Bill Text: NY S01324 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Creates the upstate flood mitigation task force within the canal corporation; establishes the upstate flood mitigation fund to conduct studies on the impact of floods and on preventative or mitigation measures.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 3-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-16 - RECOMMIT, ENACTING CLAUSE STRICKEN [S01324 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S01324-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          1324
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                     January 9, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sens. VALESKY, AKSHAR, DeFRANCISCO, SEWARD -- read twice
          and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee
          on Transportation
        AN ACT to amend the canal law, in relation to the  upstate  flood  miti-
          gation  task  force;  to  amend  the state finance law, in relation to
          creating the upstate flood mitigation  fund;  and  providing  for  the
          repeal of certain provisions upon expiration thereof
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The canal law is amended by adding a new  article  13-B  to
     2  read as follows:
     3                               ARTICLE XIII-B
     4                     UPSTATE FLOOD MITIGATION TASK FORCE
     5  Section 139. Upstate flood mitigation task force.
     6          139-a. Definitions.
     7          139-b. Task force composition.
     8          139-c. Task force duties and powers.
     9          139-d. Upstate flood mitigation grant program.
    10    §  139.  Upstate  flood mitigation task force. The upstate flood miti-
    11  gation task force, referred to in this article as the "task  force",  is
    12  hereby  established to identify reasonable measures that can be taken to
    13  enhance flood management and mitigation in the upstate flood  mitigation
    14  region  and  to  make  recommendations and provide grant assistance with
    15  respect to such measures.
    16    § 139-a. Definitions. When used in this article:
    17    1. "Adaptive measures" means any adjustment, whether passive, reactive
    18  or anticipatory, that may be taken to ameliorate the anticipated adverse
    19  consequences associated with flood events.
    20    2. "Flood control study sector"  means  a  particular  aspect  of  the
    21  natural or built environment, economy, or society that could potentially
    22  be  adversely  impacted  by flood events. Such term includes, but is not
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06862-01-7
        S. 1324                             2
     1  limited to, stream and river banks, locks and dams, wetlands and  water-
     2  front  areas,  water  resources,  transportation  infrastructure,  water
     3  supply and wastewater infrastructure, human health, recreation, tourism,
     4  power generation and business, residential, farm and municipal sectors.
     5    3.  "Flood  event"  means  an overflow or inundation that comes from a
     6  river or other body of water, whether caused by rainfall, waterway oper-
     7  ation, dam break, water runoff or other means, and causes  or  threatens
     8  damage.
     9    4.  "Canal  system"  shall mean the canal waterways, lands and infras-
    10  tructure as set out in section two of this chapter.
    11    5. "Upstate flood mitigation region" shall include a county, except  a
    12  county  wholly encompassed by a city and any county with a population of
    13  one million or more.
    14    § 139-b. Task force composition. 1. The task force  shall  consist  of
    15  the  director  of the canal corporation, the commissioner of transporta-
    16  tion, the director of the division of homeland  security  and  emergency
    17  services  and  the  commissioner of environmental conservation; and five
    18  additional members who shall be from outside the public  offices  listed
    19  in this section and who shall have professional experience in the fields
    20  of  hydrology,  civil engineering, climatology, emergency management and
    21  soil and water conservation. The governor shall  appoint  three  of  the
    22  five  additional  members  and the temporary president of the senate and
    23  speaker of the assembly shall each appoint one of each of the five addi-
    24  tional members.
    25    2. The task force shall appoint a chairperson from among its members.
    26    3. The members of the task force shall  receive  no  compensation  for
    27  their services, but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses
    28  incurred in the performance of their duties.
    29    4.  To  help  ensure  the  task force's receipt of a comprehensive and
    30  diverse array of views, the task force shall hold public hearings as  it
    31  deems  necessary  to  solicit  relevant  information  and gather current
    32  research and data related to flooding and flood mitigation in the region
    33  as well as recommendations to fulfill the purposes of this article.  The
    34  task  force  shall  consult with the county offices of emergency manage-
    35  ment, county soil and water conservation districts and all other  feder-
    36  al,  state and local entities it deems necessary to fulfill the purposes
    37  of this article.  In determining the number of  public  hearings  to  be
    38  held the task force shall remain cognizant of its duty to meet the time-
    39  frame  for first cycle awards under the upstate flood mitigation program
    40  established within section one hundred thirty-nine-d of this article.
    41    § 139-c. Task force duties and powers. The  role  of  the  task  force
    42  includes, but is not limited to:
    43    1. Conducting an in-depth examination, presented as a public report no
    44  later  than  six  months from the date the task force is established, of
    45  flood control study sectors and issues related to floodplain management,
    46  debris management, flood control and flood  mitigation  in  the  upstate
    47  flood mitigation region including:
    48    (a)  the  cost impact of flooding over the last five years on agricul-
    49  ture; transportation; land use; health; insurance; economic sectors such
    50  as tourism, recreation and power  generation;  as  well  as  impacts  on
    51  infrastructure  including  bridges, low lying roads, dams, locks, cause-
    52  ways, water and wastewater treatment plants and docks;
    53    (b) an assessment of canal operation procedures and  plans  which  may
    54  have  a  direct or indirect impact on flood mitigation and flood manage-
    55  ment including, but not limited  to  debris  management,  communication,
    56  water management and flood response; and
        S. 1324                             3
     1    (c) a listing of adaptive measures, with associated costs, that can be
     2  taken  to  mitigate flood damages, including but not limited to feasible
     3  floodplain  management  activities,  debris  management,  flood  control
     4  structures,  communication  systems  and  flood mitigation education for
     5  public and private landowners.
