New York Assembly Bill A03665

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/29/25
• Refer: 1/29/25
• Report Pass: 6/5/25
• Refer: 6/5/25
• Report Pass: 6/6/25
• Engrossed: 6/10/25
• Refer: 6/10/25
• Engrossed: 6/12/25
• Enrolled: 12/1/25
• Vetoed: 12/5/25

Caption

Repeals certain provisions regarding the adoption of a new or revised city charter proposed by a charter commission which limits the submission of questions to a city's qualified electors; eliminates the rule that provides that whenever a city charter commission puts a proposal on the local ballot, all other local referendum proposals are barred from the ballot.

Summary

A03665 would amend the Municipal Home Rule Law by repealing paragraphs (e), (f), and (g) of subdivision 5 of section 36. Those provisions currently restrict what can appear on a city ballot when a charter commission has placed a proposal before voters. Under existing law, if a charter commission submits a question to the qualified electors of a city, other local referendum questions generally cannot be submitted at the same time through local law, ordinance, resolution, or petition. By removing those restrictions, the bill would allow cities to place additional local questions on the ballot even when a charter commission proposal is already pending. The practical effect is to give municipalities more flexibility in structuring local elections and to reduce the automatic ballot-preemption effect that charter commission proposals currently have. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Impact

The bill would directly change section 36 of the Municipal Home Rule Law by eliminating the statutory bar on submitting other local ballot questions when a charter commission has placed a proposal before city voters. This would affect city governments, charter commissions, local election officials, and voters by allowing multiple local referendum issues to be considered in the same election cycle. It would not create a new charter process, but it would alter the rules governing ballot access and the sequencing of local questions in cities.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have generally favorable support in the legislative process, passing the Assembly Cities Committee and Assembly Rules Committee unanimously and then receiving majority approval on the Assembly and Senate floors. The vote margins suggest broad support, though not unanimity, indicating that the measure was viewed positively overall but with some legislative opposition at final passage. No committee transcript is available to show detailed debate, but the recorded votes indicate the bill was not especially controversial in committee and was more divided on the floor.

Contention

The main point of contention is the bill’s removal of a safeguard that currently prevents competing local ballot questions from appearing alongside a charter commission proposal. Supporters likely view the change as a restoration of local flexibility and voter choice, while opponents may worry that allowing multiple questions on the same ballot could confuse voters, complicate charter reform elections, or dilute the focus on commission proposals. The split floor votes suggest some lawmakers were concerned about changing the existing ballot-priority rule even though committee action was unanimous.