Bill Text: NY S01635 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to the purposes and powers of industrial development agencies and to improving the accountability and transparency of such agencies; makes conforming changes to the general municipal law; extends the bond issuance charge to the debt issued by not-for-profit corporations acting on behalf of the state or its political subdivisions; relates to the purposes and powers of local development corporations and certain other not-for-profit corporations thereof.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT [S01635 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S01635-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1635 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 14, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the public authorities law, in relation to the purposes and powers of industrial development agencies and to improve the accountability and transparency of such agencies; to amend the public authorities law, in relation to extend- ing the bond issuance charge to the debt issued by not-for-profit corporations acting on behalf of the state or its political subdivi- sions; to amend the not-for-profit corporation law, in relation to the purposes and powers of local development corporations and certain other not-for-profit corporations thereof; and to repeal subdivision 3 of section 859 of the general municipal law relating to an evaluation of the activities of industrial development agencies and authorities in the state prepared by an entity independent of the department The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivisions 4 and 14 of section 854 of the general munici- 2 pal law, subdivision 4 as amended by section 6 of part J of chapter 59 3 of the laws of 2013 and subdivision 14 as added by chapter 356 of the 4 laws of 1993, are amended and a new subdivision 21 is added to read as 5 follows: 6 (4) "Project" - shall mean any land, any building or other improve- 7 ment, and all real and personal properties located within the state of 8 New York and within or outside or partially within and partially outside 9 the municipality for whose benefit the agency was created, including, 10 but not limited to, machinery, equipment and other facilities deemed 11 necessary or desirable in connection therewith, or incidental thereto, 12 whether or not now in existence or under construction, which shall be 13 suitable for manufacturing, warehousing, research, civic, commercial or 14 industrial purposes or other economically sound purposes identified and 15 called for to implement a state designated urban cultural park manage- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02284-01-1S. 1635 2 1 ment plan as provided in title G of the parks, recreation and historic 2 preservation law and which may include or mean an industrial pollution 3 control facility, a recreation facility, educational or cultural facili- 4 ty, a horse racing facility, a railroad facility, a continuing care 5 retirement community, or a civic facility, provided, however, that, of 6 agencies governed by this article, only agencies created for the benefit 7 of a county and the agency created for the benefit for the city of New 8 York shall provide financial assistance in any respect to a continuing 9 care retirement community, or an automobile racing facility, provided, 10 however, no agency shall use its funds or provide financial assistance 11 in respect of any project wholly or partially outside the municipality 12 for whose benefit the agency was created without the prior consent ther- 13 eto by the governing body or bodies of all the other municipalities in 14 which a part or parts of the project is, or is to be, located, and such 15 portion of the project located outside such municipality for whose bene- 16 fit the agency was created shall be contiguous with the portion of the 17 project inside such municipality. Provided further, however, that no 18 agency shall provide financial assistance for any project where the 19 project applicant has any agreement to subsequently contract with a 20 municipality for the lease or purchase of such project or project facil- 21 ity. 22 (14) "Financial assistance" - shall mean the proceeds of bonds issued 23 by an agency, straight-leases, grants, loans, or exemptions from taxa- 24 tion claimed by a project occupant as a result of an agency taking 25 title, possession or control (by lease, license or otherwise) to the 26 property or equipment of such project occupant or of such project occu- 27 pant acting as an agent of an agency. 28 (21) "Civic facility" shall mean a facility to be owned or occupied by 29 a municipal corporation, a district corporation, or a not-for-profit 30 corporation organized and existing under the laws of this state or 31 authorized to conduct activities in this state; provided that such 32 facilities shall be limited to medical facilities including those 33 defined in article twenty-eight of the public health law, educational 34 facilities, recreational facilities for public use, facilities used for 35 municipal government or public safety purposes, or housing facilities 36 primarily designed to be occupied by individuals sixty years of age or 37 older. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to waive any applicable 38 requirement for an operating facility certificate, consent or other 39 approval as provided by law. 40 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 856 of the general municipal law, as 41 amended by chapter 356 of the laws of 1993, is amended to read as 42 follows: 43 2. An agency shall be a corporate governmental agency, constituting a 44 public benefit corporation. Except as otherwise provided by special act 45 of the legislature, an agency shall consist of not less than [three] 46 five nor more than seven members who shall be appointed by the governing 47 body of each municipality and who shall serve at the pleasure of the 48 appointing authority. Such members may include representatives of local 49 government, school boards, organized labor and business. A member shall 50 continue to hold office until his successor is appointed and has quali- 51 fied. The governing body of each municipality shall designate the first 52 chairman and file with the secretary of state a certificate of appoint- 53 ment or reappointment of any member. Such members shall receive no 54 compensation for their services but shall be entitled to the necessary 55 expenses, including traveling expenses, incurred in the discharge of 56 their duties.S. 1635 3 1 § 3. Section 858 of the general municipal law, as added by chapter 2 1030 of the laws of 1969, the opening paragraph as amended by chapter 3 478 of the laws of 2011, subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 747 of the 4 laws of 2005, subdivision 9 as amended by chapter 444 of the laws of 5 1997, subdivision 8 as amended and subdivision 15 as added by chapter 6 356 of the laws of 1993, and subdivisions 16, 17, and 19 as amended and 7 subdivision 18 as added by chapter 109 of the laws of 2020, is amended 8 to read as follows: 9 § 858. Purposes and powers of the agency. The purposes of the agency 10 shall be to promote, develop, encourage and assist in the acquiring, 11 constructing, reconstructing, improving, maintaining, equipping and 12 furnishing industrial, manufacturing, warehousing, commercial, research 13 and recreation facilities including industrial pollution control facili- 14 ties, educational or cultural facilities, civic facilities, railroad 15 facilities, horse racing facilities, automobile racing facilities and 16 continuing care retirement communities, provided, however, that, of 17 agencies governed by this article, only agencies created for the benefit 18 of a county and the agency created for the benefit of the city of New 19 York shall be authorized to provide financial assistance in any respect 20 to a continuing care retirement community, and thereby advance the job 21 opportunities, health, general prosperity and economic welfare of the 22 people of the state of New York and to improve their recreation opportu- 23 nities, prosperity and standard of living; and to carry out the afore- 24 said purposes, each agency shall have the following powers: 25 (1) To sue and be sued; 26 (2) To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure; 27 (3) To acquire, hold and dispose of personal property for its corpo- 28 rate purposes; 29 (4) To acquire by purchase, grant, lease, gift, pursuant to the 30 provisions of the eminent domain procedure law, or otherwise and to use, 31 real property or rights or easements therein necessary for its corporate 32 purposes in compliance with the local zoning and planning regulations 33 and shall take into consideration regional and local comprehensive land 34 use plans and state designated heritage area management plans, and to 35 sell, convey, mortgage, lease, pledge, exchange or otherwise dispose of 36 any such property in such manner as the agency shall determine. In the 37 case of railroad facilities, however, the phrase to use real property or 38 rights or easements therein shall not be interpreted to include opera- 39 tion by the agency of rail service upon or in conjunction with such 40 facilities[.]; 41 (5) To acquire real property from a municipality as necessary for its 42 corporate purposes pursuant to section eight hundred fifty-eight-c of 43 this title; 44 (6) To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs 45 and, subject to agreements with its bondholders, for the regulation of 46 the use of a project or projects[.]; 47 [(6)] (7) With the consent of the municipality, to use agents, employ- 48 ees and facilities of the municipality, paying the municipality its 49 agreed proportion of the compensation or costs; 50 [(7)] (8) To appoint officers, agents and employees, to prescribe 51 their qualifications and to fix their compensation and to pay the same 52 out of funds of the agency; 53 [(8)] (9) (a) To appoint an attorney, who may be the counsel of the 54 municipality, and to fix the attorney's compensation for services which 55 shall be payable to the attorney, and to retain and employ private 56 consultants for professional and technical assistance and advice;S. 1635 4 1 (b) An attorney acting as bond counsel for a project must file with 2 the agency a written statement in which the attorney identifies each 3 party to the transaction which such attorney represents. If bond counsel 4 provides any legal services to parties other than the agency the written 5 statement must describe the nature of legal services provided by such 6 bond counsel to all parties to the transaction, including the nature of 7 the services provided to the agency[.]; 8 [(9)] (10) To make contracts and leases, and to execute all instru- 9 ments necessary or convenient to or with any person, firm, partnership 10 or corporation, either public or private; provided, however, that any 11 extension of an existing contract, lease or other agreement entered into 12 by an agency with respect to a project shall be guided by the provisions 13 of this article; 14 [(10)] (11) To acquire, construct, reconstruct, lease, improve, main- 15 tain, equip or furnish one or more projects; 16 [(11)] (12) To accept gifts, grants, loans, or contributions from, and 17 enter into contracts or other transactions with, the United States and 18 the state or any agency of either of them, any municipality, any public 19 or private corporation or any other legal entity, and to use any such 20 gifts, grants, loans or contributions for any of its corporate purposes; 21 (13) To provide financial assistance in the form of loans to improve, 22 maintain or equip one or more projects consistent with its corporate 