STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7812
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 9, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. SKOUFIS -- 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 public officers law, in relation to the line of
succession to the office of governor; and to repeal article 1-A of the
New York state defense emergency act relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public officers law is amended by adding a new section
2 44 to read as follows:
3 § 44. Officials eligible to act as governor. 1. For the purposes of
4 article four of the constitution, if the office of governor becomes
5 vacant or if the governor is impeached or unable to discharge the powers
6 and duties of the office of governor, and each of the lieutenant gover-
7 nor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assem-
8 bly is unable to act as governor or each office is vacant, then the
9 official who is highest on the following list shall act as governor
10 until a new governor is elected, or the governor or lieutenant governor
11 is acquitted or becomes able: attorney general, comptroller, commission-
12 er of transportation, commissioner of health, commissioner of financial
13 services, secretary of state, commissioner of labor and commissioner of
14 agriculture, provided that such official otherwise meets the criteria
15 set forth in section two of article four of the constitution and was
16 confirmed by the senate or elected to lead the official's respective
17 department.
18 2. Whenever any official listed in subdivision one of this section
19 shall act as governor, that official shall be required to vacate the
20 official's existing position and shall remain eligible to act as gover-
21 nor following such resignation. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any
22 official listed in subdivision one of this section shall act as governor
23 when the governor or lieutenant governor is under impeachment or unable
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11676-01-5
S. 7812 2
1 to discharge the powers and duties of office, such official shall not be
2 required to vacate that official's existing position until they have
3 served as acting governor for sixty consecutive days. However, while
4 serving as acting governor during such sixty-day period, that official
5 shall not be permitted to discharge any powers and duties of the offi-
6 cial's original position.
7 3. Any official listed in subdivision one of this section may decline
8 to act as governor, making them unable to act as governor. In the event
9 any official listed in subdivision one of this section is unable to act
10 as governor or is ineligible to do so, the official next highest on the
11 list who is eligible and able shall act as governor until a new governor
12 is elected, or the governor or lieutenant governor is acquitted or
13 becomes able.
14 4. If an official acts as governor under this section, the official
15 shall discharge all the powers and duties of the office of governor as
16 if the official had been elected governor.
17 § 2. Article 1-A of chapter 784 of the laws of 1951, constituting the
18 New York state defense emergency act, is REPEALED.
19 § 3. This act shall take effect on the same date as a "CONCURRENT
20 RESOLUTION OF THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY proposing an amendment to article
21 4 of the constitution, to the line of succession to the office of the
22 governor" takes effect, in accordance with section 1 of article 19 of
23 the constitution.
