Bill Text: NY S09586 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Enacts the "New York urban and community tree planting and forestry program act"; provides for education, technical assistance and support for tree planting and forestry projects in urban areas and disadvantaged communities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-10-28 - REFERRED TO RULES [S09586 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S09586-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9586 IN SENATE October 28, 2022 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law and the state finance law, in relation to enacting the "New York urban and community tree planting and forestry program act" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "New York 2 urban and community tree planting and forestry program act". 3 § 2. Article 9 of the environmental conservation law is amended by 4 adding a new title 23 to read as follows: 5 TITLE 23 6 NEW YORK URBAN AND COMMUNITY TREE PLANTING AND FORESTRY PROGRAM 7 Section 9-2301. Urban and community tree planting and forestry program. 8 9-2303. Urban tree planting study and working group. 9 9-2305. Program requirements. 10 9-2307. Urban forestry volunteer program. 11 9-2309. Program goals. 12 9-2311. Program grants; fund established. 13 § 9-2301. Urban and community tree planting and forestry program. 14 1. For the purposes of this title: 15 a. "Disadvantaged community" shall have the same meaning as defined in 16 section 75-0111 of this chapter. 17 b. "Program" shall mean the New York urban and community tree planting 18 and forestry program described in subdivision two of this section. 19 c. "Working group" shall mean the working group established pursuant 20 to section 9-2303 of this title. 21 2. The department, in cooperation with the department of agriculture 22 and markets, shall establish and implement a program of education and 23 technical assistance for urban and community forestry and tree planting 24 projects. Such program shall be designed to: 25 a. assist urban areas and communities in conducting inventories of 26 their forest resources, including inventories of the species, number, 27 location, and health of trees in urban areas and communities, identify- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD16483-01-2S. 9586 2 1 ing opportunities for the establishment of plantings for the purposes of 2 conserving energy, and determining the status of related resources, 3 including but not limited to fish and wildlife habitat, water resources, 4 and trails; 5 b. assist state and local organizations including, but not limited to 6 community associations and schools in organizing and conducting urban 7 and community forestry projects and programs; 8 c. improve education and technical support in: 9 i. selecting tree species appropriate for planting in urban and commu- 10 nity environments and for promotion of energy conservation; 11 ii. providing for proper tree planting, maintenance, and protection in 12 urban areas and communities; 13 iii. protecting individual trees and preserving existing open spaces 14 with or without tree cover; and 15 iv. identifying opportunities for expanding tree cover in urban areas 16 and communities; 17 d. assist in the development of state and local management plans for 18 trees and associated resources in urban areas and communities; 19 e. increase public understanding of the energy conservation, economic, 20 social, environmental, and psychological values of trees and open space 21 in urban areas and communities; 22 f. develop a legacy tree program for public and privately owned trees 23 within urban areas and communities, which shall include but not be 24 limited to the development of appropriate forms, formal designation 25 processes, mapping and signage acknowledging such trees and the incorpo- 26 ration of such legacy tree program into local laws and ordinances 27 providing for specific protections for such legacy trees; 28 g. develop an urban forestry volunteer program to identify and address 29 the unique needs of specific urban areas and communities and provide for 30 the recruitment and training of volunteers who are committed to a regu- 31 lar routine and work schedule to perform required tasks; 32 h. identify and map all naturalized woodlands on public property; and 33 i. identify and map all naturalized woodlands on private property in 34 excess of one acre. 35 § 9-2303. Urban tree planting study and working group. 36 1. Not later than December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-three, 37 the department, in consultation with the commissioner of agriculture and 38 markets, shall complete a study on the implementation of a comprehensive 39 statewide community and urban tree planting program. 40 2. In conducting such study, the department shall consult with indi- 41 viduals, including academics and experts from nongovernmental organiza- 42 tions, having expertise in forest sustainability, biodiversity, and 43 climate science, as well as representatives of indigenous communities 44 located within boreal regions, and shall hold at least one public hear- 45 ing, and may base study findings on existing literature, provided, 46 however, that the department shall consult with the working group estab- 47 lished by subdivision three of this section no later than sixty days 48 prior to the completion of the study and consulted prior to the imple- 49 mentation of any statewide plan developed pursuant thereto. 50 3. The department shall establish a working group consisting of 51 fifteen members to be appointed by the commissioner as follows: 52 a. Two members representing national nonprofit forestry and conserva- 53 tion citizen organizations; 54 b. Three members, one representing the state government, one repres- 55 enting county governments, and one representing city, town and village 56 governments;S. 9586 3 1 c. One member representing horticultural industries, including but not 2 limited to urban forestry products, nurseries, tree care and landscaping 3 services and other forestry related interests; 4 d. One member representing urban forestry, landscape, or design 5 consultants; 6 e. Two members representing academic institutions with expertise in 7 urban and community forestry activities; 8 f. One member representing forest resources related agencies and 9 organizations in this state; 10 g. One member representing a professional renewable natural resource 11 or arboricultural society; 12 h. One member representing the National Institute of Food and Agricul- 13 ture of the United States Department of Agriculture; 14 i. One member representing the United States Forest Service; and 15 j. Two members who are not officers or employees of any governmental 16 body who have expertise and have been active in urban and community 17 forestry, one of whom shall be a resident of a community with a popu- 18 lation of less than fifty thousand as of the most recent census. 