Bill Text: NY S07649 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Establishes a stakeholder group in the Oswego river basin to coordinate water release.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-06-07 - returned to senate [S07649 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S07649-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         7649--A

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                   September 11, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sens. MANNION, MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and
          when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules --  recommitted
          to  the  Committee  on  Corporations,  Authorities  and Commissions in
          accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --  committee  discharged,  bill
          amended,  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit-
          tee

        AN ACT to amend the canal law, in relation to establishing a stakeholder
          group to coordinate water release in the Oswego river basin

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  The canal law is amended by adding a new section 130-a to
     2  read as follows:
     3    § 130-a. Oswego river basin water release coordination. 1. The  corpo-
     4  ration,  in  consultation with the department of environmental conserva-
     5  tion, shall, within six months of the effective date  of  this  section,
     6  form  a  stakeholder  group to evaluate approaches to coordinating water
     7  releases in the Oswego river basin. Such stakeholder group shall include
     8  all entities with the ability or responsibility to control  flood  water
     9  discharges  either  directly  to  or  from major water bodies within the
    10  Oswego river basin and their tributaries, community stakeholder  groups,
    11  the   department  of  environmental  conservation,  and  subject  matter
    12  experts.
    13    2. The  stakeholder  group  shall  review  all  available  information
    14  regarding  utilizing flood storage above lake rule curves, and watershed
    15  releases during high flow events, in the Oswego river  basin,  including
    16  any relevant modeling.  Within six months of the formation of the stake-
    17  holder  group,  the  stakeholder group shall make recommendations to the
    18  governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker  of  the
    19  assembly on a regulatory structure to coordinate communication and water
    20  releases  during  high  flow events. In making such recommendations, the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13168-03-4
        S. 7649--A                          2

     1  stakeholder group shall consider a variety  of  alternatives,  including
     2  but not limited to:
     3    (a)  recommending  a continuation, expansion, or reconstitution of the
     4  stakeholder group for such purpose;
     5    (b) recommending a  legislative  mandate  for  coordination  of  water
     6  releases; or
     7    (c)  recommending  the legislature initiate an independent water regu-
     8  lating district with the authority to direct water releases pursuant  to
     9  title  twenty-one  of  article fifteen of the environmental conservation
    10  law.
    11    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.