S 5961: Establishes an international division within the department of state to establish and maintain international sister state relationships to facilitate and maintain the exchange of students and faculty.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5961 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE March 4, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance AN ACT to amend the executive law, the education law and the economic development law, in relation to establishing an international division within the department of state The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 92 of the executive law is amended and a new 2 section 111 is added to read as follows: 3 § 92. Deputies. The secretary of state shall appoint a deputy, who may 4 perform all the duties of the secretary of state. Any such deputy shall 5 receive an annual salary to be fixed by the secretary of state within 6 the amount appropriated therefor. The secretary of state may also 7 appoint and fix the compensation of such other deputies, assistants and 8 employees as [he] such secretary of state shall deem necessary, and 9 including a director of the international division, as established by 10 section one hundred eleven of this article, within the amount appropri- 11 ated therefor and prescribe their powers and duties. 12 § 111. International division. 1. There is established an interna- 13 tional division within the department of state. The secretary of state 14 shall provide for the establishment and operation of such division, and 15 shall appoint a director to supervise the operation of such division and 16 its employees. 17 2. The international division shall solicit, establish and maintain 18 sister state relationships between the state of New York and states in 19 other countries. For each of this state's international sister states, 20 the international division shall act as the conduit between the governor 21 and the chief executive officer of each sister state. 22 3. The international sister state program shall, in cooperation with 23 the department of economic development for the purposes of implementing 24 article ten of the economic development law, establish an active network EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD10557-01-5 
 S. 5961 2 1 to operate a clearinghouse for information resources between this state 2 and each sister state. The network shall be designed to promote interna- 3 tional exchanges of commerce, education and culture. 4 4. The international division shall assist and work in cooperation 5 with the international program of the state university of New York to 6 establish, facilitate and maintain the exchange of students and faculty 7 of the colleges and universities of the state university with the 8 colleges and universities of sister states. 9 5. The international division may establish international sister state 10 relationships upon its own initiative or upon request of any individual 11 or entity. 12 § 2. Section 355 of the education law is amended by adding a new 13 subdivision 22 to read as follows: 14 22. The state university trustees shall work in cooperation with the 15 international division of the department of state to establish, facili- 16 tate and maintain the exchange of students and faculty of state-operated 17 institutions with colleges and universities of the state's sister 18 states. 19 § 3. The economic development law is amended by adding a new section 20 226 to read as follows: 21 § 226. Cooperation with international division. The provisions of this 22 article shall be implemented by the commissioner and the department in 23 consultation and cooperation with the international division of the 24 department of state. 25 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.