Bill > A04532

This bill creates a new non-partisan office of policy research and fiscal analysis within the state legislature, aimed at providing objective and comprehensive policy and financial research. The office will be led by a director appointed through a super-majority vote (two-thirds of both legislative chambers) for a seven-year term, selected based on merit and without political bias. The director will be responsible for conducting detailed analyses including cost-benefit evaluations of proposed legislation, assessments of state budgets, fiscal reserves, debt management, and long-term policy research. The office will provide confidential memoranda and expert consultations to legislative members, deliver testimony, hold policy workshops, and produce two annual public reports - one in March analyzing the executive budget and another in December detailing the office's work. The office will be funded equally by the senate and assembly, and its director will have the authority to request information from executive branch agencies and hire necessary staff. The office is designed to provide independent, non-partisan research to help legislators make more informed policy decisions, with a focus on transparency, fiscal responsibility, and comprehensive policy evaluation.

Government Affairs

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A4532