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| April 1 , 2005 | The
Newspaper of the NYSSCPA |
Vol.
8, No.6 |
Public Authority Bill Progresses
By
Simon Eskow
Continued from the Home
Page
New York—The New York State Assembly approved a bill intended to bring accountability and transparency to New York’s 733 quasi-governmental public authorities and their subsidiaries.
The Assembly approved A-0526 by a vote of 118–24 on March 9. The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Richard Brodsky (D-Greenburgh) and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan), was referred to the Senate.
The bill coursed to Assembly approval in part because members of both houses, along with the governor and other state officials, have pushed hard for reform this year. Public authorities are responsible for a significant amount of public debt—$43 billion, according to state estimates—while operating with less oversight than other public entities.
Sen. Vincent Leibell (R-Patterson), a sponsor of similar legislation in the senate, told The Trusted Professional in March that there is wide recognition that old laws need to be changed.
Among the new bill’s provisions are calls for establishing an inspector general and an independent budget office for public authorities; imposing stricter governance rules for public authority boards; and allowing the state legislature to put a cap on incurring debt. The bill includes requirements for auditor rotation and Sarbanes-Oxley–like restrictions on nonaudit services. The New York State Society of CPAs is monitoring the legislation as it progresses.
