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Assembly orders study of vacancies across state agencies to assess staffing shortfalls
Summary
A study bill passed directing the State Civil Service Commission to inventory budgeted versus filled positions, vacancy durations, and related data within one year to help the Legislature better understand staffing gaps and recruitment challenges across state government.
Assemblymember Lunsford sponsored a bill directing the president of the State Civil Service Commission to conduct a one-year study cataloguing how many full- and part-time positions are budgeted in each agency, which of those positions remain vacant, and how long vacancies have persisted. The sponsor said existing public data sources are piecemeal and the study would provide a comprehensive baseline to inform recruitment and retention policy.
Questioners asked whether the information already exists through State Jobs NY, the comptroller, or agency reporting and why minority leaders were not named among report recipients; the sponsor replied that agencies and budgets may record parts of the data but it is difficult to assemble a comprehensive, statewide picture and that the study will enable targeted follow-up questions about specific agencies and workforce categories (for example, nursing). The bill requires delivery of the report to the governor, the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker within one year of the effective date; the sponsor said she will share results with colleagues and is open to broadening distribution.
The Assembly passed the bill by recorded vote (Ayes 124, Nos 15). The report aims to inform discussions on recruitment, retention, and whether additional resources or statutory changes are needed to staff state services adequately.
