McKINNEY v. COMMISSIONER OF NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH (2007)

Order, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Mary Ann Brigantti-Hughes, J.), entered on or about March 9, 2007, which, in an action challenging the constitutionality of the legislation establishing the Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century (L. 2005, ch. 63, part E, § 31), granted defendants' motion pursuant to CPLR 3211(a) to dismiss the complaint, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

 We reject defendants' arguments that the individual plaintiff does not have taxpayer standing under State Finance Law § 123-b(1) (see Saratoga Chamber of Commerce v. Pataki, 100 N.Y.2d 801, 813-814, 766 N.Y.S.2d 654, 798 N.E.2d 1047 [2003], cert. denied 540 U.S. 1017, 124 S.Ct. 570, 157 L.Ed.2d 430 [2003] [claim that it is illegal to spend money at all for questioned activity likely provides taxpayer standing] ), and that Westchester Square Medical Center (WSMC), on which the individual plaintiff allegedly depends for medical care but which chose not to participate in the action after being notified thereof, would be inequitably affected by a judgment or is otherwise a necessary party (CPLR 1001[a];  cf. Matter of Castaways Motel v. Schuyler, 24 N.Y.2d 120, 125, 299 N.Y.S.2d 148, 247 N.E.2d 124 [1969], adhered to on rearg. 25 N.Y.2d 692, 306 N.Y.S.2d 692, 254 N.E.2d 919 [1969];  Kronish Lieb Weiner & Hellman LLP v. Tahari, Ltd., 35 A.D.3d 317, 829 N.Y.S.2d 7 [2006] ).   In view of the foregoing, we need not address the issue of plaintiffs' standing under the common law.   However, we also reject plaintiffs' argument that the subject legislation unconstitutionally delegated the Legislature's lawmaking power to the executive branch, and accordingly affirm dismissal of the action.   Enabling statutes even broader than this one have been found constitutional (see e.g. Matter of Medical Socy. v. Serio, 100 N.Y.2d 854, 864-865, 768 N.Y.S.2d 423, 800 N.E.2d 728 [2003];  Boreali v. Axelrod, 71 N.Y.2d 1, 9, 523 N.Y.S.2d 464, 517 N.E.2d 1350 [1987] ).   Having made the basic policy choice that some hospitals and nursing homes needed to be closed and others needed to be resized, consolidated, converted, or restructured, the legislation permissibly authorized the Commission “ ‘to fill in details and interstices and to make subsidiary policy choices consistent with the enabling legislation’ ” (Dorst v. Pataki, 90 N.Y.2d 696, 699, 665 N.Y.S.2d 65, 687 N.E.2d 1348 [1997], quoting Matter of Citizens for an Orderly Energy Policy v. Cuomo, 78 N.Y.2d 398, 410, 576 N.Y.S.2d 185, 582 N.E.2d 568 [1991];  see also Medical Socy., 100 N.Y.2d at 865, 768 N.Y.S.2d 423, 800 N.E.2d 728).