Bill Text: NY S04626 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Creates a legislative task force on outdoor environmental education and recreation that will benefit residents of New York state by fostering stewardship and conservation of the environment, and an appreciation of the importance of the wise use of natural resources as well as acknowledgment of the health benefits of time spent in nature.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-06-20 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S04626 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S04626-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4626 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 23, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. RANZENHOFER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Tourism, Parks and Recreation AN ACT creating a legislative task force on outdoor environmental educa- tion and recreation that will benefit residents of New York state by stewardship and conservation of the environment, an appreciation of the importance of the wise use of natural resources as well as acknowledgment of the health benefits of time spent in nature The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative findings. (a) The legislature hereby finds that 2 in the last two decades, childhood has moved indoors. The average Ameri- 3 can boy or girl spends just four to seven minutes each day in unstruc- 4 tured outdoor play, and more than seven hours each day in front of an 5 electronic screen. The decline in the appreciation and prevalence of 6 outdoor recreation opportunities profoundly impacts the wellness of our 7 state's youth. The correlation between increasing childhood obesity 8 rates and the decline in outdoor recreation is undeniable. 9 (b) The legislature further finds that visual and physical access to 10 basic types of open space is vital for everyone, and particularly valu- 11 able to children growing up in "urban hardscapes", or areas where access 12 to nature is limited. 13 (c) The legislature further finds that the development of policies 14 that foster stewardship of the environment, the importance of the wise 15 use of natural resources and recognition of the health benefits of time 16 spent in nature are essential to the residents of New York state. The 17 legislature concludes that this can best be accomplished by the creation 18 of a task force on outdoor environmental education and recreation. 19 § 2. Objectives. A legislative task force on outdoor environmental 20 education and recreation is hereby established to: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02567-01-7S. 4626 2 1 (a) Promote the development of a framework that will ensure that New 2 York state has an aggressive outdoor environmental education and recre- 3 ation plan for children that focuses on creating, developing and retain- 4 ing opportunities for outdoor play and learning; 5 (b) Identify and support programs which offer safe access to open 6 spaces and summer camp to children from urban areas; 7 (c) Promote the development of policy recommendations to ensure that 8 New York's public and private sectors focus on creating opportunities 9 for underserved and at-risk children to participate in outdoor play and 10 educational experiences; 11 (d) Promote the development of strategies to ensure that K-12 educa- 12 tional institutions develop policies and programs that promote environ- 13 mental education to encourage outdoor play thereby improving public 14 health and take advantage of the physical, mental and spiritual benefits 15 of moving outdoors in nature; 16 (e) Promote the development of strategies to assist community based, 17 nonprofit organizations in furthering programs that provide for summer 18 camp and out of school time opportunities for outdoor recreation or 19 education; 20 (f) Evaluate laws, rules, and procedures to ensure that they facili- 21 tate, or at least do not hinder, the growth of outdoor play or environ- 22 mental education. 23 § 3. Composition. The task force shall consist of twelve members. The 24 task force members will have experience and expertise in outdoor recre- 25 ation and environmental education. The task force shall consist of: the 26 commissioner of education or his or her designee, the commissioner of 27 health or his or her designee, the commissioner of environmental conser- 28 vation or his or her designee, the commissioner of the office of parks, 29 recreation and historic preservation or his or her designee. One member 30 shall be a representative from a nonprofit health and wellness organiza- 31 tion. One member shall be a representative from a nonprofit environ- 32 mental conservation organization. Two members shall be appointed by the 33 governor; one member to be appointed by the temporary president of the 34 senate; one member to be appointed by the minority leader of the senate; 35 one member to be appointed by the speaker of the assembly; and one 36 member to be appointed by the minority leader of the assembly. The task 37 force shall be appointed for a term of two years. 38 § 4. Report. The task force shall report its findings, conclusions and 39 recommendations to the governor, majority leader of the senate and the 40 speaker of the assembly by January 1, 2020. The task force may develop 41 and publish other documents throughout the year as it deems necessary 42 and/or appropriate. 43 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
