1. There shall be an office of administrative trials and hearings which shall conduct adjudicatory hearings for all agencies of the city unless otherwise provided for by executive order, rule, law or pursuant to collective bargaining agreements. The office shall be directed by the chief administrative law judge, who shall be an attorney admitted to practice for at least five years in the state of New York. The chief administrative law judge shall be appointed by the mayor.
2. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law and except as provided in subdivision five of this section, the mayor shall be authorized to designate by executive order the office of administrative trials and hearings as the tribunal for the impartial administration and conduct of adjudicatory hearings for violations of this charter, the administrative code of the city of New York, rules promulgated pursuant to this charter or such code and any other laws, rules, regulations or other policies enforced or implemented by the agencies of the city through the conduct of adjudications. Pursuant to any such order, the mayor may transfer entire tribunals or parts thereof, or categories of adjudications to such office, which may perform such responsibilities, including responsibilities delegated elsewhere by this charter or other law, as the mayor shall direct in such order. In furtherance of any such order, agencies shall be authorized to establish their tribunals, or parts thereof, within such office. No existing right or remedy of any character shall be lost, impaired or affected by reason of a transfer of a tribunal or part thereof or category of adjudications pursuant to this subdivision except as may be necessary to implement such transfer.
3. Any order issued by the mayor pursuant to subdivision two of this section may include provision for matters pending at the time that any transfer pursuant to such subdivision shall take effect and may in appropriate instances deem agency rules in effect on the date of any transfer to be rules of the office of administrative trials and hearings. Any such order may in addition address circumstances in which agencies shall continue to make final findings of fact and/or decisions, determinations or orders.
4. (a) The mayor shall constitute a committee to evaluate the adjudicatory functions carried out by city agencies and to make recommendations with respect to the transfers authorized by subdivision two of this section. Such committee shall be chaired by the deputy mayor for legal affairs or another designee of the mayor. It shall have representatives from the office of administrative trials and hearings, the law department, the department of citywide administrative services and any other agency the mayor deems necessary to implement the transfers described in this section. The work of such committee shall be deemed complete upon submission to the mayor of a final report identifying the tribunals or parts thereof, or categories of adjudications, that have been consolidated or that should be considered for future consolidation, provided that the mayor may reconstitute the committee at any time to perform the functions described in this section.
(b) Before recommending transfers of tribunals or parts thereof, or of categories of adjudications, the committee shall solicit comments from the public, including, to the extent practicable, any segments of the public particularly affected by such transfers. In furtherance of such solicitation, the committee or a person or agency designated by the committee shall hold a public hearing, on notice of at least twenty days published in the City Record. Such notice shall specify the transfers that are under consideration by the committee for recommendation to the mayor.
(c) The authority conferred upon the mayor by subdivisions two and three of this section shall not be limited by or contingent upon the requirements of this subdivision.
5. Subdivisions two through four of this section shall not apply to the office of administrative tax appeals, including the tax commission and the tax appeals tribunal, or the board of standards and appeals.
6. The office of administrative trials and hearings shall issue monthly reports relating to dismissals of civil penalty violations in tribunals within the jurisdiction of such office in the previous month. Such reports shall catalogue dismissals for each agency and shall include the reason for each dismissal. Such reports shall be sent to the speaker of the council, the public advocate, the mayor, and to each agency included in the reports.
(Am. L.L. 2015/064, 6/29/2015, eff. 9/27/2015)
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Administrative Code Appendix A at L.L. 1991/049 and L.L. 2015/064.