Section 8 - Development of the financial plan1.Pursuant to the procedures contained in subdivision three of this section, each year the city shall develop, and may from time to time modify, with the approval of the board during a control period, a four year financial plan covering the city and the covered organizations. Each such financial plan and financial plan modification shall comply with the requirements of subdivision four of this section and shall, except as otherwise provided pursuant to subdivision two-a of this section, conform to the following standards:
a. For its fiscal years ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-nine through June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one, the city's budget covering all expenditures other than capital items shall be prepared and balanced so that the results thereof would not show a deficit when reported in accordance with the accounting principles set forth in the state comptroller's uniform system of accounts for municipalities, as the same may be modified by the comptroller, in consultation with the city comptroller, for application to the city; subject to the provision of subdivision four of section three thousand thirty-eight of the public authorities law with respect to contributions by the city or other public employer to any retirement system or pension fund and subject to the provision of paragraph (c) of subdivision five of section three thousand thirty-eight of the public authorities law with respect to expense items included in the capital budget of the city. For the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two, and for each fiscal year thereafter, the city's budget covering all expenditures other than capital items shall be prepared and balanced so that the results thereof would not show a deficit when reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and would permit comparison of the budget with the report of actual financial results prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. With respect to financial plans that include the fiscal years ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-nine through June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-one, the city's budget covering all expenditures other than capital items shall be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and there shall be substantial progress in each such fiscal year towards achieving a city budget covering all expenditures other than capital items the results of which would not show a deficit when reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The city shall eliminate expense items from its capital budget not later than the commencement of the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-two. For the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-nine, and for each fiscal year thereafter, the budgets covering all expenditures other than capital items of each of the covered organizations shall be prepared and balanced so that the results thereof would not show a deficit when reported in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; and for each fiscal year prior thereto, there shall be substantial progress towards such goal. Notwithstanding the foregoing and the provisions of any general or special state law or local law to the contrary, including but not limited to the New York city charter: (i) all costs that would be capital costs in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, but for the application of governmental accounting standards board statement number forty-nine, shall be deemed to be capital costs for purposes of this act and any other provision of state or local law, including but not limited to the New York city charter, relevant to the treatment of such costs; and(ii)the determination as to the existence of a deficit pursuant to this act and any other provision of state or local law, including but not limited to the New York city charter, shall be made without regard to changes in restricted fund balances, as defined by the governmental accounting standards board, where restrictions in relation to such fund balances are imposed by state or federal law or regulation, or otherwise by private or governmental parties other than the city of New York, and without regard to funds held in the health stabilization fund, the school crossing guards health insurance fund, any revenue stabilization fund established pursuant to section fifteen hundred twenty-eight of the New York city charter and the management benefits fund established by the city of New York. Deposits into any such revenue stabilization fund shall be deemed to be expenses of such city in the fiscal year in which such deposits are made, and withdrawals from such fund shall be deemed to be revenues of such city in the year in which such withdrawals are made; provided however, that surpluses of such city, whether accumulated from fiscal years ending prior to the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two thousand twenty that amended this paragraph or existing at the close of any fiscal year ending after such effective date, shall be deposited into such revenue stabilization fund as soon as practicable, and such deposits shall not be deemed expenses of the city in the fiscal year in which such deposits are made. b.The limitations on its outstanding short-term obligations required by subdivision nine of section three thousand thirty-eight of the public authorities law and by section nine-b of this act shall be observed at all times, as each is amended from time to time.c.Provision shall be made for the payment in full of the debt service on all bonds and notes of the city and the covered organizations (other than notes held by the municipal assistance corporation for the city of New York to the extent that such corporation has evidenced its intention not to present such notes for payment during the fiscal year in which the determination is made provided that such notes were held by such corporation on June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-eight or were issued in exchange for or in refunding or renewal of notes held by such corporation on such date), for the adequate funding of programs of the city and the covered organizations which are mandated by state or federal law and for which obligations are going to be incurred during the fiscal year and for payment of a guarantee fee or any other amounts required by the United States of America or any agency or instrumentality thereof in connection with the guarantee of the payment of the principal of or interest on bonds or notes issued by the city.d.All projections of revenues and expenditures contained in a financial plan shall be based on reasonable and appropriate assumptions and methods of estimation. All