23 purposes; 24 (14) To provide financial assistance in the form of grants for one or 25 more projects consistent with its corporate purposes; 26 [(12)] (15) To borrow money and to issue bonds and to provide for the 27 rights of the holders thereof; 28 [(13)] (16) To grant options to renew any lease with respect to any 29 project or projects and to grant options to buy any project at such 30 price as the agency may deem desirable; 31 [(14)] (17) To designate the depositories of its money either within 32 or without the state; 33 [(15)] (18) To enter into agreements requiring payments in lieu of 34 taxes. Such agreements shall be in writing and in addition to other 35 terms shall contain: the amount due annually to each affected tax juris- 36 diction (or a formula by which the amount due can be calculated), the 37 name and address of the person, office or agency to which payment shall 38 be delivered, the date on which payment shall be made, and the date on 39 which payment shall be considered delinquent if not paid. Unless other- 40 wise agreed by the affected tax jurisdictions, any such agreement shall 41 provide that payments in lieu of taxes shall be allocated among affected 42 tax jurisdictions in proportion to the amount of real property tax and 43 other taxes which would have been received by each affected tax juris- 44 diction had the project not been tax exempt due to the status of the 45 agency involved in the project. A copy of any such agreement shall be 46 delivered to each affected tax jurisdiction within fifteen days of sign- 47 ing the agreement[. In the absence of any such written agreement,48payments in lieu of taxes made by an agency shall be allocated in the49same proportions as they had been prior to January first, nineteen50hundred ninety-three for so long as the agency's activities render a51project non-taxable by affected tax jurisdictions] and published by the 52 agency on its website; 53 [(16)] (19) To establish and re-establish its fiscal year; 54 [(17)] (20) To provide loans to small businesses or not-for-profit 55 corporations as authorized in section eight hundred fifty-nine-c of this 56 title; andS. 1635 5 1 [(18)] (21) To provide grants to small businesses and not-for-profit 2 corporations, as defined in section eight hundred fifty-nine-c of this 3 title, for the purpose of acquiring personal protective equipment or 4 installing fixtures necessary to prevent the spread of novel coronavi- 5 rus, COVID-19, during the period in which executive order two hundred 6 two of two thousand twenty, as amended, is in effect. In order to be 7 eligible for a grant pursuant to this subdivision, a small business or 8 not-for-profit corporation must meet the requirements of paragraph a of 9 subdivision three of section eight hundred fifty-nine-c of this title. 10 No industrial development agency may provide a small business or not- 11 for-profit corporation with more than ten thousand dollars pursuant to 12 this subdivision; and 13 [(19)] (22) To [do all things necessary or convenient to] carry out 14 its purposes and exercise [the] those powers expressly given in this 15 title. 16 § 4. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section 17 858-c to read as follows: 18 § 858-c. Purchase or lease of real property owned by a county, city, 19 town or village. 1. The local legislative body of a county, city, town 20 or village may by resolution determine that specifically described real 21 property owned by the county, city, town or village is not required for 22 use by such county, city, town or village and authorize the county, 23 city, town or village to sell or lease such real property to an agency; 24 provided, however, that title to such land be not declared inalienable 25 as a forest preserve or a parkland. 26 2. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local 27 law, charter or ordinance to the contrary, such sale or lease may be 28 made without appraisal, public notice (except as provided in subdivision 29 four of this section), or public bidding for such price or rental and 30 upon such terms as may be agreed upon between the county, city, town or 31 village and said agency; provided, however, that in the case of a lease 32 the term may not exceed ninety-nine years and provided, further, that in 33 cities having a population of one million or more, no such sale or lease 34 shall be made without the approval of a majority of the members of the 35 borough board of the borough in which such real property is located. 36 3. Before any sale or lease to an agency shall be authorized, a public 37 hearing shall be held by the local legislative body or borough board to 38 consider the proposed sale or lease. 39 4. Notice of such hearing shall be published at least ten days before 40 the date set for the hearing in such publication and in such manner as 41 may be designated by the local legislative body or borough board. Such 42 notice shall include a description of the real property proposed to be 43 sold or leased; a statement of the estimated fair market value of the 44 real property proposed to be sold or leased; the value of the financial 45 consideration to be received by the county, city, town or village from 46 such sale or lease of the real property; and a statement of the intended 47 use or disposition of such real property by the agency. 48 § 5. Subdivision 3 of section 859 of the general municipal law is 49 REPEALED. 50 § 6. The opening paragraph and subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 859-a 51 of the general municipal law, as added by chapter 356 of the laws of 52 1993, are amended and a new subdivision 3-a is added to read as follows: 53 Prior to providing any financial assistance [of] totaling more than 54 one hundred thousand dollars to any project, the agency must comply with 55 the following prerequisites:S. 1635 6 1 1. The agency must adopt a resolution describing the project and the 2 type and amount of financial assistance that the agency is contemplating 3 with respect to such project. Such assistance shall be consistent with 4 the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy adopted by the 5 agency pursuant to subdivision four of section eight hundred seventy- 6 four of this [chapter] title, unless the agency has followed the proce- 7 dures for deviation from such policy specified in paragraph (b) of such 8 subdivision. 9 2. The agency must hold a public hearing with respect to the project 10 and the proposed financial assistance being contemplated by the agency 11 not less than thirty days prior to executing a written agreement to 12 provide financial assistance. Said public hearing shall be held in [a] 13 each city, town or village where the project to receive financial 14 assistance is located or proposes to locate. At said public hearing, 15 interested parties shall be provided reasonable opportunity, both orally 16 and in writing, to present their views with respect to the project and 17 the type and amount of financial assistance to be provided. The agency 18 shall also accept written comments up to seven days after such hearing 19 is held. 20 3-a. The agency shall maintain a complete record of the hearing, 21 including all documents, oral statements, and written statements 22 presented at or within seven days following the hearing. All members 23 shall be provided with a copy of such record at least seven days before 24 voting whether to approve financial assistance for the project. Such 25 record shall also be posted on the agency website at the time it is 26 provided to members. 27 § 7. The general municipal law is amended by adding four new sections 28 859-d, 859-e, 859-f and 859-g to read as follows: 29 § 859-d. Project application and approval criteria. 1. The project 30 applicant shall submit an application, developed by the agency, for 31 approval of a proposed project and financial assistance. The agency 32 shall adopt project application review and approval criteria that shall 33 be applied to all project applications under consideration for approval 34 and financial assistance. The decision to approve or not approve finan- 35 cial assistance shall be based on, but not limited to, consideration of 36 the following criteria: 37 (a) Strategic objectives. Consideration is to be given to the purpose 38 of the project, such as the nature of the planned business activity, the 39 extent to which the planned business activity is unrepresented or under- 40 represented in the community, and whether the project involves a busi- 41 ness interested in relocating from outside the state of New York. 42 (b) Job creation. A decision to fund a project shall be based on the 43 number of jobs to be created or retained by the proposed project, the 44 range of projected salaries and benefits associated with jobs to be 45 created, and the benchmarks and timeframes to be used by the project to 46 determine whether it is meeting projected job creation and retention 47 goals. 48 (c) The financial viability of the project. Approval for funding must 49 consider the extent to which the viability and success of the project is 50 dependent on financial assistance from the agency. The agency shall also 51 consider the amount and type of financial assistance being requested, 52 the amount and type of private financing required, the amount and type 53 of capital investment to be provided by the project applicant, and any 54 prior financial assistance provided to the project or to the project 55 applicant.S. 1635 7 1 (d) Economic benefits. Funding decisions shall consider the potential 2 economic and financial impact of the project on existing businesses in 3 the area, on the affected tax jurisdictions, and on the local labor 4 market. 5 (e) Legal issues. Consideration shall be given to the project appli- 6 cant's record of compliance with applicable laws and regulations. 7 2. The project application review and approval criteria shall be 8 reviewed and approved annually at a regular meeting of the agency and 9 made available to the public on the agency's website. 10 3. The agency shall provide the director of the authorities budget 11 office with an electronic copy of the application and project review and 12 approval criteria within thirty days of their adoption or revision. 13 4. The agency shall retain a written record of the evaluation of each 14 project application to document its decision to provide or deny finan- 15 cial assistance. 16 § 859-e. Financial assistance agreement. 1. The agency shall enter 17 into a written agreement with the project applicant prior to providing 18 financial assistance. The agreement shall include the following informa- 19 tion: 20 (a) a description of the amount and type of financial assistance to be 21 provided by the agency, including a description and the value of proper- 22 ty conveyed at less than fair market value; 23 (b) a description of the amount of financing to be provided by the 24 project applicant, including the amount and type of capital investment 25 to be provided; 26 (c) the purpose of the project; 27 (d) the amount, types, sources and commitments of any private financ- 28 ing; 29 (e) the projected number of new full-time and part-time positions 30 expected to be created over the period of financial assistance, and an 31 estimated schedule by year of when those positions will be created; 32 (f) the number and types of full-time and part-time jobs to be 33 retained, and the number of filled positions at the project as of the 34 date the agreement is executed; 35 (g) the types and value of other forms of financial assistance 36 provided to the project or requested by the project applicant from other 37 state or local government agencies or authorities; and 38 (h) the penalties to be imposed on the project applicant if the terms 39 of the agreement are not met. 40 2. The length of a financial assistance agreement shall be limited to 41 no more than five years; provided however that the agreement may be 42 renewed for up to five additional years if the agency determines that 43 the project applicant has acted in good faith to meet the terms and 44 conditions of the agreement. In no event may financial assistance in the 45 form of a loan or exemption from taxation be provided to a project for 46 more than ten years. 