BILL NUMBER: S10628
SPONSOR: BASKIN
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the state finance law, in relation to the staffing and
operations of a cancer research institute and a related not-for-profit
corporation
 
PURPOSE OF THE BILL:
The purpose of the bill is to transfer employees of Health Research,
Inc. ("HRI") currently serving the Roswell Park Cancer Institute
("RPCI") to the Roswell Park Cancer Research Corporation ("RPCRC"), a
private not-for-profit corporation formed to provide services and
personnel on behalf of RCPI's.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill sets forth legislative findings and intent.
Section 2 of the bill amends section 53-a of the State Finance Law to
add the RPCRC to the definition of "state agency" for the purpose of
section 53-a.
Section 3 of the bill provides that employees of the Buffalo Division of
HRI shall become employees of the RPCRC, pursuant to an agreement
between both entities, once all applicable grants and monies held by HRI
are transferred to RPCRC.
Section 4 of the bill ensures that it will not affect the rights of
employees pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement.
Section 5 of the bill amends establishes that the effective date of the
bill will occur when all grants have been transferred from Health
Research, Inc. to Roswell Park Cancer Research Corporation.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
RCPI, the first institution in the world to focus exclusively on cancer
research, was founded in 1898 as an arm of the Department of Health.
RCPI remains a premier national cancer institute and, as one of only two
in New York, the state has a paramount interest in continuing its
medical research and protecting the employees who provide those
services.
HRI was formed in 1953 to serve the research conducted by RCPI. Over
time, however, HRI's scope grew to perform services for other state
entities. At this point, the state will benefit if all employees that
serve RPCI through HRI are transferred to RPCRC. This transfer is condi-
tioned upon the continuation of the terms and conditions of employment
provided under existing collective bargaining agreements
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
The bill would become effective once all grants have been transferred
from HRI to RPCRC.

Statutes affected:
S10628: 53-a state finance law, 53-a(5) state finance law