S 1699: Prohibits certain functions within a fifteen mile radius of the New York state Capitol whenever the legislature is in session.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1699 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 13, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAY -- 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 legislative law and the election law, in relation to prohibiting certain functions whenever the legislature is in session The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The legislative law is amended by adding a new section 2 1-m-1 to read as follows: 3 § 1-m-1. Certain functions prohibited within a fifteen mile radius of 4 the New York state Capitol. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the 5 contrary, no person or entity shall hold, participate in, or attend a 6 function designed to solicit funds that are subject to the reporting 7 requirements of article fourteen of the election law within a fifteen 8 mile radius of the New York state Capitol whenever the legislature is in 9 session. 10 § 2. Subdivision (a) and paragraphs (i) and (iv) of subdivision (b) of 11 section 1-o of the legislative law, as added by chapter 14 of the laws 12 of 2007, are amended to read as follows: 13 (a) (i) Any lobbyist, public corporation, or client who knowingly and 14 wilfully fails to file timely a report or statement required by this 15 section or knowingly and wilfully files false information or knowingly 16 and wilfully violates section one-m or one-m-one of this article shall 17 be guilty of a class A misdemeanor; and 18 (ii) any lobbyist, public corporation, or client who knowingly and 19 wilfully fails to file timely a report or statement required by this 20 section or knowingly and wilfully files false information or knowingly 21 and wilfully violates section one-m or one-m-one of this article, after 22 having previously been convicted in the preceding five years of the 23 crime described in paragraph (i) of this subdivision, shall be guilty of 24 a class E felony. Any lobbyist convicted of or pleading guilty to a EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD04944-01-5 
 S. 1699 2 1 felony under the provisions of this section may be barred from acting as 2 a lobbyist for a period of one year from the date of the conviction. For 3 the purposes of this subdivision, the chief administrative officer of 4 any organization required to file a statement or report shall be the 5 person responsible for making and filing such statement or report unless 6 some other person prior to the due date thereof has been duly designated 7 to make and file such statement or report. 8 (i) A lobbyist, public corporation, or client who knowingly and 9 wilfully fails to file a statement or report within the time required 10 for the filing of such report or knowingly and wilfully violates section 11 one-m or one-m-one of this article shall be subject to a civil penalty 12 for each such failure or violation, in an amount not to exceed the 13 greater of twenty-five thousand dollars or three times the amount the 14 person failed to report properly or unlawfully contributed, expended, 15 gave or received, to be assessed by the commission. 16 (iv) Any lobbyist or client that knowingly and wilfully fails to file 17 a statement or report within the time required for the filing of such 18 report, knowingly and wilfully files a false statement or report, or 19 knowingly and wilfully violates section one-m or one-m-one of this arti- 20 cle, after having been found by the commission to have [knowing] know- 21 ingly and wilfully committed such conduct or violation in the preceding 22 five years, may be subject to a determination that the lobbyist or 23 client is prohibited from engaging in lobbying activities, as that term 24 is defined in paragraph (v) of subdivision (c) of section one-c of this 25 article, for a period of one year. 26 § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 14-126 of the election law, as amended 27 by section 6 of subpart C of part H of chapter 55 of the laws of 2014, 28 is amended to read as follows: 29 4. Any person who knowingly and willfully fails to file a statement 30 required to be filed by this article within ten days after the date 31 provided for filing such statement or any person who knowingly and will- 32 fully violates any other provision of this article or who knowingly and 33 willfully violates the provisions of section one-m-one of the legisla- 34 tive law shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. 35 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.