47 3. The financial assistance agreement shall be made available to the 48 public on the website of the agency. 49 4. The agency shall adopt a methodology to evaluate the conformance of 50 each assisted project to the terms and conditions of the financial 51 assistance agreement. This methodology shall be made available to the 52 public on the agency's website. 53 § 859-f. Recapture of certain financial assistance. 1. The agency, 54 pursuant to the terms and conditions of its financial assistance agree- 55 ment, may recapture financial assistance to a project from real property 56 tax exemptions, mortgage recording tax exemptions, or local sales orS. 1635 8 1 compensating use tax exemptions if (a) the project violates state or 2 federal tax law, labor law, environmental protection law, or contract 3 law, or any state or federal rule or regulation implementing such law, 4 as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or administrative 5 tribunal, provided that such court or tribunal concludes that the 6 violation would cause material harm to the economy or quality of life of 7 the community; or (b) all or part of the project's business activity or 8 workforce is moved to a location outside the community served by the 9 agency and by doing so violates the terms and conditions of its finan- 10 cial assistance agreement. 11 2. An agency which elects to initiate the recapture of financial 12 assistance pursuant to subdivision one of this section must notify the 13 recipient of such financial assistance in writing that it is in default 14 of its financial assistance agreement and may direct the recipient of 15 financial assistance to repay up to the full amount of such financial 16 assistance received as of the date of the written notice plus interest 17 at the rate set forth in section five thousand four of the civil prac- 18 tice law and rules. 19 3. Financial assistance recaptured pursuant to this section and any 20 interest paid shall be redistributed to affected tax jurisdictions in 21 proportion to the amount of real property tax and other taxes which 22 would have been received by each affected tax jurisdiction had the 23 project not been tax exempt. Unless otherwise agreed to in writing by an 24 affected tax jurisdiction, the agency shall not retain any portion of 25 such funds as an administrative or project fee. 26 § 859-g. Wages and standards. Whenever a recipient of financial 27 assistance from an agency enters into a contract, subcontract, lease or 28 other agreement for or in connection with the construction, demolition, 29 reconstruction, rehabilitation, repair, or renovation of an assisted 30 project, the recipient of financial assistance shall pay workers engaged 31 in such work no less than the prevailing rate of wage and supplements 32 under article eight of the labor law. 33 § 8. Subdivision 1 of section 862 of the general municipal law, as 34 amended by section 1 of part J of chapter 59 of the laws of 2013, is 35 amended to read as follows: 36 (1) (a) No [funds] financial assistance of the agency shall be used in 37 respect [of] to any project if the [completion thereof would result in] 38 project approval or provision of financial assistance contributes to the 39 removal of [an industrial or manufacturing plant of] all or part of the 40 project occupant from one area of the state to another area of the state 41 or in the abandonment of one or more [plants or] facilities of the 42 project occupant located within the state, or provides the project with 43 a competitive advantage over existing like businesses in the same indus- 44 try located in the same city, town, or village as such project, 45 provided, however, that [neither restriction] such restrictions shall 46 not apply if the agency shall determine on the basis of the application 47 before it that the project is reasonably necessary to discourage the 48 project occupant from removing such other plant or facility to a 49 location outside the state or is reasonably necessary to preserve the 50 competitive position of the project occupant in its respective industry. 51 (b) For the purposes of this subdivision, "competitive advantage" 52 shall include trade secrets that are submitted to an agency by a commer- 53 cial enterprise or derived from information obtained from a commercial 54 enterprise and which if disclosed would cause substantial injury to the 55 competitive position of the subject enterprise. Other factors to be 56 considered in determining whether a trade secret exists include:S. 1635 9 1 (i) the extent to which the information is known outside the business; 2 (ii) the extent to which the information is known by a business' 3 employees and others involved in the business; 4 (iii) the extent of measures taken by a business to guard the secrecy 5 of the information; 6 (iv) the value of the information to a business and to its compet- 7 itors; 8 (v) the amount of effort or money expended by a business in developing 9 the information; and, 10 (vi) the ease or difficulty with which the information could be prop- 11 erly acquired or duplicated by others. If there has been a voluntary 12 disclosure by the plaintiff, or if the facts pertaining to the matter 13 are a subject of general knowledge in the trade, then any property right 14 has evaporated. 15 § 9. Subdivision 4 of section 874 of the general municipal law, as 16 amended by chapter 357 of the laws of 1993 and paragraph (a) as amended 17 by chapter 386 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 18 (4) (a) The agency shall [establish] adopt a uniform [tax exemption] 19 financial assistance policy, [with input from] subject to the approval 20 of all affected tax jurisdictions, which shall be applicable to the 21 provision of financial assistance pursuant to section eight hundred 22 fifty-nine-a of this [chapter] title and shall provide guidelines for 23 the claiming of real property, mortgage recording, and sales tax 24 exemptions. Such guidelines shall include, but not be limited to: peri- 25 od of exemption; payments in lieu of taxes, as a percentage of 26 [exemption] taxes that would have been levied by or on behalf of 27 affected tax jurisdictions if the project was not tax exempt by reason 28 of agency involvement; types of projects for which exemptions can be 29 claimed; procedures for payments in lieu of taxes and instances in which 30 real property appraisals are to be performed as a part of an application 31 for tax exemption; in addition, agencies shall in adopting such policy 32 consider such issues as: the extent to which a project will create or 33 retain permanent, private sector jobs; the estimated value of any tax 34 exemptions to be provided; whether affected tax jurisdictions shall be 35 reimbursed by the project occupant if a project does not fulfill the 36 purposes for which an exemption was provided; the impact of a proposed 37 project on existing and proposed businesses and economic development 38 projects in the vicinity; the amount of private sector investment gener- 39 ated or likely to be generated by the proposed project; the demonstrated 40 public support for the proposed project; the likelihood of accomplishing 41 the proposed project in a timely fashion; the effect of the proposed 42 project upon the environment; the extent to which the project will 43 utilize, to the fullest extent practicable and economically feasible, 44 resource conservation, energy efficiency, green technologies, and alter- 45 native and renewable energy measures; the extent to which the proposed 46 project will require the provision of additional services, including, 47 but not limited to additional educational, transportation, police, emer- 48 gency medical or fire services; and the extent to which the proposed 49 project will provide additional sources of revenue for municipalities 50 and school districts. The adopted uniform financial assistance policy 51 shall be provided to the chief executive officer and the members of the 52 governing body of each affected tax jurisdiction and shall be made 53 available for public inspection at the agency's office and on the agen- 54 cy's website upon its adoption. 55 (b) The agency shall [establish a procedure] adopt criteria for devi- 56 ation from the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policyS. 1635 10 1 required pursuant to this subdivision, which shall be subject to the 2 approval of all affected local tax jurisdictions. The agency shall set 3 forth in writing the reasons for deviation from such policy, and shall 4 further notify the affected local taxing jurisdictions of the proposed 5 deviation from such policy and the reasons therefor not less than sixty 6 days before such deviation from the uniform tax exemption policy takes 7 effect. 8 § 10. Section 1953 of the public authorities law, as added by chapter 9 759 of the laws of 1967, the opening paragraph and subdivisions 9 and 13 10 as amended by chapter 907 of the laws of 1972 and subdivision 8 as 11 amended, subdivision 14 as added and subdivisions 15 and 16 as renum- 12 bered by chapter 356 of the laws of 1993, is amended to read as follows: 13 § 1953. Purpose and powers of the authority. The purposes of the 14 authority shall be to promote, develop, encourage and assist in the 15 acquiring, constructing, reconstructing, improving, maintaining, equip- 16 ping and furnishing industrial, manufacturing, warehouse, civic facili- 17 ties, and commercial research facilities including industrial pollution 18 control facilities, transportation facilities including but not limited 19 to those relating to water, highway, rail and air, in one or more areas 20 of the city, particularly but not exclusively at the site of what was 21 formerly the Troy airport including an airstrip or airport located in 22 the southern section of the city and thereby advance the job opportu- 23 nities, health, general prosperity and economic welfare of the people of 24 said city and to improve their standard of living; provided, however, 25 that the authority shall not undertake any project if the completion 26 thereof would result in the removal of an industrial or manufacturing 27 plant of the project occupant from one area of the state to another area 28 of the state or in the abandonment of one or more plants or facilities 29 of the project applicant located within the state, provided, however, 30 that neither restriction shall apply if the authority shall determine on 31 the basis of the application before it that the project is reasonably 32 necessary to discourage the project occupant from removing such other 33 plant or facility to a location outside the state or is reasonably 34 necessary to preserve the competitive position of the project occupant 35 in its respective industry. To carry out said purposes, the authority 36 shall have power: 37 1. To sue and be sued; 38 2. To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure; 39 3. To acquire, hold and dispose of personal property for its corporate 40 purpose; 41 4. To acquire by purchase, grant, lease, gift, condemnation, or other- 42 wise and to use, real property or rights or easements therein necessary 43 for its corporate purposes, and to sell, convey, mortgage, lease, 44 pledge, exchange or otherwise dispose of any such property in such 45 manner as the authority shall determine. With respect to real property 46 conveyed to it by the city, however, such power of disposition shall be 47 limited as hereinafter provided in section nineteen hundred [five] 48 fifty-five of this title; 49 5. To acquire real property within the city of Troy as necessary for 50 its corporate purposes pursuant to section eight hundred fifty-eight-c 51 of the general municipal law; 52 6. