the board of regents of the state of New York, and at least two of
16 [them] such members shall be members of law faculties of universities or
17 law schools within the state recognized by the board of regents of the
18 state of New York. The commission shall meet in person or virtually at
19 least on a quarterly basis.
20 § 2. Section 71 of the legislative law, as amended by chapter 358 of
21 the laws of 1961, is amended to read as follows:
22 § 71. Expenses; employees. Each of the members of the commission
23 appointed by the governor or by members of the legislature shall receive
24 reimbursement for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of
25 official duty. The commission may appoint such employees as may be need-
26 ed, prescribe their duties, and fix their compensation within the amount
27 appropriated for the commission.
28 § 3. Section 72 of the legislative law, as added by chapter 597 of the
29 laws of 1934, is amended to read as follows:
30 § 72. Purposes of commission. It shall be the duty of the law revision
31 commission:
32 1. To examine the common law and statutes of the state and current
33 judicial decisions [for the purpose of discovering defects and anachro-
34 nisms in the law] and recommending needed reforms.
35 2. To receive and consider suggested areas of study and proposed
36 changes in the law recommended by judges, justices, public officials,
37 lawyers, the American law institute, the [commissioners for the
38 promotion of uniformity of legislation in the United States] Uniform Law
39 Commission, [any] bar [association or] associations, other learned
40 bodies, or the general public. Suggestions for areas of study made by
41 statute, the governor, members of the legislature, court of appeals
42 judges, or the attorney general shall be given priority review for
43 consideration by the commission.
44 3. [To receive and consider suggestions from judges, justices, public
45 officials, lawyers and the public generally as to defects and anachro-
46 nisms in the law.
47 4.] To recommend, from time to time, such changes in the law as it
48 deems necessary to modify or eliminate antiquated [and] or inequitable
49 rules of law, and to bring the law of this state, civil and criminal,
50 into harmony with modern conditions.
51 [5.] 4. To report its proceedings annually to the legislature on or
52 before February first, and, if it deems advisable, to accompany its
53 report with proposed bills to carry out any of its recommendations.
54 § 4. The legislative law is amended by adding a new section 73 to read
55 as follows:
S. 4657 3
1 § 73. Funding of the commission. There is hereby established in the
2 joint custody of the comptroller and commissioner of taxation and
3 finance a fund to be designated as the law revision commission fund. The
4 commissioner shall deposit into the law revision commission fund all
5 moneys appropriated to the law revision commission. The moneys so
6 received and deposited in the law revision commission fund shall not be
7 commingled with moneys from the general fund and shall be used solely
8 for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this article.
9 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
