STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8548
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
August 23, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CARROLL -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Tourism, Parks, Arts and Sports Development
AN ACT to amend the arts and cultural affairs law, in relation to the
establishment of regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks accessi-
bility grants
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The arts and cultural affairs law is amended by adding a
2 new article 6 to read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 6
4 REGIONAL ARTS, CULTURAL AFFAIRS, AND PARKS ACCESSIBILITY
5 GRANTS
6 Section 6.01. Definitions.
7 6.03. Establishment of arts, cultural affairs, and parks
8 regions.
9 6.05. Regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks competitive
10 accessibility grants.
11 § 6.01. Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following
12 terms shall have the following meanings:
13 1. "Regions" shall mean the arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions
14 established in section 6.03 of this article.
15 2. "Regional councils" shall mean the councils which issue grants
16 under section 6.05 of this article.
17 3. "Accessibility programs" shall mean programs which: (a) bring
18 facilities into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act; or
19 (b) improving the ability for disabled persons to use an organization's
20 facilities.
21 § 6.03. Establishment of arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions.
22 Ten arts, cultural affairs, and parks regions shall be established with-
23 in the state, one for each of the following regions:
24 1. Long Island (which consists of Suffolk and Nassau counties);
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13584-03-9
A. 8548 2
1 2. the city of New York (which consists of Bronx, New York, Queens,
2 Kings, and Richmond counties);
3 3. the Mid-Hudson region (which consists of Sullivan, Ulster, Dutch-
4 ess, Orange, Putnam, Westchester, and Rockland counties);
5 4. the Southern tier (which consists of Steuben, Schuyler, Tompkins,
6 Chemung, Tioga, Chenango, Broome, and Delaware counties);
7 5. the Capital region (which consists of Warren, Washington, Saratoga,
8 Schenectady, Rensselaer, Albany, Columbia, and Greene counties);
9 6. the Mohawk valley (which consists of Oneida, Herkimer, Fulton,
10 Montgomery, Otsego, and Schoharie counties);
11 7. the North country (which consists of Clinton, Franklin, St.
12 Lawrence, Jefferson, Lewis, Hamilton, and Essex counties);
13 8. the Central region (which consists of Oswego, Cayuga, Onondaga,
14 Madison, and Cortland counties);
15 9. the Finger Lakes region (which consists of Orleans, Monroe, Wayne,
16 Genesee, Wyoming, Livingston, Ontario, Seneca, and Yates counties); and
17 10. the Western region (which consists of Niagara, Erie, Chautauqua,
18 Cattaraugus, and Allegany counties).
19 § 6.05. Regional arts, cultural affairs, and parks competitive acces-
20 sibility grants. 1. The governor shall, in each region, establish a
21 council which shall issue competitive accessibility grants within the
22 region. Six members of each regional council shall be local experts and
23 stakeholders from arts and cultural affairs organizations and parks
24 organizations within the region. One member of each regional council
25 shall be an expert in accessibility. Each regional council shall have
26 seven total members appointed to such council. Five members of each
27 regional council shall be appointed by the governor and shall serve at
28 the pleasure of the governor, one member of each regional council shall
29 be appointed by the speaker of the assembly and serve at the pleasure of
30 the assembly, and one member of each regional council shall be appointed
31 by the temporary president of the senate and serve at the pleasure of
32 the senate. All members of the regional councils shall be subject to the
33 provisions of section seventy-three-a of the public officers law.
34 2. The regional councils shall, with approval from the governor, issue
35 competitive accessibility grants to arts and cultural affairs organiza-
36 tions and parks organizations within their region for capital projects
37 such that:
38 (a) in the city of New York region, an equal amount of grant money is
39 issued to organizations with operating budgets of ten million dollars or
40 more as is issued to organizations with operating budgets of less than
41 ten million dollars; and
42 (b) in all other regions, an equal amount of grant money is issued to
43 organizations with operating budgets of five million dollars or more as
44 is issued to organizations with operating budgets of less than five
45 million dollars.
46 3. The regional councils shall issue competitive accessibility grants
47 for implementing the accessibility programs at the organization. Such
48 grants shall be issued based on criteria established by the governor for
49 such purpose.
50 4. No regional council shall issue a competitive accessibility grant
51 to an organization which has received a competitive accessibility grant
52 under this article within the prior three years.
53 5. No regional council shall issue competitive accessibility grants
54 totaling more than fifty percent of such council's competitive accessi-
55 bility grant money issued in a calendar year to parks organizations.
56 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
