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Senate bill · S7681 (2025-26)

Prohibits a state or local authority from employing or designating a lobbyist to engage in lobbying

Latest action May 28, 2026

New York State Senate

Same as A11493, the matching bill in the Assembly.

Sponsor

Leroy Comrie

State Senator, District 14 · Democratic

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Summary

Prohibits a state or local authority, or subsidiary thereof, from retaining, contracting, employing, or designating a lobbyist to engage in lobbying; allows for the cancellation of pre-existing contracts.

Summary from NY Open Legislation. How we handle summaries

Amends the Public Authorities Law.

From NY Open Legislation, the NY Senate and Assembly, and official rosters. This record was last updated Oct 21, 2026. About our data

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Purpose, from the sponsor's memo

This bill will ensure public authorities do not hire private lobbyists for official state business.

Filed with the bill. Read it on nysenate.gov (opens in a new tab)

Where it stands

Passed one of the two chambers; it still needs the other.

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Up for a vote
  4. Passed one chamber
  5. Passed
  6. Enacted

Committee

Corporations, Authorities and Commissions · New York State Assembly

Also referred to Corporations, Authorities And Commissions · New York State Senate.

The sponsor's argument

Why Leroy Comrie says this is needed

Several public authorities in the State hire contract lobbyists to push their priorities before the legislature and Executive. These are public entities who pay lobbying firms to represent them in Albany, when they should already have ready access to the executive, legislators, and staff. Government officials are always receptive to outreach from any government entity and therefore, it is duplicative and an added public cost for public authorities to use public funds to hire contract lobbyists. At least six other states including Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Illi- nois, Massachusetts and Virginia explicitly prohibit their authorities from contracting with lobbyists and several others restrict using public funds to pay contract lobbyists. This bill does not prohibit any authorities from hiring any in-house staff to advocate for them, nor does it prohibit them from hiring lobby- ists to petition the federal government on their behalf. It just prohib- its them from contracting with private, external lobbyists for official state business.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.

Recorded votes

  • Vote: Floor vote

    NY SenateMar 24, 2026Result: passed

    (61) (0) (0) (2)

  • Vote: Committee vote · Corporations, Authorities And Commissions

    Senate Corporations, Authorities And CommissionsMar 10, 2026Result: passed

    (7) (0) (0) (0)

  • Vote: Floor vote

    NY SenateJun 5, 2025Result: passed

    (60) (0) (0) (3)

  • Vote: Committee vote · Corporations, Authorities And Commissions

    Senate Corporations, Authorities And CommissionsMay 13, 2025Result: passed

    (7) (0) (0) (0)

Full history

  1. May 28, 2026

    Referred to committee

    REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS

    NY Assembly

  2. Mar 24, 2026

    Sent to the executive

    DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY

    NY Senate

  3. Mar 24, 2026

    Passed a chamber

    PASSED SENATE

    NY Senate

  4. Mar 24, 2026

    Referred to committee

    REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS

    NY Assembly

  5. Mar 12, 2026

    Advanced to Third Reading

    ADVANCED TO THIRD READING

    NY Senate

Show full history (11 earlier events)
  1. Mar 11, 2026

    2ND Report CAL.

    2ND REPORT CAL.

    NY Senate

  2. Mar 10, 2026

    1ST Report CAL.509

    1ST REPORT CAL.509

    NY Senate

  3. Jan 7, 2026

    Died in Assembly

    DIED IN ASSEMBLY

    NY Assembly

  4. Jan 7, 2026

    Referred to committee

    REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS

    NY Senate

  5. Jun 5, 2025

    Sent to the executive

    DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY

    NY Senate

  6. Jun 5, 2025

    Passed a chamber

    PASSED SENATE

    NY Senate

  7. Jun 5, 2025

    Referred to committee

    REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS

    NY Assembly

  8. May 15, 2025

    Advanced to Third Reading

    ADVANCED TO THIRD READING

    NY Senate

  9. May 14, 2025

    2ND Report CAL.

    2ND REPORT CAL.

    NY Senate

  10. May 13, 2025

    1ST Report CAL.1029

    1ST REPORT CAL.1029

    NY Senate

  11. Apr 29, 2025

    Referred to committee

    REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS

    NY Senate