N.Y. Public Officers Law § 11: Official undertakings

§ 11. Official undertakings. 1. Every official undertaking, when

required by or in pursuance of law to be hereafter executed or filed by

any officer, shall be to the effect that he will faithfully discharge

the duties of his office and promptly account for and pay over all

moneys or property received by him as such officer, in accordance with

law, or in default thereof, that the parties executing such undertaking

will pay all damages, costs and expenses resulting from such default,

not exceeding a sum, if any, specified in such undertaking. The

undertaking of a state officer or clerk or employee shall be approved by

the attorney-general as to its form and manner of execution and by the

comptroller as to the sufficiency of the sureties and be filed in the

comptroller's office. The undertaking of a municipal officer shall, if

not otherwise provided by law, be approved as to its form and the

sufficiency of the sureties by the chief executive officer or by the

governing body of the municipality and be filed with the clerk thereof.

The approval by such governing body may be a resolution, a certified

copy of which shall be attached to the undertaking. The undertaking of

such county officer shall, if not otherwise provided by law, be approved

as to its form and the sufficiency of the sureties by the clerk of the

county, and filed in his office. The undertaking of a town officer

shall, if not otherwise provided by law, be approved as to its form and

the sufficiency of the sureties by the clerk of the county and filed in

his office. The sum specified in an official undertaking shall be the

sum for which such undertaking shall be required by or in pursuance of

law is given. If no sum, or a different sum from that required by or in

pursuance of law, be specified in the undertaking, it shall be deemed to

be an undertaking for the amount so required. If no sum be required by

or in pursuance of law to be so specified, the officer or board

authorized to approve the undertaking shall fix the sum to be specified

therein. Every official undertaking shall be executed and duly

acknowledged by at least two sureties, each of whom shall add thereto

his affidavit that he is a freeholder or householder within the state,

stating his occupation and residence and the street number of his

residence and place of business if in a city, and a sum which he is

worth over and above his just debts and liabilities and property exempt

from execution. The aggregate of the sums so stated in such affidavits

must be at least double the amount specified in the undertaking. If the

surety on an official undertaking of a state or local officer, clerk or

employee of the state or political subdivision thereof or of a municipal

corporation be a fidelity or surety corporation, the reasonable expense

of procuring such surety, not exceeding one percentum per annum upon the

sum for which such undertaking shall be required by or in pursuance of

law to be given, shall be a charge against the state or political

subdivision or municipal corporation respectively in and for which he is

elected or appointed, except that the expense of procuring such surety

as aforesaid, on an official undertaking of any officer, clerk or

employee in any city department of the city of New York, or of any

office, board or body of said city, or of a borough or county within

said city, including officers, clerks and employees of every court

within said city, shall not be a charge upon said city or upon any of

the counties contained within said city, unless the comptroller of the

said city, shall first have approved the necessity of requiring such

official undertaking to be given, and shall have approved of or fixed

the amount of any such official undertaking; but this exception shall

not apply to an official undertaking specifically required by statute to

be given, and the amount of which is specifically fixed by statute. The

failure to execute an official undertaking in the form or by the number

of sureties required by or in pursuance of law, or of a surety thereto

to make an affidavit required by or in pursuance of law, or in the form

so required, or the omission from such an undertaking of the approval

required by or in pursuance of law, shall not affect the liability of

the sureties therein.

2. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section or any

other law, general, special or local, requiring an official undertaking

to be conditioned substantially to the effect that an officer, clerk or

employee will faithfully discharge his duties and promptly account for

and pay over all moneys or property received by him in his official

capacity, it shall be permissible in lieu thereof, with the consent and

approval of the officer or governing body authorized to require the

undertaking, for any department or agency of the state or any municipal

corporation or district corporation or department or agency thereof to

procure a blanket undertaking from any duly authorized corporate surety

covering officers, clerks and employees. Any such blanket undertaking

entered into on or after January first, nineteen hundred seventy-eight

shall indemnify against losses:

(a) through the failure of the officers, clerks and employees covered

thereunder faithfully to perform their duties or to account properly for

all moneys or property received by virtue of their positions or

employment, and

(b) through fraudulent or dishonest acts committed by the officers,

clerks and employees covered thereunder.

Notwithstanding any provisions of the civil practice law and rules any

such blanket undertaking entered into prior to January first, nineteen

hundred eighty-three may contain a provision that no suit, action or

proceeding of any kind to recover on account of loss under such blanket

undertaking shall be brought after the expiration of three years from

the cancellation of such blanket undertaking as an entirety. Any such

blanket undertaking shall be approved as to its form, manner of

execution and sufficiency of the surety and filed and the expense of

procuring such surety paid in the same manner as provided in subdivision

one of this section. The failure to execute such blanket undertaking in

the form required by law, or the omission of the approval required by

law, shall not affect the liability of the surety thereon.

3. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent the

procuring of a blanket undertaking to cover the liability of employees

handling funds collected pursuant to the provisions of section fifty of

the vehicle and traffic law.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other law,

general or special, requiring an official undertaking or bond to be

conditioned substantially to the effect that a state officer, clerk or

employee will faithfully discharge his duties and promptly account for

and pay over all moneys or property received by him in his official

capacity, the comptroller may, in his discretion, waive the requirement

of procuring such official undertaking or bond, and the expense of

procuring an official undertaking or bond shall not be a charge upon the

state unless the comptroller shall first have approved the necessity of

requiring such official undertaking or bond.