A chapter amendment and a veto operate at different moments and serve different institutional purposes.
A veto occurs before a bill becomes law. The Governor’s choice is binary: approve the bill as written or reject it in its entirety. There is no power to edit, revise, or condition approval on changes.
A chapter amendment occurs after a bill has become law. It is a new statute that modifies an existing chapter of the Laws of New York.
This distinction explains why New York often relies on chapter amendments even when substantive changes are anticipated.
A veto kills the entire bill, including provisions that may be widely supported or long negotiated. It also risks a legislative override or a re-passage of the same text, eliminating the Governor’s leverage to shape refinements.
By contrast, signing a bill and addressing problems through a chapter amendment allows the policy decision to stand while improving implementation. The Legislature can target specific provisions without reopening every settled issue, and agencies and courts can begin working within a known statutory framework.
In short:
A veto says, “This should not be law.”
A chapter amendment says, “This should be law—but better.”
When the disagreement is about execution rather than direction, chapter amendments are the more precise and institutionally stable tool.
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