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs 53 and, subject to agreements with its bondholders, for the regulation of 54 the use of the project;S. 1635 11 1 [6.] 7. With the consent of the city, to use agents, employees and 2 facilities of the city, paying the city its agreed proportion of the 3 compensation or costs; 4 [7.] 8. To appoint officers, agents and employees, to prescribe their 5 qualifications and to fix their compensation and to pay the same out of 6 funds of the authority, subject, however, to the provisions of the civil 7 service law as hereinafter provided in section nineteen hundred [and8four] fifty-four of this title; 9 [8.] 9. To appoint an attorney, who may be the corporation counsel of 10 the city, and to fix the attorney's compensation for services which 11 shall be payable to the attorney, and to retain and employ private 12 consultants for professional and technical assistance and advice; 13 provided that an attorney acting as bond counsel for a project must file 14 with the authority a written statement in which the attorney identifies 15 each party to the transaction which such attorney represents. If bond 16 counsel provides any legal services to parties other than the authority, 17 the written statement must describe the nature of legal services 18 provided by such bond counsel to all parties to the transaction, includ- 19 ing the nature of the services provided to the authority; 20 [9.] 10. To make contracts and leases upon such terms as the authority 21 shall deem appropriate, including without limitation leases which grant 22 the tenant of a project an option to renew or an option to purchase the 23 project, or both, at a fixed or otherwise predetermined price and to 24 execute all instruments necessary or convenient; 25 [10.] 11. To acquire, construct, reconstruct, lease, improve, main- 26 tain, equip or furnish one or more projects; 27 [11.] 12. To accept gifts, grants, loans or contributions from, and 28 enter into contracts or other transactions with, the United States and 29 the state or any agency of either of them, any municipality, any public 30 or private corporation or any other legal entity, and to use any such 31 gifts, grants, loans or contributions for any of its corporate purposes; 32 [12.] 13. To provide financial assistance in the form of loans to 33 improve, maintain or equip one or more projects consistent with its 34 corporate purposes; 35 14. To provide financial assistance in the form of grants to one or 36 more projects consistent with its corporate purposes; 37 15. To borrow money and to issue bonds and to provide for the rights 38 of the holders thereof; 39 [13.] 16. To designate the depositories of its money either within or 40 without the state of New York; 41 [14.] 17. To enter into agreements requiring payments in lieu of 42 taxes. Such agreements shall be in writing and in addition to other 43 terms shall contain: the amount due annually to each affected tax juris- 44 diction (or a formula by which the amount due can be calculated), the 45 name and address of the person, office or agency to which payment shall 46 be delivered, the date on which payment shall be made, and the date on 47 which payment shall be considered delinquent if not paid. Unless other- 48 wise agreed by the affected tax jurisdictions, any such agreement shall 49 provide that payments in lieu of taxes shall be allocated among affected 50 tax jurisdictions in proportion to the amount of real property tax and 51 other taxes which would have been received by each affected tax juris- 52 diction had the project not been tax exempt due to the status of the 53 authority involved in the project. A copy of any such agreement shall be 54 delivered to each affected tax jurisdiction within fifteen days of sign- 55 ing the agreement. In the absence of any such written agreement, 56 payments in lieu of taxes made by an agency shall be allocated in theS. 1635 12 1 same proportions as they had been prior to January first, nineteen 2 hundred ninety-three for so long as the authority's activities render a 3 project non-taxable by affected tax jurisdictions. 4 [15.] 18. To establish and reestablish its fiscal year; and 5 [16.] 19. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out its 6 purposes and exercise the powers expressly given in this title. 7 § 11. Section 1953-a of the public authorities law, as added by chap- 8 ter 356 of the laws of 1993, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 357 of 9 the laws of 1993, is amended to read as follows: 10 § 1953-a. Additional prerequisites to the provision of financial 11 assistance. Prior to providing any financial assistance [of] totaling 12 more than one hundred thousand dollars to any project, the authority 13 must comply with the following prerequisites: 14 1. The authority must adopt a resolution describing the project and 15 type and amount of the financial assistance that the authority is 16 contemplating with respect to such project. Such assistance shall be 17 consistent with the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy 18 adopted by the agency pursuant to subdivision one of section nineteen 19 hundred sixty-three-a of this [chapter] title, unless the agency has 20 followed procedures for deviation from such policy specified in subdivi- 21 sion two of such section. 22 2. The authority must hold a public hearing with respect to the 23 project and the proposed financial assistance being contemplated by the 24 authority not less than thirty days prior to executing a written agree- 25 ment to provide financial assistance. At said public hearing, inter- 26 ested parties shall be provided reasonable opportunity, both orally and 27 in writing, to present their views with respect to the project and the 28 type and amount of financial assistance to be provided. The authority 29 shall also accept written comments up to seven days after such hearing 30 is held. 31 3. The authority must give at least ten days published notice of said 32 public hearing and shall, at the same time, provide notice of such hear- 33 ing to the chief executive officer of the affected tax jurisdiction 34 within which the project is located. The notice of hearing must state 35 the time and place of the hearing, contain a general, functional 36 description of the project, describe the prospective location of the 37 project, identify the initial owner, operator or manager of the project 38 and generally describe the financial assistance contemplated by the 39 authority with respect to the project. 40 4. The authority shall maintain a complete record of the hearing, 41 including all documents and oral statements, and written statements 42 presented at or within seven days following such hearing. All members 43 shall be provided with a copy of such record at least seven days before 44 voting whether to approve financial assistance for the project. Such 45 record shall also be posted on the authority website at the time it is 46 provided to members. 47 § 12. The public authorities law is amended by adding four new 48 sections 1953-b, 1953-c, 1953-d and 1953-e to read as follows: 49 § 1953-b. Project application and approval criteria. 1. The project 50 applicant shall submit an application, developed by the authority, for 51 approval of a proposed project and financial assistance. The authority 52 shall adopt project application review and approval criteria that shall 53 be applied to all project applications under consideration for approval 54 and financial assistance. The decision to approve or not approve finan- 55 cial assistance shall be based on, but not limited to, consideration of 56 the following criteria:S. 1635 13 1 (a) Strategic objectives. Consideration is to be given to the purpose 2 of the project, such as the nature of the planned business activity, the 3 extent to which the planned business activity is unrepresented or under- 4 represented in the community, and whether the project involves a busi- 5 ness interested in relocating from outside the state of New York. 6 (b) Job creation. A decision to fund a project shall be based on the 7 number of jobs to be created or retained by the proposed project, the 8 range of projected salaries and benefits associated with jobs to be 9 created, and the benchmarks and timeframes to be used by the project to 10 determine whether it is meeting projected job creation and retention 11 goals. 12 (c) The financial viability of the project. Approval for funding shall 13 consider the extent to which the viability and success of the project is 14 dependent on financial assistance from the authority. The authority 15 shall also consider the amount and type of financial assistance being 16 requested, the amount and type of private financing required, the amount 17 and type of capital investment to be provided by the project applicant, 18 and any prior financial assistance provided to the project or to the 19 project applicant. 20 (d) Economic benefits. Funding decisions shall consider the potential 21 economic and financial impact of the project on existing businesses in 22 the area, on the affected tax jurisdictions, and on the local labor 23 market. 24 (e) Legal issues. Consideration shall be given to the project appli- 25 cant's record of compliance with applicable laws and regulations. 26 2. The project application review and approval criteria shall be 27 reviewed and approved annually at a regular meeting of the authority and 28 made available to the public on the authority's website. 29 3. The authority shall provide the director of the authorities budget 30 office with an electronic copy of the application and project review and 31 approval criteria within thirty days of their adoption or revision. 32 4. The authority shall retain a written record of the evaluation of 33 each project application to document its decision to provide or deny 34 financial assistance. 35 § 1953-c. Financial assistance agreement. 1. The authority shall enter 36 into a written agreement with the project applicant prior to providing 37 financial assistance. The agreement shall include the following informa- 38 tion: 39 (a) a description of the amount and type of financial assistance to be 40 provided by the authority, including a description and the value of 41 property conveyed at less than fair market value; 42 (b) a description of the amount of financing to be provided by the 43 project applicant, including the amount and type of capital investment 44 to be provided; 45 (c) the purpose of the project; 46 (d) the amount, types, sources and commitments of any private financ- 47 ing; 48 (e) the projected number of new full-time and part-time positions 49 expected to be created over the period of financial assistance, and an 50 estimated schedule by year of when those positions will be created; 51 (f) the number and types of full-time and part-time jobs to be 52 retained, and the number of filled positions at the project as of the 53 date the agreement is executed; 54 (g) the types and value of other forms of financial assistance 55 provided to the project or requested by the project applicant from other 56 state or local government agencies or authorities; andS. 1635 14 1 (h) the penalties to be imposed on the project applicant if the terms 2 of the agreement are not met. 3 2. The length of a financial assistance agreement shall be limited to 4 no more than five years; provided however that the agreement may be 5 renewed for up to five additional years if the authority determines that 6 the project applicant has acted in good faith to meet the terms and 7 conditions of the agreement. In no event may financial assistance in the 8 form of a loan or exemption from taxation be provided to a project for 9 more than ten years. 