S9603 • 2025

Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum level of training on the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: Shelley Mayer
Last action: 2026-06-05
Official status: In Senate Committee
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum level of training on the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law

Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum level of training on the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum of two hours of training, with one hour on the state's open meetings law and one hour on freedom of information law; requires certain local, city, county, town and village public body members to complete such training as well.

What This Bill Does

Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum level of training on the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum of two hours of training, with one hour on the state's open meetings law and one hour on freedom of information law; requires certain local, city, county, town and village public body members to complete such training as well.

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-06-05 Senate
COMMITTED TO RULES
2026-05-21 Senate
ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
2026-05-20 Senate
2ND REPORT CAL.
2026-05-19 Senate
1ST REPORT CAL.1248
2026-04-28 Senate
REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT
2026-03-27 Senate
REFERRED TO ETHICS AND INTERNAL GOVERNANCE

Official Summary Text

Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum level of training on the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law
Requires members of a public body to complete a minimum of two hours of training, with one hour on the state's open meetings law and one hour on freedom of information law; requires certain local, city, county, town and village public body members to complete such training as well.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          9603

                                    I N  S E N A T E

                                     March 27, 2026
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  MAYER  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Ethics and Internal Gover-
          nance

        AN ACT to amend the  public  officers  law,  in  relation  to  requiring
          members  of  a  public body to complete a minimum level of training on
          the state's open meetings law and freedom of information law

          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  79-a to read as follows:
     3    § 79-A. PUBLIC OFFICERS REQUIRED TRAINING.   EACH  LOCAL  OFFICER,  AS
     4  DEFINED  BY ARTICLE ONE OF THIS CHAPTER, SHALL COMPLETE NO LESS THAN TWO
     5  HOURS OF TRAINING ANNUALLY, WITH A MINIMUM OF ONE HOUR OF SUCH  TRAINING
     6  BEING  ON  THE  REQUIREMENTS OF THE OPEN MEETINGS LAW, AS ESTABLISHED BY
     7  ARTICLE SEVEN OF THIS CHAPTER, AND WITH A MINIMUM OF ONE  HOUR  OF  SUCH
     8  TRAINING  BEING  ON  THE  FREEDOM  OF INFORMATION LAW, AS ESTABLISHED BY
     9  ARTICLE SIX OF THIS CHAPTER.  ALL  VILLAGE  CLERKS,  TOWN  CLERKS,  CITY
    10  CLERKS,  LEGISLATIVE CLERKS TO A COUNTY LEGISLATURE OR BOARD OF SUPERVI-
    11  SORS, VILLAGE ATTORNEYS, TOWN ATTORNEYS, CITY ATTORNEYS,  COUNTY  ATTOR-
    12  NEYS OR OTHER DESIGNATED ATTORNEYS FOR A PUBLIC BODY, AND ALL DESIGNATED
    13  RECORDS  ACCESS  OFFICERS  AND FOIL APPEAL OFFICERS SHALL BE REQUIRED TO
    14  COMPLETE SUCH TRAINING. SUCH TRAINING SHALL BE APPROVED BY THE COMMITTEE
    15  ON OPEN GOVERNMENT ESTABLISHED UNDER SECTION ONE HUNDRED  NINE  OF  THIS
    16  CHAPTER  AND  MAY INCLUDE TRAINING PROVIDED BY A STATE AGENCY, STATEWIDE
    17  MUNICIPAL ASSOCIATION, NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION, COLLEGE,  OR  ANY  OTHER
    18  SIMILAR  ENTITY  THE  COMMITTEE  DEEMS  NECESSARY.  SUCH TRAINING MAY BE
    19  PROVIDED IN A VARIETY OF FORMATS, INCLUDING BUT NOT  LIMITED  TO,  ELEC-
    20  TRONIC  MEDIA,  DISTANCE LEARNING OR TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM TRAINING.  ON
    21  OR BEFORE DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST OF EACH YEAR,  INDIVIDUALS  REQUIRED  TO
    22  COMPLETE  SUCH  TRAINING SHALL FILE WITH THEIR DESIGNATED RECORDS ACCESS
    23  OFFICER PROOF OF THEIR ATTENDANCE AT ANY SUCH TRAINING PROGRAMS REQUIRED
    24  BY THIS SECTION.
    25    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02955-02-5