cash flow projections shall be based upon reasonable and appropriate assumptions as to sources and uses of cash (including but not limited to the timing thereof), and shall provide for operations of the city and covered organizations to be conducted within the cash resources so projected.e.The city shall provide a general reserve for each fiscal year to cover potential reductions in its projected revenues or increases in its projected expenditures during each such fiscal year. The amount provided for such general reserve shall be estimated by the city in accordance with paragraph d of this subdivision, but in no event shall it be less than one hundred million dollars at the beginning of any fiscal year.f.For financial plans beginning with the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-three or any succeeding fiscal year, the first fiscal year included in any financial plan shall make provision for the repayment of any deficit incurred by the city during the preceding fiscal year. 2.In developing the financial plan the city shall seek to achieve a stabilized work force for the city and, to the extent a reduction in the work force is required, primary recourse shall be had to the attrition process to accomplish such reduction. 2-a.The city and the board shall confer concerning the projected effect on the budgets of the city and the covered organizations of any change in generally accepted accounting principles, or change in the application of generally accepted accounting principles to the city and the covered organizations, made after the effective date of this act. If the board determines that immediate compliance with such change will have a material effect on such budgets over a time period insufficient to accommodate the effect without a substantial adverse impact on the delivery of essential services, the board may authorize and approve a method of phasing the requirements of such change into such budgets over such reasonably expeditious time period as the board deems appropriate.3.The financial plan shall be developed and, during a control period, shall be approved, and may from time to time be modified, in accordance with the following procedures: a.The city shall, by June first, nineteen hundred seventy-eight, prepare and submit a financial plan to the board covering the four year period which begins with the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred seventy-nine. Thereafter, at least fifty days prior to the beginning of each fiscal year or on such other date as the board may approve upon the request of the city, the city shall prepare and submit a financial plan to the board covering the four year period beginning with such fiscal year. On such dates the mayor shall also submit to the board the city's executive expense, revenue and capital budgets for the ensuing fiscal year and a certificate of the mayor stating that such budgets are consistent with the financial plan submitted therewith, that projections contained in the budgets and financial plan are based upon reasonable and appropriate assumptions and methods of estimation, and that operation within the budgets is feasible. b.(i) During a control period the board shall promptly review each financial plan and financial plan modification submitted by the city. Not more than forty-five days after submission of a financial plan or more than thirty days after submission of a financial plan modification the board shall determine whether the financial plan or financial plan modification is complete and complies with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section and shall approve or disapprove the financial plan or financial plan modification in accordance with the provisions of this section. If the board determines that the financial plan or financial plan modification is complete and complies with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section, the board shall approve the financial plan or financial plan modification. Upon making such determination the board shall make a certification to the city setting forth revenue estimates approved by the board in accordance with such determination.(ii) At all times other than during a control period the board shall promptly review each financial plan and financial plan modification submitted by the city. If the board determines after such review that the financial plan or financial plan modification submitted by the city is not in accordance with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section, the board shall promptly so notify the city and may take such other action under this act as it deems appropriate.c.The board shall disapprove a financial plan or financial plan modification if during a control period it determines that the financial plan or financial plan modification is incomplete or fails to comply with the provisions of subdivision one of this section. In disapproving a financial plan or a financial plan modification the board may order that one or more of the following actions be taken:(i) expenditures or reserves to assure availability of amounts required for debt service requirements on all bonds and notes of the city and the covered organizations or expenditures required for adequate funding of programs of the city and the covered organizations mandated by state or federal law and for which obligations are going to be incurred during the fiscal year, be increased to the levels required to provide for their payment in full;(ii) the revenue projections (or any item thereof) during any period be adjusted to comply with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section; and(iii) the aggregate expenditures projected for any period be reduced to conform to revenue estimates certified by the board in order to comply with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section.d.During a control period in the event that the city shall, for any reason, fail to submit a financial plan prior to the beginning of a fiscal year, as required by paragraph a of this subdivision, or in the event that the board has not, for any reason permitted under this act, approved a financial plan submitted by the city prior to the beginning of a fiscal year, the board shall formulate and adopt a financial plan to be effective until the board approves a financial plan submitted by the city. Any financial plan so formulated by the board shall comply with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section. The budgets and operations of the city and the covered organizations at all times shall be in conformance and compliance with the financial plan then in effect.e.After the initial adoption by the city, or the approval by the board during a control period, of a financial plan, projections of revenues and expenditures and other estimates