Bill Text: NY A07675 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended


Bill Title: Requires the conducting of public hearings and reports thereon prior to the permanent closure of a park or historic site owned, held or administered by the office of parks, recreation and historic preservation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2019-12-06 - SIGNED CHAP.585 [A07675 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A07675-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         7675--A
                                                                   R. R. 182

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      May 14, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. BURKE -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Tourism,  Parks,  Arts  and  Sports  Development  --  reported  and
          referred  to  the Committee on Ways and Means -- reported and referred
          to the Committee on Rules -- amended on the  special  order  of  third
          reading,  ordered  reprinted  as  amended,  retaining its place on the
          special order of third reading

        AN ACT to amend the parks, recreation and historic preservation law,  in
          relation  to  requiring an evaluation of the impacts of the closure of
          public access to any land owned or operated by the  office  of  parks,
          recreation and historic preservation

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

     1    Section 1. The parks, recreation  and  historic  preservation  law  is
     2  amended by adding a new section 13.14 to read as follows:
     3    § 13.14 Closure of lands owned, held or administered by the office. 1.
     4  Except  as  provided  in subdivision five of this section, not less than
     5  six months before the proposed permanent closure of a park  or  historic
     6  site  owned,  held or administered by the office, the commissioner shall
     7  issue a draft report that provides the justification and  rationale  for
     8  such closure including, but not limited to:
     9    (a) a full description of the real property;
    10    (b) the purposes that the park or historic serves to the people of the
    11  state;
    12    (c)  an  analysis  of  the  potential  harm to such real property from
    13  vandalism, lack of management and maintenance, and  other  impacts  from
    14  the lack of regular oversight by the office;
    15    (d)  the  impact  of such proposed closure on the entire real property
    16  system owned and operated by the office; and
    17    (e) such other factors that are  particularly  relevant  to  the  real
    18  property and its function as state land.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03617-05-9

        A. 7675--A                          2

     1    2.  Not less than four months before the proposed permanent closure of
     2  public access to such park or  historic  site,  the  commissioner  shall
     3  provide  public notice of and conduct one or more public hearings in the
     4  impacted area of the proposed closure. Notice of any such hearing  shall
     5  be  in  the  environmental  notice bulletin.   Each public hearing shall
     6  accept written statements in lieu of an oral presentation.
     7    3. Upon conclusion of the public hearings on a  closure,  the  commis-
     8  sioner  shall  issue  a  final report which includes the response on all
     9  issues raised at the hearings and information entered into  the  hearing
    10  record.  Such final report shall be posted on the website of the office.
    11    4. The commissioner shall issue and submit to the governor, the tempo-
    12  rary  president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the chair of
    13  the senate cultural affairs and tourism committee and the chair  of  the
    14  assembly, parks, arts and sports development committee a findings state-
    15  ment  on  each proposed closure that provides the justification for such
    16  closure or, in  the  alternative,  the  information  that  supports  the
    17  continued operation of the real property.
    18    5.  The  requirements of this section shall not apply to seasonal park
    19  closures, temporary closures due to inclement weather or  as  reasonably
    20  necessary to effectuate repairs, maintenance or capital improvements, or
    21  temporary  limits on public access for routine operational reasons, such
    22  as public safety or other emergencies.
    23    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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