Bill Text: NY S01307 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Transfers certain powers and duties of the department of environmental conservation to the newly established division of mineral resources; provides that such division shall be responsible for ensuring the environmentally sound, economic development of New York's non-renewable energy and mineral resources for the benefit of current and future generations; provides for monitoring the extraction of oil and gas, and requires the reclamation of land after mining.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - REFERRED TO FINANCE [S01307 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S01307-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1307 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 9, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. AVELLA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance AN ACT to amend the executive law and the environmental conservation law, in relation to establishing the division of mineral resources and transferring certain powers and duties from the department of environ- mental conservation The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new article 28 to 2 read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 28 4 DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES 5 Section 825-a. Establishment of division of mineral resources. 6 825-b. Definitions. 7 825-c. Powers and duties. 8 825-d. Transfer of powers, duties and functions. 9 825-e. Transfer of records. 10 825-f. Transfer of employees. 11 825-g. Continuity of authority. 12 825-h. Completion of unfinished business. 13 825-i. Terms occurring in laws, contracts and other documents. 14 825-j. Existing rights and remedies preserved. 15 825-k. Pending actions and proceedings. 16 § 825-a. Establishment of division of mineral resources. There is 17 hereby established the division of mineral resources which shall exer- 18 cise powers and duties provided in this article. 19 § 825-b. Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms 20 shall have the following meanings: 21 1. "Director" means the director of the division of mineral resources. 22 2. "Division" means the division of mineral resources. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00756-01-7S. 1307 2 1 § 825-c. Powers and duties. The division shall be responsible for 2 ensuring the environmentally sound, economic development of New York's 3 non-renewable energy and mineral resources for the benefit of current 4 and future generations. The division shall further monitor the 5 extraction of oil and gas, and require the reclamation of land after 6 mining. 7 § 825-d. Transfer of powers, duties and functions. All powers, duties 8 and functions conferred upon the department of environmental conserva- 9 tion by article twenty-three of the environmental conservation law, 10 shall be transferred to and assumed by the division. 11 § 825-e. Transfer of records. The department of environmental conser- 12 vation shall deliver to the board all books, papers, records and proper- 13 ty as requested by the board. 14 § 825-f. Transfer of employees. Upon the transfer of the functions of 15 article twenty-three of the environmental conservation law, any affected 16 employees may be transferred to the division in accordance with section 17 seventy of the civil service law. 18 § 825-g. Continuity of authority. For the purpose of succession to all 19 functions, powers, duties and obligations transferred and assigned to, 20 devolved upon and assumed by the division shall be deemed and held to 21 constitute the continuation of article twenty-three of the environmental 22 conservation law pertaining to the powers and functions transferred. 23 § 825-h. Completion of unfinished business. Any business or other 24 matter undertaken or commenced by the department of environmental 25 conservation under article twenty-three of the environmental conserva- 26 tion law pertaining to or connected with the functions, powers, obli- 27 gations and duties transferred and assigned to the division, and pending 28 on the effective date of this article may be conducted and completed by 29 the division in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions 30 and with the same effect as if conducted and completed by the department 31 of environmental conservation. 32 § 825-i. Terms occurring in laws, contracts and other documents. 33 Whenever the department of environmental conservation is referred to or 34 designated in any law, contract or documents pertaining to the func- 35 tions, powers, obligations and duties transferred and assigned to the 36 division, such reference or designation shall be deemed to refer to the 37 division. 38 § 825-j. Existing rights and remedies preserved. No existing right or 39 remedy of any character shall be lost, impaired or affected by reason of 40 this title. 41 § 825-k. Pending actions and proceedings. No action or proceeding 42 pending at the time when this article shall take effect, brought by or 43 against the department of environmental conservation relating to the 44 function, power or duty transferred to or devolved upon the division 45 shall be affected by this article, but the same may be prosecuted or 46 defended in the name of the division accountability and upon application 47 to the court, the division shall be substituted as a party. 48 § 2. Subdivisions 4 and 11 of section 1-0303 of the environmental 49 conservation law are amended to read as follows: 50 4. "Commissioner" shall mean the state Commissioner of Environmental 51 Conservation, except for the purposes of article twenty-three of this 52 chapter, commissioner shall mean the director of the division of mineral 53 resources. 54 11. "Department" shall mean the state Department of Environmental 55 Conservation, except for the purposes of article twenty-three of this 56 chapter, department shall mean the division of mineral resources.S. 1307 3 1 § 3. Subdivisions 3 and 4 of section 23-0101 of the environmental 2 conservation law, as amended by chapter 846 of the laws of 1981, are 3 amended to read as follows: 4 3. "Commissioner" means the commissioner of environmental conserva- 5 tion, except for the purposes of this article, commissioner shall mean 6 the director of the division of mineral resources. 7 4. "Department" means the department of environmental conservation, 8 except for the purposes of this article, department shall mean the divi- 9 sion of mineral resources. 10 § 4. Subparagraph 2 of paragraph d of subdivision 1 of section 23-0313 11 of the environmental conservation law, as added by chapter 721 of the 12 laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows: 13 (2) The records subject to this paragraph may be excepted from disclo- 14 sure after the applicable six-month period pursuant to the provisions of 15 subdivision two of section eighty-seven of the public officers law 16 provided, however, that such records cannot be excepted from disclosure 17 for longer than two years after the commencement of the applicable six- 18 month period. A written request for the exception by the person furnish- 19 ing the records will not be considered unless it is submitted to the 20 department at least thirty days before the expiration date of the appli- 21 cable six-month period. The request for the exception from disclosure 22 must be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, and addressed 23 to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, [Divi-24sion of Mineral Resources,] Records Custodian, Albany, New York. Any 25 person may make a request to the department for disclosure of records 26 pursuant to this subparagraph in accordance with article six of the 27 public officers law. 28 § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 29 it shall have become a law; provided, however, that effective immediate- 30 ly, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation 31 necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are 32 authorized and directed to be made and completed on or before such 33 effective date.