STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4487
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 4, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. STEC, McDONOUGH, TAGUE, BRABENEC, CROUCH -- read
once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law and the legislative law, in relation to
campaign finance reform and legislative leadership position term
limits
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The election law is amended by adding a new section 14-115
2 to read as follows:
3 § 14-115. Restrictions on campaign contributions for individuals,
4 businesses or corporations that were awarded contracts with the state or
5 any municipal corporation. 1. Individuals, businesses or corporations
6 that enter into a contract with this state or any municipal corporation
7 shall be prohibited from making any contribution to any state official
8 elected to public office or his or her family, any political committee
9 defined under section 14-100 of this article or any independent expendi-
10 ture as defined under section 14-107 of this article within one year of
11 the contract being awarded to the person, business or corporation.
12 2. Individuals, businesses or corporations that submit a request for
13 proposal with the state or any municipality in regard to a contract
14 shall disclose in the proposal any campaign contributions made in the
15 previous three hundred sixty-five days to any state official elected to
16 public office or his or her family, any political committee or any inde-
17 pendent expenditure and if the individual, business or corporation is
18 awarded the contract, any state official elected to public office or his
19 or her family, any political committee or any independent expenditure
20 that received any campaign contributions from said individual, business
21 or corporation shall refund the individual, business or corporation in
22 full.
23 § 2. The legislative law is amended by adding a new section 5-b to
24 read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08758-01-9
A. 4487 2
1 § 5-b. Legislative leadership position term limits. No member of the
2 state legislature shall serve as an officer or in a special capacity
3 position, as defined under section five-a of this article, for more than
4 eight years.
5 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 14-114 of the election law, as amended
6 by chapter 79 of the laws of 1992, paragraphs a and b as amended by
7 chapter 659 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
8 1. The following limitations apply to all contributions to candidates
9 for election to any public office or for nomination for any such office,
10 or for election to any party positions, and to all contributions to
11 political committees working directly or indirectly with any candidate
12 to aid or participate in such candidate's nomination or election, other
13 than any contributions to any party committee or constituted committee:
14 a. In any election for a public office to be voted on by the voters of
15 the entire state, or for nomination to any such office, no contributor
16 may make a contribution to any candidate or political committee, and no
17 candidate or political committee may accept any contribution from any
18 contributor, which is in the aggregate amount greater than: (i) in the
19 case of any nomination to public office, the product of the total number
20 of enrolled voters in the candidate's party in the state, excluding
21 voters in inactive status, multiplied by $.005, but such amount shall be
22 not less than four thousand dollars nor more than [twelve] ten thousand
23 dollars as increased or decreased by the cost of living adjustment
24 described in paragraph c of this subdivision, and (ii) in the case of
25 any election to a public office, [twenty-five] ten thousand dollars [as
26 increased or decreased by the cost of living adjustment described in
27 paragraph c of this subdivision; provided however, that the maximum
28 amount which may be so contributed or accepted, in the aggregate, from
29 any candidate's child, parent, grandparent, brother and sister, and the
30 spouse of any such persons, shall not exceed in the case of any nomi-
31 nation to public office an amount equivalent to the product of the
32 number of enrolled voters in the candidate's party in the state, exclud-
33 ing voters in inactive status, multiplied by $.025, and in the case of
34 any election for a public office, an amount equivalent to the product of
35 the number of registered voters in the state excluding voters in inac-
36 tive status, multiplied by $.025].
