Bill Text: NY A03219 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to the environmental assessment of a historic preservation plan; addresses environmental impact statements, dates for filing drafts of such statewide comprehensive historic preservation plan, funds available for historic preservation purposes, and the New York state archaeological survey assistance fund.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 8-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-14 - held for consideration in environmental conservation [A03219 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A03219-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          3219
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 29, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M. of A. KOLB, BRABENEC -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation
        AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law,  the  parks,  recre-
          ation  and  historic  preservation  law, and the state finance law, in
          relation to environmental assessment of historic preservation plan
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.  Subdivision  6  of  section  8-0111  of the environmental
     2  conservation law, as added by chapter  612  of  the  laws  of  1975,  is
     3  amended to read as follows:
     4    6. Lead Agency. When an action is to be carried out or approved by two
     5  or  more agencies, the department shall be designated as lead agency and
     6  determination of whether the action may have a significant effect on the
     7  environment shall be made by the [lead agency] department having princi-
     8  pal responsibility for carrying out or approving such action  and  [such
     9  agency]  shall  prepare[,  or cause to be prepared by contract or other-
    10  wise,] the environmental impact statement  for  the  action  if  such  a
    11  statement  is  required  by  this article. [In the event that there is a
    12  question as to which is the lead agency, any agency may submit the ques-
    13  tion to the commissioner and the commissioner shall designate  the  lead
    14  agency,  giving  due  consideration  to  the  capacity of such agency to
    15  fulfill adequately the requirements of this article.]
    16    § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 70-0109 of the environ-
    17  mental conservation law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (iii) to
    18  read as follows:
    19    (iii) In the case of an application for a  state  pollutant  discharge
    20  elimination system (SPDES) permit issued in lieu of a national pollutant
    21  discharge elimination system permit, such decision shall be mailed on or
    22  before thirty calendar days after the department mails written notice to
    23  the  applicant  that  the application is complete or on or before thirty
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04095-01-9
        A. 3219                             2
     1  calendar days after the application is deemed complete pursuant  to  the
     2  provisions of this article.
     3    § 3. Subdivision 5 of section 8-0109 of the environmental conservation
     4  law,  as  amended  by  chapter  252 of the laws of 1977, and the opening
     5  paragraph as amended by chapter 749 of the laws of 1991, is  amended  to
     6  read as follows:
     7    5.  After  the  filing  of  a draft environmental impact statement the
     8  agency shall determine whether or not to conduct a public hearing on the
     9  environmental impact of the proposed action. If the agency determines to
    10  hold such a hearing, it shall commence the hearing within [sixty] thirty
    11  days of the filing and unless the  proposed  action  is  withdrawn  from
    12  consideration  shall  prepare  the environmental impact statement within
    13  [forty-five] thirty days after the  close  of  the  hearing,  except  as
    14  otherwise  provided.  The need for such a hearing shall be determined in
    15  accordance with procedures adopted by the  agency  pursuant  to  section
    16  8-0113  of this article. If no hearing is held, the agency shall prepare
    17  and make available the environmental  impact  statement  within  [sixty]
    18  thirty days after the filing of the draft, except as otherwise provided.
    19    Notwithstanding  the  specified time periods established by this arti-
    20  cle, an agency shall vary the times so established herein  for  prepara-
    21  tion,  review and public hearings to coordinate the environmental review
    22  process with other procedures relating to  review  and  approval  of  an
    23  action.  An application for a permit or authorization for an action upon
    24  which a  draft  environmental  impact  statement  is  determined  to  be
    25  required shall not be complete until such draft statement has been filed
    26  and  accepted  by  the  agency  as  satisfactory  with respect to scope,
    27  content and adequacy for purposes of  [paragraph]  subdivision  four  of
    28  this section.  Commencing upon such acceptance, the environmental impact
    29  statement  process shall run concurrently with other procedures relating
    30  to the review and approval of the action so long as reasonable  time  is
    31  provided for preparation, review and public hearings with respect to the
    32  draft environmental impact statement.
    33    §  4.  Subdivisions  3 and 4 of section 14.07 of the parks, recreation
    34  and historic preservation law, as added by chapter 354 of  the  laws  of
    35  1980, are amended to read as follows:
    36    3.  The commissioner shall determine which properties within the state
    37  are eligible for inclusion on the state register. Eligibility  shall  be
    38  determined by whether the edge of a property is located within a mile of
    39  any  property  designated as a state historic place or national historic
    40  place, or a property is located in an area where cultural or  historical
    41  activities are likely to have occurred based on archaeological precedent
    42  or historical evidence. The commissioner shall update the list of eligi-
    43  ble  properties  for  the  state register every three years. The initial
    44  list shall be published in draft form  and  made  available  for  public
    45  comment  with a public comment period of no less than sixty days, and be
    46  the subject of no less than at least three  public  hearings  throughout
    47  the  state. Subsequent additions to the register of any properties shall
    48  be the subject of at least one public hearing and a public comment peri-
    49  od of no less than thirty days. The commissioner shall publish a map  of
    50  all properties included on the list of eligible properties for the state
    51  register  on  its  website,  and provide a copy of such map to all state
    52  agencies, public authorities and municipal governments.