19 § 9-2305. Program requirements. 20 1. Every tree purchased pursuant to the program established by this 21 title shall be in compliance with all applicable requirements set forth 22 in the latest edition of the American Standard for Nursery Stock (ANSI 23 Z60.1), as revised from time to time by the American Horticulture Indus- 24 try Association or a successor entity thereto. 25 2. Every such tree shall be purchased from a nursery grower or nursery 26 dealer registered pursuant to the provisions of article fourteen of the 27 agriculture and markets law or otherwise certified by the country, state 28 or province of origin pursuant to section one hundred sixty-three of the 29 agriculture and markets law. The requirements of this subdivision shall 30 be posted in all bidding documents. 31 3. Every tree proposed to be planted in a naturalized area shall be 32 from seed sourced locally. For the purposes of this section seed is 33 sourced "locally" if it originated within one hundred fifty miles of the 34 location where such tree is proposed to be planted. 35 4. Trees planted across public and private property shall reflect 36 species diversity to the maximum extent practicable. 37 5. Every tree planted or replanted shall be cared for and maintained 38 in compliance with the standards and practices set forth in the latest 39 edition of the American National Standard for Tree Care Operations (ANSI 40 A300), as revised from time to time by the Tree Care Industry Associ- 41 ation or a successor entity thereto. 42 6. Nothing in this section shall authorize the sale, purchase, 43 possession, propagation, introduction, importation, transport and 44 disposal of an invasive species prohibited in accordance with the 45 provisions of title seventeen of this article or otherwise prohibited by 46 federal law, rule or regulation. 47 § 9-2307. Urban forestry volunteer program. 48 1. The department shall establish a program to recruit and train 49 volunteers who reside in urban areas and communities to identify and 50 address the specific needs of such urban areas and communities and to 51 provide regular assistance to department staff in carrying out the 52 provisions of this title. 53 2. The department, in consultation with the department of agriculture 54 and markets and the commissioner of parks, recreation and historic pres- 55 ervation, shall provide appropriate training to volunteers and staff 56 relating to forestry and tree planting. Such training shall include butS. 9586 4 1 shall not be limited to detection and rapid response to potential prob- 2 lems including, but not limited to the implementation of disaster proto- 3 cols for dealing with woody materials and other practices and standards 4 established by the American National Standards Institute editions iden- 5 tified in subdivisions one and five of section 9-2305 of this title. 6 § 9-2309. Program goals. 7 Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this title, the department 8 shall invest or direct available and relevant program resources in a 9 manner designed to achieve a goal for disadvantaged communities to 10 receive forty-five percent of overall benefits of spending on the 11 program, including but not limited to any workforce development, 12 pollution reduction, inventory, and economic development resulting from 13 such spending; provided, however, that disadvantaged communities shall 14 receive no less than forty percent of the overall benefits of spending 15 on the urban and community tree planting and forestry program, and 16 provided further that this section shall not alter funds already 17 contracted or committed as of the effective date of this section. 18 § 9-2311. Program grants; fund established. 19 1. The commissioner is hereby authorized to utilize funds in the New 20 York urban and community tree planting and forestry program fund, estab- 21 lished by section ninety-nine-qq of the state finance law, for the 22 purposes of establishing and implementing the urban and community tree 23 planting and forestry program established pursuant to this title. 24 2. Such fund shall consist of moneys appropriated, credited or trans- 25 ferred thereto from any other fund or source pursuant to law. Nothing 26 contained herein shall prevent the state from receiving grants, gifts or 27 bequests for the purposes of the fund as defined in this section and 28 depositing them into the fund according to law. 29 3. Moneys shall be paid out of the fund on the audit and warrant of 30 the comptroller on vouchers certified or approved by the commissioner or 31 the commissioner's designee in a manner consistent with rules and regu- 32 lations adopted for such purpose by the department in consultation with 33 the working group. 34 4. Moneys of such fund shall be awarded annually to eligible communi- 35 ties and organizations, on a competitive basis, for urban and community 36 forestry projects in accordance with rules and regulations adopted by 37 the department for such purpose after consultation with the working 38 group and in a manner consistent with the goals set forth in section 39 9-2309 of this title. 40 § 3. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-qq to 41 read as follows: 42 § 99-qq. New York urban and community tree planting and forestry 43 program fund. 1. There is hereby established in the joint custody of the 44 state comptroller and commissioner of taxation and finance a special 45 fund to be known as the "New York urban and community tree planting and 46 forestry program fund" or the "fund". 47 2. Such fund shall consist of all revenues received by the comptroller 48 and all other moneys appropriated, credited or transferred thereto from 49 any other fund or source pursuant to law. Nothing contained in this 50 section shall prevent the state from receiving grants, gifts or bequests 51 for the purposes of the fund and depositing them into the fund according 52 to law. 53 3. Moneys shall be paid out of the fund on the audit and warrant of 54 the comptroller on vouchers certified or approved by the commissioner of 55 environmental conservation or the commissioner of environmental conser- 56 vation's designee.S. 9586 5 1 4. Moneys of the fund shall be available to the commissioner of envi- 2 ronmental conservation for the purposes of administering the urban and 3 community tree planting and forestry program in accordance with title 4 twenty-three of article nine of the environmental conservation law, 5 including the awarding of grants in support of projects undertaken by 6 eligible communities and organizations pursuant to section 9-2311 of the 7 environmental conservation law. 8 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
