Bill Text: NY A04967 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires municipal approval of and a public hearing on the siting of community residential facilities for mentally disabled persons and removes the property tax exemption for such community residential facilities.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 9-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-06 - enacting clause stricken [A04967 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A04967-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4967 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 6, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. RAIA, FINCH, McDONOUGH, DiPIETRO -- Multi-Spon- sored by -- M. of A. CROUCH, THIELE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Mental Health AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to requiring munici- pal approval of community residential facility site selection and to require a public hearing on such siting; and to amend the real proper- ty tax law, in relation to removing the tax exemption for community residences The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision (c) of section 41.34 of the mental hygiene law, 2 as amended by chapter 1024 of the laws of 1981, subparagraph (C) of 3 paragraph 1 as amended by chapter 823 of the laws of 1992 and paragraph 4 5 as amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as 5 follows: 6 (c) (1) When a site has been selected by the sponsoring agency, it 7 shall notify the chief executive officer of the municipality in writing 8 and include in such notice the specific address of the site, the type of 9 community residence, the number of residents and the community support 10 requirements of the program. Such notice shall also contain the most 11 recently published data compiled pursuant to [section four hundred12sixty-three of] the social services law which can reasonably be expected 13 to permit the municipality to evaluate all such facilities affecting the 14 nature and character of the area wherein such proposed facility is to be 15 located. The municipality shall [have forty days after the receipt of16such notice to:17(A) approve the site recommended by the sponsoring agency;18(B) suggest one or more suitable sites within its jurisdiction which19could accommodate such a facility; or20(C) object to the establishment of a facility of the kind described by21the sponsoring agency because to do so would result in such a concen-EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD07868-01-9A. 4967 2 1tration of community residential facilities for the mentally disabled in2the municipality or in the area in proximity to the site selected or a3combination of such facilities with other community residences or simi-4lar facilities licensed by other agencies of state government, including5all community residences, intermediate care facilities, residential care6facilities for adults and residential treatment facilities for individ-7uals with mental illness or developmental disabilities operated pursuant8to article sixteen or article thirty-one of this chapter and all similar9residential facilities of fourteen or less residents operated or10licensed by another state agency, that the nature and character of the11areas within the municipality would be substantially altered.12Such response shall be forwarded to the sponsoring agency and the13commissioner. If the municipality does not respond within forty days,14the sponsoring agency may establish a community residence at a site15recommended in its notice.16(2) Prior to forwarding a response to the sponsoring agency and the17commissioner, the municipality may hold a public hearing pursuant to18local law.19(3) If the municipality approves the site recommended by the sponsor-20ing agency, the sponsoring agency shall seek to establish the facility21at the approved site.22(4) If the site or sites suggested by the municipality are satisfac-23tory with regard to the nature, size and community support requirements24of the program of the proposed facility and the area in which such site25or sites are located does not already include an excessive number of26community residential facilities for the mentally disabled or similar27facilities licensed by other state agencies, the sponsoring agency shall28seek to establish its facility at one of the sites designated by the29municipality.30If the municipality suggests a site or sites which are not satisfac-31tory to the sponsoring agency, the agency shall so notify the munici-32pality which shall have fifteen days to suggest an alternative site or33sites for the proposed community residential facility.34(5) In the event the municipality objects to establishment of a facil-35ity in the municipality because to do so would result in such a concen-36tration of community residential facilities for persons with mental37disabilities or combination of such facilities and other facilities38licensed by other state agencies that the nature and character of areas39within the municipality would be substantially altered; or the sponsor-40ing agency objects to the establishment of a facility in the area or41areas suggested by the municipality; or in the event that the munici-42pality and sponsoring agency cannot agree upon a site, either the spon-43soring agency or the municipality may request an immediate hearing44before the commissioner to resolve the issue. The commissioner shall45personally or by a hearing officer conduct such a hearing within fifteen46days of such a request.47In reviewing any such objections, the need for such facilities in the48municipality shall be considered as shall the existing concentration of49such facilities and other similar facilities licensed by other state50agencies in the municipality or in the area in proximity to the site51selected and any other facilities in the municipality or in the area in52proximity to the site selected providing residential services to a53significant number of persons who have formerly received in-patient54mental health services in facilities of the office of mental health or55the office for people with developmental disabilities. The commissioner56shall sustain the objection if he determines that the nature and charac-A. 4967 3 1ter of the area in which the facility is to be based would be substan-2tially altered as a result of establishment of the facility. The commis-3sioner shall make a determination within thirty days of the hearing] 4 conduct a public hearing concerning the location of such facility within 5 thirty days of receipt of such notice. 