    53    4. Statewide comprehensive historic preservation plan. The commission-
    54  er, in consultation with the board, shall prepare a statewide comprehen-
    55  sive historic preservation plan. This plan may include proposals for the
    56  preservation and use of  registered  property.  The  annual  state  plan
        A. 3219                             3
     1  submitted  to  the  Heritage  Conservation and Recreation Service in the
     2  United States Department  of  Interior  may  substantially  be  used  in
     3  preparing  this  plan.  The agency preservation officers shall cooperate
     4  and  municipal  officials  may  cooperate  with  the commissioner in the
     5  promulgation of plans and proposals in relation to historic places with-
     6  in their respective jurisdictions. The  commissioner  shall  update  the
     7  plan annually. The commissioner shall annually notify every agency pres-
     8  ervation officer and municipal official of the availability of the state
     9  plan  or the annual update and a copy of the annual plan or update shall
    10  be sent to every agency  preservation  officer  and  municipal  official
    11  requesting such a plan or update.
    12    [4]  5.  From funds available from the federal government for historic
    13  preservation purposes which may be used for reimbursement as hereinafter
    14  provided, and funds appropriated by the state for the purpose of assist-
    15  ing local and regional preservation programs,  or  for  the  purpose  of
    16  archaeological survey as may be required by the commissioner pursuant to
    17  permit  requirements  under  article  eight or seventeen of the environ-
    18  mental conservation law, including funds for other such survey and plan-
    19  ning, the commissioner may provide reimbursement to  municipalities  and
    20  private  organizations  which  undertake surveys and studies of historic
    21  places and  cultural  resources,  prepare  local  historic  preservation
    22  reports or otherwise assist the commissioner in carrying out his histor-
    23  ic preservation responsibilities.
    24    § 5. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-ff to
    25  read as follows:
    26    §  99-ff. The New York state archaeological survey assistance fund. 1.
    27  There is hereby established in the joint custody of the comptroller  and
    28  the commissioner of environmental conservation a fund for the reimburse-
    29  ment  of  costs associated with an archaeological survey, when a munici-
    30  pality or private organization is directly required by the  commissioner
    31  of  the  office  of  parks,  recreation  and  historic preservation, the
    32  commissioner of the department of  environmental  conservation,  or  any
    33  related  state  agency  head  in  the state to undertake the survey. The
    34  administration of such fund shall be  the  sole  responsibility  of  the
    35  commissioner  of  the office of parks, recreation and historic preserva-
    36  tion.
    37    2. The fund will consist of appropriated federal funds for the purpose
    38  of archaeological surveying or appropriated state funds for the  purpose
    39  of archaeological surveying.
    40    3.  In  developing the administration of the fund, the commissioner of
    41  the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation,  in  conjunc-
    42  tion  with the commissioner of the department of environmental conserva-
    43  tion, shall develop guidelines for the reimbursement of costs associated
    44  with an archaeological survey undertaken by a municipality or a  private
    45  organization. Such guidelines shall, at a minimum, provide that:
    46    (a)  if  an  archaeological  survey  does  not yield any historical or
    47  cultural artifacts, the costs of such survey shall be  fully  reimbursed
    48  by the fund;
    49    (b)  if  an  archaeological  survey  does yield historical or cultural
    50  artifacts and the cost of such survey  is  under  one  hundred  thousand
    51  dollars,  at  least  half the cost of such survey shall be reimbursed by
    52  the fund;
    53    (c) if an archaeological survey  does  yield  historical  or  cultural
    54  artifacts  and  the  cost  of  such  survey is over one hundred thousand
    55  dollars, the commissioner of the office of parks, recreation and histor-
    56  ic preservation shall  determine  an  appropriate  reimbursement  level,
        A. 3219                             4
     1  provided that such reimbursement by the fund shall be no less than twen-
     2  ty-five percent.
     3    4.  Within  ninety  days  of  the  effective date of this section, the
     4  commissioner of the office of parks, recreation and  historic  preserva-
     5  tion  shall  establish rules and regulations for administering the fund,
     6  including, but not limited to, an application process,  a  timeline  for
     7  reimbursing  municipalities  or  private organizations that are directly
     8  required to undertake an archaeological survey, and any other  rules  or
     9  regulations that the commissioner deems necessary.
    10    § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.