Senate and Assembly Have Passed Different Sunshine Week Bills for Years,
Meaning No Sunshine in Albany
Eight government watchdogs sent a letter today urging Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins and Speaker Heastie to pass the same transparency bills for this year’s Sunshine Week, March 12-18.
In the letter, the groups said that while the Senate and Assembly have passed strong transparency bills in past sessions, the houses almost always pass different bills. For example, in 2022, the Senate passed several transparency reforms, whereas the Assembly passed none. In 2021, the Assembly passed several transparency reforms, whereas the Senate passed none. Aligning Senate and Assembly efforts, the groups said, would bring more sunlight to NY and help the Legislature conduct better oversight of state government.
The groups provided a list of bills that the Legislature should pass, including ending the commercial FOIL exemption and closing the “advisory body” loophole in the Open Meetings Law.
Please see the letter here.