10 3. The financial assistance agreement shall be made available to the 11 public on the website of the authority. 12 4. The authority shall adopt a methodology to evaluate the conformance 13 of each assisted project to the terms and conditions of the financial 14 assistance agreement. This methodology shall be made available to the 15 public on the authority's website. 16 § 1953-d. Recapture of certain financial assistance. 1. The authority, 17 pursuant to the terms and conditions of its financial assistance agree- 18 ment, may recapture financial assistance to a project from the proceeds 19 of bonds issued by the authority, mortgage recording tax exemptions, or 20 local sales or compensating use tax exemptions if (a) the project 21 violates state or federal tax law, labor law, environmental protection 22 law, or contract law, or any state or federal rule or regulation imple- 23 menting such law, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or 24 administrative tribunal, provided that such court or tribunal concludes 25 that the violation would cause material harm to the economy or quality 26 of life of the community; or (b) all or part of the project's business 27 activity or workforce is moved to a location outside the community 28 served by the authority and by doing so violates the terms and condi- 29 tions of its financial assistance agreement. 30 2. An authority which elects to initiate the recapture of financial 31 assistance pursuant to subdivision one of section eight hundred fifty- 32 nine-f of the general municipal law must notify the recipient of such 33 financial assistance in writing that it is in default of its financial 34 assistance agreement and may direct the recipient of financial assist- 35 ance to repay up to the full amount of such financial assistance 36 received as of the date of the written notice plus interest at the rate 37 set forth in section five thousand four of the civil practice law and 38 rules. 39 3. Financial assistance recaptured pursuant to this section and any 40 interest paid shall be redistributed to affected tax jurisdictions in 41 proportion to the amount of real property tax and other taxes which 42 would have been received by each affected tax jurisdiction had the 43 project not been tax exempt. Unless otherwise agreed to in writing by an 44 affected tax jurisdiction, the authority shall not retain any portion of 45 such funds as an administrative or project fee. 46 § 1953-e. Wages and standards. Whenever a recipient of financial 47 assistance from the authority enters into a contract, subcontract, lease 48 or other agreement for or in connection with the construction, demoli- 49 tion, reconstruction, rehabilitation, repair, or renovation of an 50 assisted project, the recipient of financial assistance shall pay work- 51 ers engaged in such work no less than the prevailing rate of wage and 52 supplements under article eight of the labor law. 53 § 13. Section 1963-a of the public authorities law, as amended by 54 chapter 357 of the laws of 1993 and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 55 386 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:S. 1635 15 1 § 1963-a. Uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy. 1. The 2 authority shall [establish] adopt a uniform [tax exemption] financial 3 assistance policy, [with input from] subject to the approval of affected 4 local taxing jurisdictions, which shall be applicable to provisions of 5 financial assistance pursuant to section nineteen hundred fifty-three-a 6 of this title and shall provide guidelines for the claiming of real 7 property, mortgage recording, and sales tax exemptions. Such guidelines 8 shall include, but not be limited to: period of exemption; payments in 9 lieu of taxes as a percentage of [exemption] taxes that would have been 10 levied by or on behalf of affected tax jurisdictions if the project was 11 not exempt by reason of authority involvement; types of projects for 12 which exemptions can be claimed; procedures for payments in lieu of 13 taxes and instances in which real property appraisals are to be 14 performed as a part of an application for tax exemption; in addition, 15 the authority in adopting such policy shall consider such issues as: the 16 extent to which a project will create or retain permanent, private 17 sector jobs; the estimated value of any tax exemption to be provided; 18 whether affected tax jurisdictions should be reimbursed by the project 19 occupant if a project does not fulfill the purposes for which an 20 exemption was provided; the impact of a proposed project on existing and 21 proposed businesses and economic development projects in the vicinity; 22 the amount of private sector investment generated or likely to be gener- 23 ated by the proposed project; the demonstrated public support for the 24 proposed project; the likelihood of accomplishing the proposed project 25 in a timely fashion; the effect of the proposed project upon the envi- 26 ronment; the extent to which the project will utilize, to the fullest 27 extent practicable and economically feasible, resource conservation, 28 energy efficiency, green technologies, and alternative and renewable 29 energy measures; the extent to which the proposed project will require 30 the provision of additional services, including, but not limited to 31 additional educational, transportation, police, emergency medical or 32 fire services; and the extent to which the proposed project will provide 33 additional sources [or] of revenue for municipalities and school 34 districts. The adopted uniform financial assistance policy shall be 35 provided to the chief executive officer and members of the governing 36 body of each affected tax jurisdiction and shall be made available for 37 public inspection at the authority's office and on the authority's 38 website upon its adoption. 39 2. The authority shall [establish a procedure] adopt criteria for 40 deviation from the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy 41 required pursuant to this section which shall be subject to the approval 42 of affected local tax jurisdictions. The authority shall set forth in 43 writing the reasons for deviation from such policy, and shall further 44 notify the affected tax jurisdictions of the proposed deviation from 45 such policy and the reasons therefor not less than sixty days before 46 such deviation from the uniform tax exemption policy takes effect. 47 § 14. Section 2306 of the public authorities law, as added by chapter 48 915 of the laws of 1969, the opening paragraph and an undesignated para- 49 graph as amended by chapter 304 of the laws of 2013, subdivision 9 as 50 amended by chapter 556 of the laws of 1973 and subdivision 8 as amended, 51 subdivision 14 as added and subdivisions 15 and 16 as renumbered by 52 chapter 356 of the laws of 1993, is amended to read as follows: 53 § 2306. Purpose and powers of the authority. The purposes of the 54 authority shall be to promote, develop, encourage and assist in the 55 acquiring, constructing, reconstructing, improving, maintaining, equip- 56 ping and furnishing industrial, manufacturing, warehouse, civic facili-S. 1635 16 1 ties, commercial and research facilities and facilities for use by a 2 federal agency or a medical facility including industrial pollution 3 control facilities, which may include transportation facilities includ- 4 ing but not limited to those relating to water, highway, rail and air, 5 in one or more areas of the city, and thereby advance the job opportu- 6 nities, health, general prosperity and economic welfare of the people of 7 said city and to improve their medical care and standard of living; 8 provided, however, that the authority shall not undertake any project if 9 the completion thereof would result in the removal of an industrial or 10 manufacturing plant of the project occupant from one area of the state 11 to another area of the state or in abandonment of one or more plants or 12 facilities of the project applicant located within the state, provided, 13 however, that neither restriction shall apply if the authority shall 14 determine on the basis of the application before it that the project is 15 reasonably necessary to discourage the project occupant from removing 16 such other plant or facility to a location outside the state or is 17 reasonably necessary to preserve the competitive position of the project 18 occupant in its respective industry. Except as otherwise provided for in 19 this section, no financial assistance of the authority shall be provided 20 in respect of any project where facilities or property that are primari- 21 ly used in making retail sales to customers who personally visit such 22 facilities constitute more than one-third of the total project cost. For 23 the purposes of this article, "retail sales" shall mean: (i) sales by a 24 registered vendor under article twenty-eight of the tax law primarily 25 engaged in the retail sale of tangible personal property, as defined in 26 subparagraph (i) of paragraph four of subdivision (b) of section eleven 27 hundred one of the tax law; or (ii) sales of a service to such custom- 28 ers. Except, however, that tourism destination projects shall not be 29 prohibited by this paragraph. For the purpose of this paragraph, "tour- 30 ism destination" shall mean a location or facility which is likely to 31 attract a significant number of visitors from outside the economic 32 development region as established by section two hundred thirty of the 33 economic development law, in which the project is located. 34 Notwithstanding the provisions of this section to the contrary, such 35 financial assistance may, however, be provided to a project where facil- 36 ities or property that are primarily used in making retail sales of 37 goods or services to customers who personally visit such facilities to 38 obtain such goods or services constitute more than one-third of the 39 total project cost, where: (i) the predominant purpose of the project 40 would be to make available goods or services which would not, but for 41 the project, be reasonably accessible to the residents of the city of 42 Auburn because of a lack of reasonably accessible retail trade facili- 43 ties offering such goods or services; or (ii) the project is located in 44 a highly distressed area. With respect to projects authorized pursuant 45 to this paragraph no project shall be approved unless the authority 46 shall find after the public hearing required by section twenty-three 47 hundred seven of this title that undertaking the project will serve the 48 public purposes of this article by preserving permanent, private sector 49 jobs or increasing the overall number of permanent, private sector jobs 50 in the state. Where the authority makes such a finding, prior to provid- 51 ing financial assistance to the project by the authority, the chief 52 executive officer of the city of Auburn shall confirm the proposed 53 action of the authority. To carry out said purpose, the authority shall 54 have power: 55 1. To sue and be sued; 56 2. To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure;S. 1635 17 1 3. To acquire, hold and dispose of personal property for its corporate 2 purpose; 3 4. To acquire by purchase, grant, lease, gift, condemnation, or other- 4 wise and to use, real property or rights or easements therein necessary 5 for its corporate purposes, and to sell, convey, mortgage, lease, 6 pledge, exchange or otherwise dispose of any such property in such 7 manner as the authority shall determine. With respect to real property 8 conveyed to it by the city, however, such power of disposition shall be 9 limited as hereinafter provided in section twenty-three hundred ten of 10 this title; 11 5. To acquire real property within the city of Auburn as necessary for 12 its corporate purposes pursuant to section eight hundred fifty-eight-c 13 of the general municipal law; 14 6. