§ 473. Impasses in coalition negotiations. (a) In the event of an impasse occurring during the course of coalition negotiations either the employer coalition or the employee organization coalition may declare impasse no earlier than September fifteenth or later than October first in any year. Notice of impasse shall be filed with the public employment relations board created pursuant to article fourteen of the civil service law.(b) Forthwith after receipt of the notice of impasse the public employment relations board shall appoint a fact finding board of not more than three members, each representative of the public, from a list of qualified persons maintained by the board, which fact finding board shall have, in addition to the powers delegated to it by the public employment relations board, the power to make public recommendations for the resolution of the dispute.
(c) If the dispute is not resolved by November fifteenth prior to the legislative session at which implementation of any changes described by section four hundred seventy-one of this article will be sought, the fact finding board shall transmit its findings of fact and recommendations to the coalition parties and to the public employment relations board.
(d) In the event either of the coalition parties to the impasse does not accept the recommendations of the fact finding board, such coalition party may submit its position with respect to such recommendations of the fact finding board to the public employment relations board and to the other coalition party to the impasse.
(e) The public employment relations board shall cause such recommendation of the fact finding board and the positions of the parties to be made public prior to December first and shall hold public hearings thereon. In addition to the powers vested in the public employment relations board by law, it may require the assistance of representatives of any public retirement system or any public employer or employee organization as defined in article fourteen of the civil service law and may request or permit, in its discretion, the testimony of any person or organization whose testimony would assist in the resolution of the dispute in the public interest.
(f) On or before January fifteenth following such notice of impasse or thirty days following the close of such hearings whichever first occurs, the public employment relations board shall present its recommendations with respect to the impasse to the governor, the legislature and the parties to the impasse.
(g) The legislature or a duly authorized committee thereof shall forthwith conduct a public hearing at which the parties shall be required to explain their positions with respect to the issues and the recommendations of the fact finding board and the public employment relations board; thereafter, the legislature shall take such action as it deems to be in the public interest, including the interest of the public employees involved.