37 b. In any other election for party position or for election to a
38 public office or for nomination for any such office, no contributor may
39 make a contribution to any candidate or political committee and no
40 candidate or political committee may accept any contribution from any
41 contributor, which is in the aggregate amount greater than: [(i) in the
42 case of any election for party position, or for nomination to public
43 office, the product of the total number of enrolled voters in the candi-
44 date's party in the district in which he is a candidate, excluding
45 voters in inactive status, multiplied by $.05, and (ii) in the case of
46 any election for a public office, the product of the total number of
47 registered voters in the district, excluding voters in inactive status,
48 multiplied by $.05,] ten thousand dollars, however in the case of a
49 nomination within the city of New York for the office of mayor, public
50 advocate or comptroller, such amount shall be not less than four thou-
51 sand dollars nor more than [twelve] ten thousand dollars as increased or
52 decreased by the cost of living adjustment described in paragraph c of
53 this subdivision; in the case of an election within the city of New York
54 for the office of mayor, public advocate or comptroller, [twenty-five]
55 ten thousand dollars as increased or decreased by the cost of living
56 adjustment described in paragraph c of this subdivision; in the case of
A. 4487 3
1 a nomination for state senator, four thousand dollars as increased or
2 decreased by the cost of living adjustment described in paragraph c of
3 this subdivision; in the case of an election for state senator, six
4 thousand two hundred fifty dollars as increased or decreased by the cost
5 of living adjustment described in paragraph c of this subdivision; in
6 the case of an election or nomination for a member of the assembly,
7 twenty-five hundred dollars as increased or decreased by the cost of
8 living adjustment described in paragraph c of this subdivision; but in
9 no event shall any such maximum exceed [fifty] ten thousand dollars or
10 be less than one thousand dollars; provided however, that the maximum
11 amount which may be so contributed or accepted, in the aggregate, from
12 any candidate's child, parent, grandparent, brother and sister, and the
13 spouse of any such persons, shall not exceed in the case of any election
14 for party position or nomination for public office an amount equivalent
15 to [the number of enrolled voters in the candidate's party in the
16 district in which he is a candidate, excluding voters in inactive
17 status, multiplied by $.25 and in the case of any election to public
18 office, an amount equivalent to the number of registered voters in the
19 district, excluding voters in inactive status, multiplied by $.25; or]
20 twelve hundred fifty dollars, [whichever is greater,] or in the case of
21 a nomination or election of a state senator, [twenty] ten thousand
22 dollars, [whichever is greater,] or in the case of a nomination or
23 election of a member of the assembly [twelve] ten thousand [five
24 hundred] dollars, [whichever is greater,] but in no event shall any such
25 maximum exceed [one hundred] ten thousand dollars.
26 c. At the beginning of each fourth calendar year, commencing in [nine-
27 teen hundred ninety-five] two thousand twenty, the state board shall
28 determine the percentage of the difference between the most recent
29 available monthly consumer price index for all urban consumers published
30 by the United States bureau of labor statistics and such consumer price
31 index published for the same month four years previously. The amount of
32 each contribution limit fixed in this subdivision shall be adjusted by
33 the amount of such percentage difference to the closest one hundred
34 dollars by the state board which, not later than the first day of Febru-
35 ary in each such year, shall issue a regulation publishing the amount of
36 each such contribution limit. Each contribution limit as so adjusted
37 shall be the contribution limit in effect for any election held before
38 the next such adjustment.
39 § 4. Subdivision 8 of section 14-114 of the election law, as amended
40 by chapter 8 of the laws of 1978 and as redesignated by chapter 9 of the
41 laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
42 8. a. Except as may otherwise be provided [for] by a candidate [and
43 his family] for his or her own campaign, no natural person may contrib-
44 ute, loan or guarantee in excess of [one hundred fifty] ten thousand
45 dollars within the state of New York in any calendar year in connection
46 with the nomination or election of [persons to] candidates for state
47 [and] or local public offices [and] or party positions [within the state
48 of New York in any one calendar year].
49 b. For the purposes of this subdivision "loan" or "guarantee" shall
50 mean a loan or guarantee which is not repaid or discharged in the calen-
51 dar year in which it is made.
52 § 5. Subdivision 10 of section 14-114 of the election law, as added by
53 chapter 79 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
54 10. a. No contributor may make a contribution to a party or consti-
55 tuted committee and no such committee may accept a contribution from any
A. 4487 4
1 contributor which, in the aggregate, is greater than [sixty-two] ten
2 thousand [five hundred] dollars per annum.
3 b. At the beginning of each fourth calendar year, commencing in [nine-
4 teen hundred ninety-five] two thousand twenty, the state board shall
5 determine the percentage of the difference between the most recent
6 available monthly consumer price index for all urban consumers published
7 by the United States bureau of labor statistics and such consumer price
8 index published for the same month four years previously. The amount of
9 such contribution limit fixed in paragraph a of this subdivision shall
10 be adjusted by the amount of such percentage difference to the closest
11 one hundred dollars by the state board which, not later than the first
12 day of February in each such year, shall issue a regulation publishing
13 the amount of such contribution limit. Such contribution limit as so
14 adjusted shall be the contribution limit in effect for any election held
15 before the next such adjustment.
16 § 6. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
17 have become a law.