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs 15 and, subject to agreements with its bondholders, for the regulation of 16 the use of the project[.]; 17 [6.] 7. With the consent of the city, to use agents, employees and 18 facilities of the city, paying the city its agreed proportion of the 19 compensation or costs[.]; 20 [7.] 8. To appoint officers, agents and employees, to prescribe their 21 qualifications and to fix their compensation and to pay the same out of 22 funds of the authority, subject, however, to the provisions of the civil 23 service law hereinafter provided in section twenty-three hundred eight 24 of this title; 25 [8.] 9. To retain and employ financial advisors, engineers, archi- 26 tects, attorneys and other consultants for professional and technical 27 assistance and advice; that an attorney acting as bond counsel for a 28 project must file with the authority a written statement in which the 29 attorney identifies each party to the transaction which such attorney 30 represents. If bond counsel provides any legal services to the parties 31 other than the authority, the written statement must describe the nature 32 of legal services provided by such bond counsel to all parties to the 33 transaction, including the nature of the services provided to the 34 authority; 35 [9.] 10. To make contracts and leases upon such terms as the authority 36 shall deem appropriate, including without limitation leases which grant 37 the tenant of a project an option to renew or an option to purchase the 38 project, or both, at a fixed or otherwise predetermined price, and to 39 execute all instruments necessary or convenient; 40 [10.] 11. To acquire, construct, reconstruct, lease, improve, main- 41 tain, equip or furnish one or more projects; 42 [11.] 12. To accept gifts, grants, loans or contributions from, and 43 enter into contracts or other transactions with, the United States and 44 the state or any agency of either of them, any municipality, any public 45 or private corporation or any other legal entity, and to use any such 46 gifts, grants, loans or contributions for any of its corporate purposes; 47 [12.] 13. To provide financial assistance in the form of loans to 48 improve, maintain or equip one or more projects consistent with its 49 corporate purposes; 50 14. To provide financial assistance in the form of grants for one or 51 more projects consistent with its corporate purposes; 52 15. To borrow money and to issue bonds and to provide for the rights 53 of the holders thereof; 54 [13.] 16. To designate the depositories of its money in the city of 55 Auburn[.];S. 1635 18 1 [14.] 17. To enter into agreements requiring payments in lieu of 2 taxes. Such agreements shall be in writing and in addition to other 3 terms shall contain: the amount due annually to each affected tax juris- 4 diction (or a formula by which the amount due can be calculated), the 5 name and address of the person, office or agency to which payment shall 6 be delivered, the date on which the payment shall be made, and the date 7 on which payment shall be considered delinquent if not paid. Unless 8 otherwise agreed by the affected tax jurisdictions, any such agreement 9 shall provide that payments in lieu of taxes shall be allocated among 10 affected tax jurisdictions in proportion to the amount of real property 11 tax and other taxes which would have been received by each affected tax 12 jurisdiction had the project not been tax exempt due to the status of 13 the agency involved in the project. A copy of any such agreement shall 14 be delivered to each tax affected jurisdiction within fifteen days of 15 signing the agreement. In the absence of any such written agreement, 16 payments in lieu of taxes shall be allocated in the same proportions as 17 they had been prior to January first, nineteen hundred ninety-three for 18 so long as the authority's activities render a project non-taxable by 19 affected tax jurisdictions[.]; 20 [15.] 18. To establish and reestablish its fiscal year; and 21 [16.] 19. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out its 22 purposes and exercise the powers expressly given in this title. 23 § 15. Section 2307 of the public authorities law, as added by chapter 24 356 of the laws of 1993, and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 357 of 25 the laws of 1993, is amended to read as follows: 26 § 2307. Additional prerequisites to the provision of financial assist- 27 ance. Prior to providing any financial assistance [of] totaling more 28 than one hundred thousand dollars to any project, the authority must 29 comply with the following prerequisites: 30 1. The authority must adopt a resolution describing the project and 31 type and amount of the financial assistance that the authority is 32 contemplating with respect to such project. Such assistance shall be 33 consistent with the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy 34 adopted by the agency pursuant to subdivision one of section twenty- 35 three hundred fifteen of this chapter, unless the agency has followed 36 procedures for deviation from such policy specified in subdivision two 37 of such section. 38 2. The authority must hold a public hearing with respect to the 39 project and the proposed financial assistance being contemplated by the 40 authority not less than thirty days prior to executing a written agree- 41 ment to provide financial assistance. At said public hearing, inter- 42 ested parties shall be provided reasonable opportunity, both orally and 43 in writing, to present their views with respect to the project and the 44 type and amount of financial assistance to be provided. The authority 45 shall also accept written comments up to seven days after such hearing 46 is held. 47 3. The authority must give at least ten days published notice of said 48 public hearing and shall, at the same time, provide notice of such hear- 49 ing to the chief executive officer of each affected tax [jurisidiction] 50 jurisdiction within which the project is located. The notice of hearing 51 must state the time and place of the hearing, contain a general, func- 52 tional description of the project, describe the prospective location of 53 the project, identify the initial owner, operator or manager of the 54 project and generally describe the financial assistance contemplated by 55 the authority with respect to the project.S. 1635 19 1 4. The authority shall maintain a complete record of the hearing, 2 including all documents and oral statements, and written statements 3 presented at or within seven days following such hearing. All members 4 shall be provided with a copy of such record at least seven days before 5 deciding whether to approve financial assistance for the project. Such 6 record shall also be posted on the authority's website at the time it is 7 provided to members. 8 § 16. The public authorities law is amended by adding four new 9 sections 2307-a, 2307-b, 2307-c and 2307-d to read as follows: 10 § 2307-a. Project application and approval criteria. 1. The project 11 applicant shall submit an application, developed by the authority, for 12 approval of a proposed project and financial assistance. The authority 13 shall adopt project application review and approval criteria that shall 14 be applied to all project applications under consideration for approval 15 and financial assistance. The decision to approve or not approve finan- 16 cial assistance shall be based on, but not limited to, consideration of 17 the following criteria: 18 (a) Strategic objectives. Consideration is to be given to the purpose 19 of the project, such as the nature of the planned business activity, the 20 extent to which the planned business activity is unrepresented or under- 21 represented in the community, and whether the project involves a busi- 22 ness interested in relocating from outside the state of New York. 23 (b) Job creation. A decision to fund a project shall be based on the 24 number of jobs to be created or retained by the proposed project, the 25 range of projected salaries and benefits associated with jobs to be 26 created, and the benchmarks and timeframes to be used by the project to 27 determine whether it is meeting projected job creation and retention 28 goals. 29 (c) The financial viability of the project. Approval for funding shall 30 consider the extent to which the viability and success of the project is 31 dependent on financial assistance from the authority. The authority 32 shall also consider the amount and type of financial assistance being 33 requested, the amount and type of private financing required, the amount 34 and type of capital investment to be provided by the project applicant, 35 and any prior financial assistance provided to the project or to the 36 project applicant. 37 (d) Economic benefits. Funding decisions shall consider the potential 38 economic and financial impact of the project on existing businesses in 39 the area, on the affected tax jurisdictions, and on the local labor 40 market. 41 (e) Legal issues. Consideration shall be given to the project appli- 42 cant's record of compliance with applicable laws and regulations. 43 2. The project application review and approval criteria shall be 44 reviewed and approved annually at a regular meeting of the authority and 45 made available to the public on the authority's website. 46 3. The authority shall provide the director of the authorities budget 47 office with an electronic copy of the application and project review and 48 approval criteria within thirty days of their adoption or revision. 49 4. The authority shall retain a written record of the evaluation of 50 each project application to document its decision to provide or deny 51 financial assistance. 52 § 2307-b. Financial assistance agreement. 1. The authority shall enter 53 into a written agreement with the project applicant prior to providing 54 financial assistance. The agreement shall include the following informa- 55 tion:S. 1635 20 1 (a) a description of the amount and type of financial assistance to be 2 provided by the authority, including a description and the value of 3 property conveyed at less than fair market value; 4 (b) a description of the amount of financing to be provided by the 5 project applicant, including the amount and type of capital investment 6 to be provided; 7 (c) the purpose of the project; 8 (d) the amount, types, sources and commitments of any private financ- 9 ing; 10 (e) the projected number of new full-time and part-time positions 11 expected to be created over the period of financial assistance, and an 12 estimated schedule by year of when those positions will be created; 13 (f) the number and types of full-time and part-time jobs to be 14 retained, and the number of filled positions at the project as of the 15 date the agreement is executed; 16 (g) the types and value of other forms of financial assistance 17 provided to the project or requested by the project applicant from other 18 state or local government agencies or authorities; and 19 (h) the penalties to be imposed on the project applicant if the terms 20 of the agreement are not met. 21 2. The length of a financial assistance agreement shall be limited to 22 no more than five years; provided however that the agreement may be 23 renewed for up to five additional years if the authority determines that 24 the project applicant has acted in good faith to meet the terms and 25 conditions of the agreement. In no event may financial assistance in the 26 form of a loan or exemption from taxation be provided to a project for 27 more than ten years. 