TO:
Trustee Leaders

At the end of this year's state legislative session, the State Senate and Assembly passed a bill that would require the Office of Mental Health (OMH) and the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD) to establish minimum training requirements for boards of trustees of not-for-profit providers licensed by either OMH or OMRDD. Additionally, this legislation would require OMH and OMRDD to develop regulations related to disclosure of compensation and potential conflicts of interest. The bill has not yet been delivered to Governor Paterson for his approval or veto.

Healthcare Trustees of New York State (HTNYS) and Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS) fully embrace the value of health care trustee education--as demonstrated by HTNYS' educational offerings and participation in initiatives such as the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

HTNYS has engaged its Board of Governors in discussions regarding this legislation and the Board has provided guidance and recommendations to HTNYS. As a result, HTNYS and HANYS have determined that this legislation is not appropriate for hospitals.

HTNYS and HANYS met with the Governor's Office last week to convey our concerns about the bill and have asked the Governor to veto it. Our letter highlights the following:

• Educating trustees about their responsibilities is paramount to HTNYS' mission. Hospitals participate in the wide variety of educational initiatives that HTNYS offers.
• If enacted, this bill would have the unintended impact of affecting general hospitals that are dually licensed by Article 28 of the Public Health Law and Article 31 of the Mental Hygiene Law. OMH lacks the full familiarity with hospital operations that the Department of Health (DOH) possesses. As part of its oversight, DOH already regulates trustee education and training [10NYCRR 405.2 (b)(3)]. Additional oversight of hospital trustees by OMH could create a potentially confusing and counter-productive regulatory and surveillance quandary at the state level.
• Provisions of the legislation related to conflict of interest and compensation policies lead to a further complication because federal Internal Revenue Service rules and regulations already cover these issues.

I will keep you informed of the status of this legislation.