S 1418: Provides for the award of reasonable attorneys' fees in FOIL proceedings if the person is successful and in open meeting proceedings to the successful petitioner and against the public body.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1418 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 9, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. LIU, BRISPORT, FERNANDEZ, GOUNARDES, JACKSON, SKOUF- IS, WEBB -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations AN ACT to amend the public officers law, in relation to the award of reasonable attorneys' fees in certain proceedings The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 89 of the public 2 officers law, as amended by chapter 453 of the laws of 2017, is amended 3 to read as follows: 4 (c) The court in such a proceeding[: 5 (i) may] shall assess, against such agency involved, reasonable attor- 6 ney's fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred by such person 7 in any case under the provisions of this section in which such person 8 has [substantially] prevailed[, and when the agency failed to respond to 9 a request or appeal within the statutory time; and (ii) shall assess, 10 against such agency involved, reasonable attorney's fees and other liti- 11 gation costs reasonably incurred by such person in any case under the 12 provisions of this section in which such person has substantially 13 prevailed and the court finds that the agency had no reasonable basis 14 for denying access]. 15 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 107 of the public officers law, as 16 amended by chapter 397 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as 17 follows: 18 2. In any proceeding brought pursuant to this section, costs and 19 reasonable attorney fees [may] shall be awarded by the court, [in its 20 discretion,] to the successful [party] petitioner and against the public 21 body. [If a court determines that a vote was taken in material violation 22 of this article, or that substantial deliberations relating thereto 23 occurred in private prior to such vote, the court shall award costs and 24 reasonable attorney's fees to the successful petitioner, unless there 25 was a reasonable basis for a public body to believe that a closed 26 session could properly have been held.] 27 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD03042-01-5