28 3. The financial assistance agreement shall be made available to the 29 public on the website of the authority. 30 4. The authority shall adopt a methodology to evaluate the conformance 31 of each assisted project to the terms and conditions of the financial 32 assistance agreement. This methodology shall be made available to the 33 public on the authority's website. 34 § 2307-c. Recapture of certain financial assistance. 1. The authority, 35 pursuant to the terms and conditions of its financial assistance agree- 36 ment, may recapture financial assistance to a project from the proceeds 37 of bonds issued by the authority, mortgage recording tax exemptions, or 38 local sales or compensating use tax exemptions if (a) the project 39 violates state or federal tax law, labor law, environmental protection 40 law, or contract law, or any state or federal rule or regulation imple- 41 menting such law, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or 42 administrative tribunal, provided that such court or tribunal concludes 43 that the violation would cause material harm to the economy or quality 44 of life of the community; or (b) all or part of the project's business 45 activity or workforce is moved to a location outside the community 46 served by the authority and by doing so violates the terms and condi- 47 tions of its financial assistance agreement. 48 2. An authority which elects to initiate the recapture of financial 49 assistance pursuant to subdivision one of section eight hundred fifty- 50 nine-e of the general municipal law must notify the recipient of such 51 financial assistance in writing that it is in default of its financial 52 assistance agreement and may direct the recipient of financial assist- 53 ance to repay up to the full amount of such financial assistance 54 received as of the date of the written notice plus interest at the rate 55 set forth in section five thousand four of the civil practice law and 56 rules.S. 1635 21 1 3. Financial assistance recaptured pursuant to this section and any 2 interest paid shall be redistributed to affected tax jurisdictions in 3 proportion to the amount of real property tax and other taxes which 4 would have been received by each affected tax jurisdiction had the 5 project not been tax exempt. Unless otherwise agreed to in writing by an 6 affected tax jurisdiction, the authority shall not retain any portion of 7 such funds as an administrative or project fee. 8 § 2307-d. Wages and standards. Whenever a recipient of financial 9 assistance from the authority enters into a contract, subcontract, lease 10 or other agreement for or in connection with the construction, demoli- 11 tion, reconstruction, rehabilitation, repair, or renovation of an 12 assisted project, the recipient of financial assistance shall pay work- 13 ers engaged in such work no less than the prevailing rate of wage and 14 supplements under article eight of the labor law. 15 § 17. Section 2315 of the public authorities law, as amended by chap- 16 ter 357 of the laws of 1993, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 386 of 17 the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 18 § 2315. Uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policy. 1. The 19 authority shall [establish] adopt a uniform [tax exemption] financial 20 assistance policy, [with input from] subject to the approval of affected 21 local taxing jurisdictions, which shall be applicable to provisions of 22 financial assistance pursuant to section twenty-three hundred seven of 23 this title and shall provide guidelines for the claiming of real proper- 24 ty, mortgage recording, and sales tax exemptions. Such guidelines shall 25 include, but not be limited to: period of exemption; payments in lieu of 26 taxes as a percentage of [exemption] taxes that would have been levied 27 by or on behalf of affected tax jurisdictions if the project was not 28 exempt by reason of authority involvement; types of projects for which 29 exemptions may be claimed; procedures for payments in lieu of taxes and 30 instances in which real property appraisals are to be performed as a 31 part of an application for tax exemption; in addition, the authority in 32 adopting such policy shall consider such issues as: the extent to which 33 a project will create or retain permanent, private sector jobs; the 34 estimated value of any tax exemption to be provided; whether affected 35 tax jurisdictions should be reimbursed by the project occupant if a 36 project does not fulfill the purposes for which an exemption was 37 provided; the impact of a proposed project on existing and proposed 38 businesses and economic development projects in the vicinity; the amount 39 of private sector investment generated or likely to be generated by the 40 proposed project; the demonstrated public support for the proposed 41 project; the likelihood of accomplishing the proposed project in a time- 42 ly fashion; the effect of the proposed project upon the environment; the 43 extent to which the project will utilize, to the fullest extent practi- 44 cable and economically feasible, resource conservation, energy efficien- 45 cy, green technologies, and alternative and renewable energy measures; 46 the extent to which the proposed project will require the provision of 47 additional services, including, but not limited to additional educa- 48 tional, transportation, police, emergency medical or fire services; and 49 the extent to which the proposed project will provide additional sources 50 of revenue for municipalities and school districts. The adopted uniform 51 financial assistance policy shall be provided to the chief executive 52 officer and members of the governing body of each affected tax jurisdic- 53 tion and shall be made available for public inspection at the authori- 54 ty's office and on the authority's website upon its adoption. 55 2. The authority shall [establish a procedure] adopt criteria for 56 deviation from the uniform [tax exemption] financial assistance policyS. 1635 22 1 required pursuant to this section which shall be subject to the approval 2 of affected local tax jurisdictions. The authority shall set forth in 3 writing the reasons for deviation from such policy, and shall further 4 notify the affected local taxing jurisdictions of the proposed deviation 5 from such policy and the reasons therefor not less than sixty days 6 before such deviation from the uniform tax exemption policy shall take 7 effect. 8 § 18. Subdivision 1 of section 2976 of the public authorities law, as 9 amended by section 1 of part C of chapter 19 of the laws of 2010, is 10 amended to read as follows: 11 1. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, public benefit 12 corporations (which for purposes of this section shall include indus- 13 trial development agencies created pursuant to title one of article 14 eighteen-A of the general municipal law or any other provision of law 15 and the New York city housing development corporation created pursuant 16 to article twelve of the private housing finance law) which issue bonds, 17 notes or other obligations and not-for-profit corporations that issue 18 bonds on behalf of the state or a political subdivision thereof shall 19 pay to the state a bond issuance charge upon the issuance of such bonds 20 in an amount determined pursuant to subdivision two of this section. 21 Such charge shall be paid to the state department of taxation and 22 finance, upon forms prescribed therefor, no later than fifteen days from 23 the end of the month within which such bonds are issued. 24 § 19. The not-for-profit corporation law is amended by adding a new 25 section 206 to read as follows: 26 § 206. Financial assistance agreement. 27 1. A corporation, including a local development corporation, deter- 28 mined to be a local authority pursuant to subdivision two of section two 29 and paragraph (j) of subdivision one of section six of the public 30 authorities law that provides financial assistance to a project in the 31 form of a grant, loan, exemption from taxation, or contribution for the 32 public purpose of relieving or reducing unemployment, promoting and 33 marketing job opportunities, or supporting the formation, relocation, 34 expansion, or retention of business shall enter into a written agreement 35 with the project applicant prior to providing financial assistance. 36 2. The agreement shall include the following information: 37 (a) a description of the amount and type of financial assistance to be 38 provided by the corporation, including a description and the value of 39 property conveyed at less than fair market value; 40 (b) a description of the amount of financing to be provided by the 41 project applicant, including the amount and type of capital investment 42 to be provided; 43 (c) the purpose of the project; 44 (d) the amount, types, sources and commitments of any private financ- 45 ing; 46 (e) the projected number of new full-time and part-time positions 47 expected to be created over the period of financial assistance, and an 48 estimated schedule by year of when those positions will be created; 49 (f) the number and types of full-time and part-time jobs to be 50 retained, and the number of filled positions at the project as of the 51 date the agreement is executed; 52 (g) the types and value of other forms of financial assistance 53 provided to the project or requested by the project applicant from other 54 state or local government agencies or authorities; and 55 (h) the penalties to be imposed on the project applicant if the terms 56 of the agreement are not met.S. 1635 23 1 3. The length of a financial assistance agreement shall be limited to 2 no more than five years; provided however that the agreement may be 3 renewed for up to five additional years if the corporation determines 4 that the project applicant has acted in good faith to meet the terms and 5 conditions of the agreement. In no event may financial assistance in the 6 form of a loan or exemption from taxation be provided to a project for 7 more than ten years. 8 4. The financial assistance agreement shall be made available to the 9 public on the website of the corporation. 10 5. The corporation shall adopt a methodology to evaluate the conform- 11 ance of each assisted project to the terms and conditions of the finan- 12 cial assistance agreement. This methodology shall be made available to 13 the public on the corporation's website. 14 6. (a) The corporation, pursuant to the terms and conditions of its 15 financial assistance agreement, may recapture financial assistance to a 16 project from grants, loans, real property tax exemptions, mortgage 17 recording tax exemptions, or local sales or compensating use tax 18 exemptions if (i) the project violates state or federal tax law, labor 19 law, environmental protection law, or contract law, or any state or 20 federal rule or regulation implementing such law, as determined by a 21 court of competent jurisdiction or administrative tribunal, provided 22 that such court or tribunal concludes that the violation would cause 23 material harm to the economy or quality of life of the community; or 24 (ii) all or part of the project's business activity or workforce is 25 moved to a location outside the community served by the corporation and 26 by doing so violates the terms and conditions of its financial assist- 27 ance agreement. 