Incorporation by Reference in New York State

Incorporation by reference is a traditional procedural mechanism that allows for actors at each level of government to include all or parts of a previously enacted law into the newer version of the law by simply including a statement stating that the second law should be treated as if it was part of the primary law. While incorporation by reference could facilitate and streamline legislation, New York has seemingly banned incorporation by reference in Article III, § 16 of the State Constitution. However, even though this ban is in place, there are several limitations and exceptions placed on the ban that make New York’s policy regarding incorporation by reference potentially difficult to follow due to the lack of uniformity in the law. This article will discuss the policy issues surrounding incorporation by reference in the New York state legislature, agency regulations, and local government regulations as well as the exceptions involved in those policy issues. Furthermore, this article will give various suggestions to fix the issues in New York’s incorporation by reference policy to make it more workable for the current legal environment