Albany, NY – Assemblywoman Amy Paulin (D-Westchester) and State Senator James Skoufis (D-Orange) today announced that the New York State Legislature has passed two of their bills (A.173/S.6165 and A.463/S.4857) which strengthen public access and government accountability. “Government works best in the open,” said Assemblywoman Paulin. “These bills close loopholes that have kept too much of our government’s business out of public view.”

A.173/S.6165 subjects local development corporations (LDCs), and other similar nonprofit corporations, to New York’s Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) and Open Meetings Law, ensuring that entities spending public money and exercising public functions are fully transparent. LDCs are specialized nonprofits often used by municipal or county government to indirectly finance government operations and projects. They partner with local governments to provide loans, develop real estate, and assist small businesses. However, these private entities are exempt from many municipal rules or constitutional limitations that guide local government; according to the New York State Comptroller, LDCs are sometimes used by local government to circumvent transparency and public scrutiny laws. Requiring LDCs to follow the State’s FOIL and Open Meetings Law would mean requiring them to open their meetings to the public, disclose their records on request, livestream proceedings in real time, and post video recordings online for at least five years.

A.463/S.4857 requires that financial disclosure filings for candidates for state elected office be posted online. Financial disclosures for elected state-wide office holders and members of the Legislature are publicly available on the NYS Commission on Ethics and Lobbying Government’s website. For candidates for these offices, on the other hand, while they must submit these financial disclosures, a member of the public would need to file a FOIL request to view the candidate’s filings.

“Transparency and accountability are imperatives when it comes to serving the public, whether it’s a candidate running for office, or an organization that relies on taxpayer resources to operate,” said Senator James Skoufis. “I'm grateful to Assemblymember Paulin for her partnership with this legislation and we encourage the Governor to sign these important bills.”

“Reinvent Albany thanks Assemblymember Paulin and Senator Skoufis for passing these important transparency bills, particularly A463/S4857," said Rachael Fauss, Senior Policy Advisor, Reinvent Albany. “Voters deserve easy access to financial disclosure statements of all candidates for office, not just incumbents. Making these filings available on the Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government's website will help New Yorkers make informed decisions at the polls. We urge Governor Hochul to sign this bill.” 

“Every New Yorker benefits from transparent government,” continued Paulin. “I want to thank Senator Skoufis for his partnership on these two bills, and the good-government advocates who have championed these bills alongside us. These reforms make our democracy stronger and ensure that public business is conducted in public view.”