STATE OF NEW YORK

ALBANY

JONATHAN L. BING LIZ KRUEGER

73rd Assembly District 26th State Senate District

For Immediate Release

September 20, 2010

Contact:
Keith Powers (212) 605-0937
Katie Kincaid (212) 490-9535

Governor Signs UPMIFA Legislation to Assist Universities, Cultural

Institutions, and Not-for-Profit Organizations
(New York, NY) - Assemblymember Jonathan Bing (D-Manhattan) and State Senator Liz Krueger (D-
Manhattan) today announced that the Governor has signed legislation (A. 7907-D/S. 7448-C) that will
improve the ability of universities and cultural institutions to spend their endowments in a prudent manner
to preserve programs and staff during economic crises. The legislation is commonly referred to as
Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds (UPMIFA).

The UPMIFA legislation updates a 32-year old law to provide better financial flexibility to institutions
amidst an economic downturn. The new law comes during a time when most investments, including
endowments, have lost significant amounts of money and cultural and educational institutions are in
danger of major financial hardship. UPMIFA allows for the use of endowments to help fund programs,
scholarships, or programs that otherwise could have been lost.

“New York State has taken an important step towards protecting our world class universities and cultural
institutions,” Assemblymember Bing said. “I am proud to author legislation which will allow these
institutions to remain solvent during the economic downturn.”

“I applaud Governor Paterson for signing the UPMIFA legislation into law and making meaningful
reforms to allow New York State’s museums, universities, and non-profits to continue to thrive,” said
State Senator Liz Krueger. "Now, these organizations will no longer be forced to operate as if tough times
never fall upon us."

In 1978, New York State adopted the Uniform Management of Institutional Funds Act (UMIFA) as a way
to regulate charitable donations given to cultural institutions. UMIFA provided that only earnings from
such donations could be used by the institution and that if the endowment fell below its “historic dollar
value” or the original value, profits from the remaining money could not be used. The new UPMIFA law
updates UMIFA to allow for better flexibility in how to spend the endowments.

New York State is the 47th State to enact the UPMIFA reforms. The bill was supported by over 60
institutions in New York including New York University, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Yeshiva
University.
STATE SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER
rd
▫ DISTRICT OFFICE: 211 East 43 Street, Suite 401, New York, New York 10017  (212) 490-9535
▫ ALBANY OFFICE: 503 Capitol, Albany, NY 12247  (518) 455-2297

ASSEMBLYMEMBER JONATHAN L. BING

TH
▫ DISTRICT OFFICE: 360 East 57 Street, Mezzanine Level, New York, New York 10022 • (212) 605-0937
▫ ALBANY OFFICE: Room 744, Legislative Office Building, Albany, New York 12248 • (518) 455-4794