§ 20 — Procedure for adoption of local laws by legislative body

New York § 20

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law MHR: Municipal Home Rule
• Art. 3: Procedure For Adoption of Local Laws; Referenda; Filing and Publication

Text

§ 20. Procedure for adoption of local laws by legislative body. 1. No\nlocal law shall be passed except by at least the majority affirmative\nvote of the total voting power of the legislative body. On the final\npassage of a local law the question shall be taken by ayes and noes, and\nthe names of the members present and their votes shall be entered in the\nrecord, journal or minutes of proceedings.\n 2. The style of local law shall be "Be it enacted by the (naming the\nlegislative body) of the (name of local government) as follows:"\n 3. Every such local law shall embrace only one subject. The title\nshall briefly refer to the subject matter. For purposes of this chapter,\na local law relating to codification or recodification of ordinances or\nlocal laws into a municipal code shall be deemed to embrace only one\nsubject. As used herein codification or recodification shall include\namendments, deletions, repeals, alterations or new provisions in the\nmunicipal code; provided, however, that the notice of public hearing\nrequired by this section shall briefly describe the codification or\nrecodification.\n 4. A proposed local law may be introduced only by a member of the\nlegislative body at a meeting of such body or as may be otherwise\nprescribed by the rules of procedure adopted by the legislative body. No\nsuch local law shall be passed until it shall have been in its final\nform and either (a) upon the desks or tables of the members at least\nseven calendar days, exclusive of Sunday, prior to its final passage, or\n(b) mailed to each of them in postpaid properly addressed and securely\nclosed envelopes or wrappers in a post box or post office of the United\nStates post office department within the local government at least ten\ncalendar days, exclusive of Sunday, prior to its final passage, or (c)\ne-mailed to the e-mail in-box of each of them in the Portable Document\nFormat (PDF) at least ten calendar days, exclusive of Sunday, prior to\nits final passage, provided that (i) the local government has documented\nthat each member of the legislative body has an e-mail address, (ii) the\nlocal government has published such e-mail address on the bulletin board\nof the local government clerk, and (iii) the legislative body has\nunanimously adopted a resolution authorizing such electronic delivery;\nunless the elective or appointive chief executive officer, if there be\none, or otherwise the chairman of the board of supervisors, in the case\nof a county, the mayor in the case of a city or village or the\nsupervisor in the case of a town shall have certified as to the\nnecessity for its immediate passage and such local law be passed by the\naffirmative vote of two-thirds of the total voting power of the\nlegislative body.\n For purposes of this subdivision, a proposed local law shall be deemed\nto be upon the desks or tables of the members if: it is set forth in a\nlegible electronic format by electronic means, and it is available for\nreview in such format at the desks of the members. For purposes of this\nsubdivision "electronic means" means any method of transmission of\ninformation between computers or other machines designed for the purpose\nof sending and receiving such transmissions and which: allows the\nrecipient to reproduce the information transmitted in a tangible medium\nof expression; and does not permit additions, deletions or other changes\nto be made without leaving an adequate record thereof.\n 5. In the case of a local government which does not have an elective\nchief executive officer as defined by subdivision four of section two of\nthis chapter, no local law shall be passed by the legislative body until\na public hearing thereon has been had before such body and in every\nother local government no such local law shall be approved by the\nelective chief executive officer until a public hearing thereon has been\nhad before him. Such a public hearing held before the legislative body\nor before the chief executive officer, as the case may be, pursuant to\nthis subdivision shall be on such public notice of at least three days\nas has been or hereafter may be prescribed by a local law on which a\nhearing shall have been held as prescribed by this section upon five\ndays' notice or, in the event such a local law prescribing the length of\nnotice is not adopted, upon five days' notice. Where the public hearing\nis before such officer, such notice shall be given by him within ten\ndays after the local law shall have been presented to him and the\nhearing shall be held within twenty days after such presentation.\n