contained in the financial plan shall be reexamined by the board at least quarterly in consultation with the city and the covered organizations, and during a control period the city shall prepare and submit to the board financial plan modifications at such times, in such detail and within such time periods as the board may require in order to modify the financial plan to conform to the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section. During a control period in the event the board determines that (i) revenue estimates (or any item thereof) must be adjusted to ensure compliance with the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section, or (ii) that the city or a covered organization is expending funds at a rate that would cause expenditures to exceed the aggregate expenditure limitation for the city or covered organization provided for in the financial plan then in effect, prior to the expiration of the fiscal year, the city shall submit a financial plan modification to effect such adjustments in revenue estimates and reductions in total expenditures as may be necessary to conform to such standards or aggregate expenditure limitations. If during a control period the city fails to submit such modification after such determination as to adjustments in revenue estimates or such determination as to rates of expenditures, or to submit a financial plan modification in the detail or within the time period specified by the board, or if such modification is disapproved by the board as not conforming to the standards set forth in subdivision one of this section, the board may formulate and adopt such financial plan modification as it deems appropriate to ensure that the financial plan continues to meet such standards. Such modification shall become effective on its adoption. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, in the event the city shall determine that, due to unforeseen events during a fiscal year, compliance with the standards set forth in paragraph a of subdivision one of this section would result in a material adverse impact upon the delivery of essential services, the city shall notify the board of such determination, together with such information, projections or analyses relating thereto as the board may require, and shall submit a modification to the financial plan reflecting such determination. During a control period the board shall disapprove any such modification unless it finds that (i) the city's determination is supported by information, projections and analyses which the board deems substantially accurate in all material respects and (ii) such events, in its judgment, warrant such modification to the financial plan to avoid such adverse impact on the delivery of essential services. f.The city may, from time to time, submit financial plan modifications for review by the board. During a control period the board shall approve such modifications unless it determines that such modifications would constitute grounds for disapproval of the financial plan pursuant to paragraph c of this subdivision, or if applicable, pursuant to paragraph e of this subdivision.g.Anything contained in this act to the contrary notwithstanding, during a control period the board may at any time disapprove or after consultation with the city revise the revenue estimates (or any item thereof) prepared by the city in connection with the preparation of a financial plan or any modification thereto and determined by the board not to be based on assumptions and methods of estimation which are reasonable and appropriate under the circumstances and in view of the objectives and purposes of the act. The board may after consultation with the city determine the estimated revenues of the city and the covered organizations provided, however, that any revenues estimated by the board shall be based on reasonable and appropriate assumptions and methods of estimation.4.Each financial plan shall be in such form and shall contain such information for each year during which the financial plan is in effect as the board may specify, and shall, in such detail as the board may from time to time prescribe, include projections of all revenues, expenditures and cash flows (including but not limited to projected capital expenditures and debt issuances) and a schedule of projected capital commitments of the city and except in such instances as the board may deem appropriate each of the covered organizations. In addition, each financial plan and financial plan modification shall include a statement of the significant assumptions and methods of estimation used in arriving at the projections contained therein, set forth in such form and in such detail as the board may from time to time prescribe. 5.The city and the covered organizations shall promptly furnish the board with any information which the board may request to satisfy itself that (i) projected employment levels, collective bargaining agreements and other action relating to employee costs, capital construction and such other matters as the board may specify, are consistent with the provisions made for such costs in the financial plan, (ii) the city and the covered organizations are taking whatever action is necessary with respect to programs mandated by state and federal law to ensure that expenditures for such programs are limited to and covered by the expenditures stated in the financial plan, and (iii) adequate reserves are provided to maintain programs mandated by state and federal law and for which obligations are going to be incurred in the fiscal year and other essential programs in the event revenues have been overestimated or expenditures underestimated for any period. 6.For each financial plan and financial plan modification to be prepared and submitted by the city to the board pursuant to the provisions of this section, the covered organizations shall submit to the city such information with respect to their projected expenditures, revenues, cash flows and a schedule of projected capital commitments for each year covered by such financial plan or modification as the city shall determine. Notwithstanding any other provision of law limiting the authority of the city with respect to any covered organization, the city, in the preparation and submission of the financial plan and modifications thereof, shall (except for debt service or for other expenditures to the extent that such expenditures are required by law) have the power to determine the aggregate expenditures to be allocated to any covered organization in the financial plan and any modifications thereto. N.Y. NYS Financial Emergency Act for the city of NY Law § 8
Amended by New York Laws 2020, ch. 118,Sec. 2, eff. 6/17/2020.Amended by New York Laws 2019, ch. 406,Sec. 2, eff. 10/23/2019.