     6    2. Establishing an upstate flood mitigation grant program based on the
     7  task force's evaluation pursuant to section one hundred thirty-nine-d of
     8  this  article which utilizes existing available federal and state monies
     9  to fund grants within the upstate flood mitigation region to prevent and
    10  mitigate flood damage within the region.  Such  program  shall  work  in
    11  conjunction with existing flood assistance grant programs and supplement
    12  existing efforts by providing funds for adaptive measures to mitigate or
    13  eliminate a flood event.
    14    3.  The  task  force shall have the power to: (a) contract for profes-
    15  sional and technical assistance and advice; (b) contract for and  accept
    16  assistance  including,  but not limited to gifts, grants, easements, and
    17  loans of funds, real property and personal  property  from  the  federal
    18  government  or  any  agency or instrumentality of the state, or from any
    19  other public or private source to comply, subject to the  provisions  of
    20  this  article,  with  the  terms  and conditions thereof, subject to the
    21  approval of the division of budget. Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of
    22  section  eleven  of  the  state  finance  law, the task force may accept
    23  gifts, grants, devises and bequests,  whether  conditional  or  uncondi-
    24  tional  with the approval of the director of the budget; (c) hold public
    25  hearings; and (d) establish an upstate flood mitigation grant program to
    26  be administered by the canal corporation and based on the  task  force's
    27  evaluation which utilizes existing available federal and state monies to
    28  fund  grants  within  the upstate flood mitigation region to prevent and
    29  mitigate flood damage within the region.
    30    4. All executive departments of the state and  the  canal  corporation
    31  shall  provide  the task force with such facilities, assistance and data
    32  as will enable the task force to carry out its powers and duties.  Addi-
    33  tionally, all other agencies of the state or subdivisions thereof shall,
    34  at the request of the chair, provide the task force  with  such  facili-
    35  ties,  assistance,  and  data as will enable the task force to carry out
    36  its powers and duties.
    37    § 139-d. Upstate flood mitigation grant program.  1.  The  task  force
    38  shall establish an upstate flood mitigation grant program to be adminis-
    39  tered  by the canal corporation based on the task force's in-depth exam-
    40  ination of flood control study sectors and issues related to  floodplain
    41  management, debris management, flood control and flood mitigation in the
    42  upstate flood mitigation region.
    43    2.  The  task force shall establish the upstate flood mitigation grant
    44  program structure that shall be administered by the  canal  corporation.
    45  Such  program  structure shall include, but not be limited to, the defi-
    46  nition of eligible  recipients,  project  application  process,  program
    47  maximum  project  award  amounts,  project  cost  sharing parameters and
    48  program funding cycles. It is further provided, however, that the  first
    49  funding  cycle  under this program shall be available for award to grant
    50  recipients during the two thousand seventeen-eighteen state fiscal year.
    51    § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-aa to
    52  read as follows:
    53    § 99-aa. Upstate flood mitigation fund.  1. There is hereby created in
    54  the joint custody of the commissioner of taxation and  finance  and  the
    55  state  comptroller  a  fund to be known as the "upstate flood mitigation
    56  fund".
        S. 1324                             4
     1    2. The upstate flood mitigation fund shall consist  of  monies  trans-
     2  ferred  annually  by  the director of the budget from existing available
     3  federal and state funds pursuant to  a  five-year  schedule  established
     4  within the two thousand seventeen-eighteen executive budget.
     5    3.  Moneys  in  the  fund shall be kept separate from and shall not be
     6  commingled with any other moneys in the custody of the  commissioner  of
     7  taxation  and  finance  and  the state comptroller. All deposits of such
     8  money shall, if required by the comptroller, be secured  by  obligations
     9  of  the United States or of the state of market value equal at all times
    10  to the amount of the deposit and  all  banks  and  trust  companies  are
    11  authorized to give such securities for deposit.
    12    4.  Moneys  of the fund shall be available for the financing of grants
    13  made under the  upstate  flood  mitigation  program  as  established  in
    14  section one hundred thirty-nine-d of the canal law.
    15    § 3. 1. The appointment of upstate flood mitigation task force members
    16  shall be completed within one month of the effective date of this act.
    17    2.  The  task  force shall complete the duties required under sections
    18  139-c and 139-d of the canal law, within six months of  the  appointment
    19  of task force members.
    20    §  4.  This  act shall take effect immediately; provided that sections
    21  139, 139-b and 139-c of the canal law, as added by section one  of  this
    22  act, shall expire and be deemed repealed on March 31, 2018.