28 (b) A corporation which elects to initiate the recapture of financial 29 assistance pursuant to subdivision one of this section must notify the 30 recipient of such financial assistance in writing that it is in default 31 of its financial assistance agreement and may direct the recipient of 32 financial assistance to repay up to the full amount of such financial 33 assistance received as of the date of the written notice plus interest 34 at the rate set forth in section five thousand four of the civil prac- 35 tice law and rules. 36 (c) Financial assistance recaptured pursuant to this section and any 37 interest paid shall be redistributed to affected tax jurisdictions in 38 proportion to the amount of real property tax and other taxes which 39 would have been received by each affected tax jurisdiction had the 40 project not been tax exempt. Unless otherwise agreed to in writing by an 41 affected tax jurisdiction, the corporation shall not retain any portion 42 of such funds as an administrative or project fee. 43 7. Wages and standards. Whenever a recipient of financial assistance 44 from the corporation enters into a contract, subcontract, lease or other 45 agreement for or in connection with the construction, demolition, recon- 46 struction, rehabilitation, repair, or renovation of an assisted project, 47 the recipient of financial assistance shall pay workers engaged in such 48 work no less than the prevailing rate of wage and supplements under 49 article eight of the labor law. 50 8. For the purposes of this section, "project" shall mean any land, 51 any building or other improvement, and all real and personal properties 52 located within the state of New York and within or outside or partially 53 within and partially outside the municipality for whose benefit the 54 agency was created, including, but not limited to, machinery, equipment 55 and other facilities deemed necessary or desirable in connection there- 56 with, or incidental thereto, whether or not now in existence or underS. 1635 24 1 construction, which shall be suitable for manufacturing, warehousing, 2 research, commercial or industrial purposes or other economically sound 3 purposes identified and called for to implement a state designated urban 4 cultural park management plan as provided in title G of the parks, 5 recreation and historic preservation law and which may include or mean 6 an industrial pollution control facility, a recreation facility, educa- 7 tional or cultural facility, a horse racing facility, a railroad facili- 8 ty or an automobile racing facility, provided, however, that no agency 9 shall use its funds or provide financial assistance in respect of any 10 project wholly or partially outside the municipality for whose benefit 11 the agency was created without the prior consent thereto by the govern- 12 ing body or bodies of all the other municipalities in which a part or 13 parts of the project is, or is to be, located, and such portion of the 14 project located outside such municipality for whose benefit the agency 15 was created shall be contiguous with the portion of the project inside 16 such municipality. 17 § 20. Paragraphs (a), (b) and (d) of section 1411 of the not-for-pro- 18 fit corporation law, paragraph (a) as amended by chapter 847 of the laws 19 of 1970 and paragraph (b) as amended by chapter 549 of the laws of 2013, 20 are amended to read as follows: 21 (a) Purposes. 22 This section shall provide an additional and alternate method of 23 incorporation or reincorporation of not-for-profit corporations for any 24 of the purposes set forth in this paragraph [and shall not be deemed to25alter, impair or diminish the purposes, rights, powers or privileges of26any corporation heretofore or hereafter incorporated under this section27or under the stock or business corporation laws]. Corporations may be 28 incorporated or reincorporated under this section as not-for-profit 29 local development corporations operated for the exclusively charitable 30 or public purposes of relieving and reducing unemployment, promoting and 31 providing for additional and maximum employment, bettering and maintain- 32 ing job opportunities, instructing or training individuals to improve or 33 develop their capabilities for such jobs, carrying on scientific 34 research for the purpose of aiding a community or geographical area by 35 attracting new industry to the community or area or by encouraging the 36 development of, or retention of, an industry in the community or area[,37and lessening the burdens of government and acting in the public inter-38est, and any]. Any one or more counties, cities, towns or villages of 39 the state, or any combination thereof, or the New York job development 40 authority in exercising its power under the public authorities law to 41 encourage the organization of local development corporations, may cause 42 such corporations to be incorporated by public officers or private indi- 43 viduals or reincorporated upon compliance with the requirements of this 44 section, and it is hereby found, determined and declared that in carry- 45 ing out said purposes and in exercising the powers conferred by para- 46 graph (b) of this section such corporations will be acting in the public 47 interest and performing an essential governmental function. 48 (b) Type of corporation. 49 A local development corporation [is] incorporated for one or more of 50 the purposes described in paragraph (a) of this section shall be a char- 51 itable corporation under this chapter. 52 (d) Purchase or lease of real property owned by a county, city, town 53 or village. 54 (1) The local legislative body of a county, city, town or village or, 55 if there is a board of estimate in a city, then the board of estimate, 56 may by resolution determine that specifically described real propertyS. 1635 25 1 owned by the county, city, town or village is not required for use by 2 such county, city, town or village and authorize the county, city, town 3 or village to sell or lease such real property to a local development 4 corporation incorporated or reincorporated under this article; provided, 5 however, that title to such land be not declared inalienable as a forest 6 preserve or a parkland. 7 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local 8 law, charter or ordinance to the contrary, no such sale or lease may be 9 made without appraisal, public notice, (except as provided in subpara- 10 graph (4)) or public bidding [for such price or rental and upon such11terms as may be agreed upon between the county, city, town or village12and said local development corporation]; provided, however, that in case 13 of a lease the term may not exceed ninety-nine years and provided, 14 further, that in cities having a population of one million or more, no 15 such sale or lease shall be made without the approval of a majority of 16 the members of the borough [improvement] board of the borough in which 17 such real property is located. 18 (3) Before any sale or lease to a local development corporation incor- 19 porated or reincorporated under this article shall be authorized, a 20 public hearing shall be held by the local legislative body[, or by the21board of estimate, as the case may be,] to consider the proposed sale or 22 lease. 23 (4) Notice of such hearing shall be published at least ten days before 24 the date set for the hearing in such publication and in such manner as 25 may be designated by the local legislative body[, or the board of esti-26mate as the case may be]. Such notice shall include a description of the 27 real property proposed to be sold or leased; a statement of the esti- 28 mated fair market value of the real property proposed to be sold or 29 leased; the value of the financial consideration to be received by the 30 county, city, town or village from such sale or lease of the real prop- 31 erty; and a statement of the intended use or disposition of such real 32 property by the local development corporation. 33 (5) A local development corporation, incorporated or reincorporated 34 under this section, which purchases or leases real property from a coun- 35 ty, city, town or village, shall not, without the written approval of 36 the county, city, town or village, use such real property for any 37 purpose except the purposes set forth in the certificate of incorpo- 38 ration or reincorporation of said local development corporation. In the 39 event such real property is used in violation of the restrictions of 40 this paragraph, the attorney-general may bring an action or special 41 proceeding to enjoin the unauthorized use. 42 § 21. Paragraphs (e), (f), (g), (h), and (i) of section 1411 of the 43 not-for-profit corporation law are relettered paragraphs (f), (g), (h), 44 (i), and (j) and a new paragraph (e) is added to read as follows: 45 (e) Contracts with municipalities. 46 Any contract or other agreement between a local development corpo- 47 ration and a municipality or state authority or local authority for one 48 or more of the purposes described in paragraph (a) of this section 49 shall: (i) cause the local development corporation to be defined as a 50 local authority pursuant to subdivision two of section two of the public 51 authorities law; (ii) provide for the municipality or state authority or 52 local authority to receive fair and adequate consideration for the 53 services provided by the local development corporation; (iii) be subject 54 to the requirements of article five-A of the general municipal law; and 55 (iv) have a term not to exceed ten years, subject to one or more 56 renewals for a term not to exceed ten years upon the mutual consent ofS. 1635 26 1 the parties; provided however that a contract with a municipality shall 2 not be used to finance the municipality's operations or to acquire or 3 improve an asset for use of the municipality. 4 § 22. Paragraph (j) of section 1411 of the not-for-profit corporation 5 law, as relettered by section twenty-one of this act, is amended to read 6 as follows: 7 (j) Effect of section. 8 Corporations incorporated or reincorporated under this section shall 9 be organized and operated exclusively for the purposes set forth in 10 paragraph (a), shall have, in addition to the powers otherwise conferred 11 by law, the powers conferred by paragraph (c) of this section and shall 12 be subject to all the restrictions and limitations imposed by [paragraph13(e) and paragraph (g)] paragraphs (c), (d), (e), (h) and (i) of this 14 section. In so far as the provisions of this section are inconsistent 15 with the provisions of any other law, general or special, the provisions 16 of this section shall be controlling as to corporations incorporated or 17 reincorporated hereunder. 18 § 23. Federal preemption and severability. The provisions of each 19 section of this act shall be deemed severable, and the declaration by a 20 court of competent jurisdiction that any part thereof is preempted or 21 otherwise invalid shall not affect the remaining parts thereof. 22 § 24. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 23 have become a law, or January 1, 2022, whichever shall come first; 24 provided, however, that section fifteen of this act shall apply to bonds 25 issued or re-issued on or after the effective date of this act; 26 provided, however, that the amendments to subdivisions 19 and 20 of 27 section 858 of the general municipal law made by section three of this 28 act shall not affect the expiration of such subdivisions and shall be 29 deemed to expire therewith; and provided further, however, that the 30 amendments to subdivisions 21 and 22 of section 858 of the general 31 municipal law made by section three of this act shall not affect the 32 repeal of such subdivisions and shall be deemed repealed therewith.
