§ 4 — New York state project finance agency

§ 4. New York state project finance agency.\n 1. There is hereby created the New York state project finance agency.\nThe agency shall be a corporate governmental agency constituting a\npublic benefit corporation. Its membership shall consist of the\ncommissioner of taxation and finance, the commissioner, the director of\nthe budget, the chairman of the New York state housing finance agency\nand three members to be appointed by the governor with the advice and\nconsent of the senate. The members first appointed by the governor shall\nserve for terms ending two, four and six years, respectively, from\nJanuary first next succeeding their appointment. Their successors shall\nserve for terms of six years each. Members shall continue in office\nuntil their successors have been appointed and have qualified. In the\nevent of a vacancy occurring in the office of any member by death,\nresignation or otherwise, the governor shall appoint a successor with\nthe advice and consent of the senate to serve for the balance of the\nunexpired term. The provisions of section thirty-nine of the public\nofficers law shall apply to such members. The chairman of the New York\nstate housing finance agency shall serve as chairman of the agency.\n 2. The powers of the agency shall be vested in and exercised by a\nmajority of the members then in office. The commissioner of taxation and\nfinance, the commissioner, and the director of the budget each may\nappoint a person from their respective department, office or division to\nrepresent such member, respectively, at all meetings of the agency from\nwhich such member may be absent. Any such representative so designated\nshall have the power to attend and to vote at any meeting of the agency\nfrom which the member so designating him as a representative is absent\nwith the same force and effect as if the member designating him were\npresent and voting. Such designation shall be by written notice filed\nwith the chairman of the agency by each of the said members. The\ndesignation of such persons shall continue until revoked at any time by\nwritten notice to the chairman by the respective member making the\ndesignation. Such designation shall not be deemed to limit the power of\nthe appointing member to attend and vote at any meeting of the agency.\n 3. The members shall serve without salary or other compensation, but\neach member shall be entitled to reimbursement for actual and necessary\nexpenses incurred in the performance of his or her official duties.\n 4. Such members, except as otherwise provided by law, may engage in\nprivate employment, or in a profession or business. The members,\nofficers and employees of the agency shall be deemed to be state\nofficers or employees for the purposes of sections seventy-three and\nseventy-four of the public officers law. Notwithstanding the provisions\nof the preceding sentence or of any other law, any state instrumentality\n(including any state agency, trust fund or public benefit corporation\nother than the agency) may purchase from, sell to, borrow from, loan to,\ncontract with or otherwise deal with any corporation, trust,\nassociation, partnership or other entity in which any member of the\nagency has a financial interest, direct or indirect, and the agency may\nengage in any such transaction with any other state instrumentality with\nwhich any member of the agency is affiliated as a state officer or\nemployee, provided that prior to such transaction such interest or\naffiliation is disclosed to such other state instrumentality and is\ndisclosed in the minutes of the agency, and provided further that no\nmember having such an affiliation (except such an affiliation with the\nNew York state housing finance agency) shall participate in any decision\nof the agency affecting such transaction.\n 5. The chief executive officer of the agency shall be the executive\ndirector of the New York state housing finance agency.\n 6. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provisions of law, general,\nspecial or local, no officer or employee of the state or of any civil\ndivision thereof shall be deemed to have forfeited or shall forfeit his\noffice or employment by reason of his acceptance of membership on the\nagency created by this section; provided, however, that a member who\nholds such other public office or employment shall receive no additional\ncompensation or allowance for services rendered pursuant to this act,\nbut shall be entitled to reimbursement for his actual and necessary\nexpenses incurred in the performance of such services.\n 7. The governor may remove any member appointed by him for\ninefficiency, neglect of duty or misconduct in office after giving him a\ncopy of the charges against him and an opportunity to be heard, in\nperson or by counsel in his defense, upon not less than ten days'\nnotice. If any such member shall be removed, the governor shall file in\nthe office of the department of state a complete statement of charges\nmade against such member and his findings thereon, together with a\ncomplete record of the proceeding.\n 8. The agency and its corporate existence shall terminate on the first\ndate subsequent to the thirtieth day of April, nineteen hundred\nseventy-seven, which is thirty days after payment in full of all its\nbonds, notes or other obligations (other than obligations for repayment\nof appropriations), and may be sooner terminated by law, provided,\nhowever, that no such law shall take effect so long as the agency shall\nhave bonds, notes or other obligations (other than obligations for\nrepayment of appropriations) outstanding, unless adequate provision has\nbeen made for the payment thereof. Upon termination of the existence of\nthe agency, all its rights and properties shall pass to and be vested in\nthe corporation as transferee of the agency's obligations for repayment\nof appropriations, theretofore transferred by the state to the\ncorporation pursuant to a chapter of the laws of nineteen hundred\nseventy-five, and any remaining obligations of the agency for such\nrepayment shall be cancelled.\n 9. A majority of the members of the agency then in office shall\nconstitute a quorum for the transaction of any business or the exercise\nof any power or function of the agency. The agency may delegate to one\nor more of its members, or its officers, agents or employees, such\npowers and duties as it may deem proper.\n 10. The state shall save harmless and indemnify directors, officers\nand employees of the agency pursuant to section seventeen of the public\nofficers law against any claim, demand, suit or judgment arising by\nreason of any act or omission to act by such director, officer or\nemployee occurring in the discharge of his duties and within the scope\nof his service on behalf of the agency. In the event of any claim,\ndemand, suit or judgment based on allegations that financial loss was\nsustained by any person in connection with the acquisition, disposition\nor holding of securities or other obligations of the agency (or those of\nany other public corporation if such loss allegedly resulted from its\ndealing with the agency), a director, officer or employee of the agency\nshall be saved harmless and indemnified, notwithstanding the limitations\nof subdivision one of section seventeen of the public officers law,\nunless such individual is found by a final judicial determination not to\nhave acted, in good faith, for a purpose which he reasonably believed to\nbe in the best interests of the agency or not to have had reasonable\ncause to believe that his conduct was lawful.\n