6 (2) Within ninety days the municipality shall approve or reject the 7 siting of such facility and such approval or rejection shall be 8 forwarded to the commissioner. Upon denial of such site by the munici- 9 pality, the sponsoring agency must withdraw its plans for such site and 10 may not submit plans for such site again for at least one year. 11 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 422 of the real proper- 12 ty tax law, as amended by chapter 409 of the laws of 1993, is amended to 13 read as follows: 14 (a) Real property owned by a not-for-profit corporation organized 15 pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law and the provisions of 16 article two of the private housing finance law, used exclusively to 17 provide housing and auxiliary facilities for faculty members, students, 18 employees, nurses, interns, resident physicians, researchers and other 19 personnel and their immediate families in attendance or employed at 20 colleges, universities, educational institutions, child care insti- 21 tutions, hospitals and medical research institutes, or for handicapped 22 or aged persons of low income, or owned by non-profit nursing home 23 companies organized pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law and 24 the provisions of article twenty-eight-A of the public health law, used 25 exclusively to provide facilities for nursing care to sick, invalid, 26 infirm, disabled or convalescent persons of low income, or to provide 27 health-related service as defined in article twenty-eight of the public 28 health law to persons of low income, or any combination of the forego- 29 ing, and in addition thereto, to provide nursing care and health-related 30 service, or either of them, to persons of low income who are not occu- 31 pants of the project, or owned by housing development fund companies 32 organized pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law and article 33 eleven of the private housing finance law, used exclusively to provide 34 housing for handicapped or aged persons of low income, and financed by a 35 federally-aided mortgage as defined in said article eleven, [or owned by36companies organized pursuant to the not-for-profit corporation law and37the provisions of article seventy-five of the mental hygiene law, used38exclusively to provide care, treatment, training, education and residen-39tial accommodations for operation as hostels for the mentally ill or40mentally retarded,] or owned by companies organized pursuant to the 41 membership corporations law and the provisions of article seven-A of the 42 private housing finance law, used exclusively to provide programs, 43 services and other facilities for the aging, shall be exempt from taxa- 44 tion and exempt from special ad valorem levies and special assessments 45 to the extent provided in section four hundred ninety of this chapter, 46 provided, however, that in a city having a population of one million or 47 more real property owned by any such corporation which is to provide 48 housing accommodations, substantially all of which are or are to be 49 assisted by rent subsidies made or to be made available by the Federal 50 government pursuant to a contract under section eight of the United 51 States Housing Act of nineteen hundred thirty-seven, as amended, or 52 pursuant to a project rental assistance contract under section two 53 hundred two of the United States Housing Act of nineteen hundred fifty- 54 nine, as amended, or pursuant to a project rental assistance contract 55 under section eight hundred eleven of the National Affordable Housing 56 Act of nineteen hundred ninety, as amended, shall from and after theA. 4967 4 1 commencement of construction be subject to taxation or exempt therefrom 2 to the extent approved by a municipality acting through its local legis- 3 lative body, as such local legislative body is defined in [paragraph] 4 subdivision twelve of section two of the private housing finance law. No 5 such corporation or company shall pay a dividend on any of its stock or 6 pay interest on any of its debentures. Provided further, however, in a 7 county having a population of one million or more and having not more 8 than three towns within such county, real property owned by housing 9 development fund companies organized pursuant to the not-for-profit 10 corporation law and article eleven of the private housing finance law, 11 used exclusively to provide housing for handicapped or aged persons of 12 low income, and financed by a federally-aided mortgage as defined in 13 said article eleven shall from and after the commencement of 14 construction be subject to taxation or exempt therefrom to the extent 15 approved by a municipality acting through its local legislative body, as 16 such local legislative body is defined in [paragraph] subdivision twelve 17 of section two of the private housing finance law. Any tax payments 18 and/or payments in lieu of taxes made to a municipality pursuant to the 19 preceding sentence shall not be passed through nor become the liability 20 of any of the occupants of such property. 21 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 22 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.