Bill Text: NY A05824 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Enacts the "New York state water infrastructure relief act".

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-02-05 - print number 5824a [A05824 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A05824-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         5824--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 16, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. SANTABARBARA, THIELE, SKARTADOS -- read once and
          referred to the Committee on Environmental Conservation -- recommitted
          to the Committee on  Environmental  Conservation  in  accordance  with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN ACT to enact the "New York state water infrastructure relief act"
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may  be  cited  as
     2  the "New York state water infrastructure relief act".
     3    § 2. For purposes of this act:
     4    (a)  "water  quality infrastructure project" shall mean "sewage treat-
     5  ment works", as defined in section 17-1903 of the environmental  conser-
     6  vation  law;  "eligible project", as defined in paragraphs (a), (b), (c)
     7  and (e) of subdivision 4 of section  1160  of  the  public  health  law;
     8  "stormwater  collecting system", as defined in subdivision 27 of section
     9  56-0101 of the environmental conservation law; or septic system.
    10    (b) "construction" shall mean:
    11    (1) for sewage treatment works, as defined in section 17-1903  of  the
    12  environmental conservation law;
    13    (2)  for  eligible  projects, as defined in section 1160 of the public
    14  health law;
    15    (3) for stormwater collecting systems, as defined in subdivision 27 of
    16  section 56-0101 of the  environmental  conservation  law  the  erection,
    17  building, acquisition, alteration, reconstruction, improvement or exten-
    18  sion  of  stormwater  collecting systems; the inspection and supervision
    19  thereof; and the engineering, architectural, legal, fiscal and  economic
    20  investigations  and  studies, surveys, designs, plans, working drawings,
    21  specifications, procedures, and other actions necessary thereto; and
    22    (4) for septic systems, the erection,  building,  acquisition,  alter-
    23  ation,  reconstruction,  improvement or extension of septic systems; the
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09346-05-8
        A. 5824--A                          2
     1  inspection and supervision thereof; and the engineering,  architectural,
     2  legal, fiscal and economic investigations and studies, surveys, designs,
     3  plans,  working  drawings, specifications, procedures, and other actions
     4  necessary thereto.
     5    (c)  "municipality"  shall  mean  any  county,  city,  town,  village,
     6  district  corporation,  county  or  town  improvement  district,  school
     7  district,  Indian  nation or tribe recognized by the state or the United
     8  States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of  New
     9  York  state,  any  public benefit corporation or public authority estab-
    10  lished pursuant to the laws of New York or any agency of the state which
    11  is empowered to construct and operate  a  water  quality  infrastructure
    12  project, or any two or more of the foregoing which are acting jointly in
    13  connection with a water quality infrastructure project.
    14    §  3. (a) The environmental facilities corporation shall undertake and
    15  provide state financial assistance payments, from funds appropriated for
    16  such purpose, to municipalities in support of water quality  infrastruc-
    17  ture  projects;  provided, however, that in any such year that funds are
    18  made available pursuant to the clean water bond act  of  2018  for  such
    19  purpose,  no municipality shall receive more than ten million dollars of
    20  such funds. Such financial assistance payments shall be awarded only  to
    21  water quality infrastructure projects for:
    22    (1)  replacement,  updating,  installation,  construction or repair of
    23  infrastructure; or
    24    (2) compliance with environmental conservation and public health  laws
    25  and regulations related to water quality.
    26    (b)  Any  financial  assistance  payment  awarded pursuant to this act
    27  shall not exceed eighty percent of the project cost.
    28    (c) A municipality may make an application for such financial  assist-
    29  ance payment, in a manner, form and timeframe and containing such infor-
    30  mation   as   the  environmental  facilities  corporation  may  require;
    31  provided, however, such requirements shall not include a requirement for
    32  prior listing on the intended use plan.
    33    (d) In addition to any application process and requirements  that  the
    34  environmental  facilities corporation may establish pursuant to subdivi-
    35  sion (c) of this section, such corporation shall establish an expedited,
    36  emergency application and financial assistance  payment  process  for  a
    37  municipality  submitting  an  application  therefor.  Such process shall
    38  require an applicant municipality to provide such evidence as  shall  be
    39  determined  to  be necessary by the environmental facilities corporation
    40  to prove that there exists a serious and immediate risk to public health
    41  or the environment which requires  construction  of  the  municipality's
    42  water quality infrastructure project as soon as practicable. Such corpo-
    43  ration shall accept and review such applications on a twenty-four hour a
    44  day,  seven  days  a  week  basis to ensure virtually immediate response
    45  thereto. The environmental facilities corporation shall review and  make
    46  a  determination of whether to approve or deny an emergency application,
    47  and provide notice thereof to the municipality within 48  hours  of  the
    48  receipt  of  such  application. Furthermore, within 24 hours of making a
    49  determination upon an emergency application, the  environmental  facili-
    50  ties  corporation  shall  post  the  reasons  for  the  determination of
    51  approval or denial on its internet website. In the event that  an  emer-
    52  gency  application is approved, the environmental facilities corporation
    53  shall cause the financial assistance payment to be  transmitted  to  the
    54  municipality  within  72 hours of such approval. The denial of a munici-
    55  pality's emergency application shall not be deemed to bar  such  munici-
    56  pality  from  submitting  an  application pursuant to subdivision (c) of
        A. 5824--A                          3
     1  this section nor shall it be deemed to be a determination of the  appli-
     2  cation submitted pursuant to such subdivision.
     3    (e)  A  municipality  shall  not  be  required to accept environmental
     4  facilities corporation loan financing in order  to  obtain  a  financial
     5  assistance  payment  pursuant  to  this  act  if it can provide proof of
     6  having obtained similarly low  cost  financing  or  other  funding  from
     7  another source.
     8    (f) In awarding such state financial assistance payments, the environ-
     9  mental  facilities  corporation  shall  consider  and give preference to
    10  projects that result in the greatest water quality improvement or great-
    11  est reduction in serious risk to public health.
    12    § 4. This act shall take effect upon the approval of the electorate of
    13  the clean water bond act of 2018.