Bill Text: NY S04720 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relates to industrial development agencies; relates to such agencies' representation, public hearings, notices of agenda, and school board reporting.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-12 - PRINT NUMBER 4720B [S04720 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S04720-Amended.html
Bill Title: Relates to industrial development agencies; relates to such agencies' representation, public hearings, notices of agenda, and school board reporting.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-12 - PRINT NUMBER 4720B [S04720 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S04720-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4720--A 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE March 21, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sens. MAYER, SKOUFIS, BIAGGI, HARCKHAM, KRUEGER, METZGER, STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government -- recommitted to the Committee on Local Government in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to industrial development agencies The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 859-a of the general municipal law, as added by 2 chapter 356 of the laws of 1993 and subdivisions 4, 5 and 6 as added by 3 chapter 563 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 4 § 859-a. Additional prerequisites to the provisions of financial 5 assistance or payments in lieu of taxes. Prior to providing any finan- 6 cial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes of more than one hundred 7 thousand dollars to any project, the agency must comply with the follow- 8 ing prerequisites: 9 1. The agency must adopt a resolution describing the project and the 10 financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes that the agency is 11 contemplating with respect to such project. Such assistance or payments 12 in lieu of taxes shall be consistent with the uniform tax exemption 13 policy adopted by the agency pursuant to subdivision four of section 14 eight hundred seventy-four of this [chapter] title, unless the agency 15 has followed the procedures for deviation from such policy specified in 16 paragraph (b) of such subdivision. 17 2. The agency must hold a public hearing with respect to the project 18 and the proposed financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes being 19 contemplated by the agency. Said public hearing shall be held in a city, 20 town or village where the project proposes to locate. At said public 21 hearing, interested parties shall be provided reasonable opportunity, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10067-06-0S. 4720--A 2 1 both orally and in writing, to present their views with respect to the 2 project. 3 3. The agency must give at least ten days published notice of said 4 public hearing and shall, at the same time, provide notice of such hear- 5 ing to the chief executive officer of each affected tax jurisdiction 6 within which the project is located, each school board president and 7 superintendent of each school district within which the project is 8 located, and to all state senators and members of the state assembly who 9 represent any portion of any affected tax jurisdiction that is subject 10 to the proposed financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes. The 11 notice of hearing must state the time and place of the hearing, contain 12 a general, functional description of the project, describe the prospec- 13 tive location of the project, identify the initial owner, operator or 14 manager of the project and generally describe the financial assistance 15 or payments in lieu of taxes contemplated by the agency with respect to 16 the project. 17 4. Each agency shall develop a standard application form, which shall 18 be used by the agency to accept requests for financial assistance or 19 payments in lieu of taxes from all individuals, firms, companies, devel- 20 opers or other entities or organizations. The standard application form 21 shall be submitted by or on behalf of the applicant, and subscribed and 22 affirmed under the penalties of perjury by the applicant, or on behalf 23 of the applicant by the chief executive officer or such other individual 24 that is duly authorized to bind the applicant, as true, accurate and 25 complete to the best of his or her knowledge. The standard application 26 form shall include the following, and may include such other supple- 27 mental information as determined to be necessary and appropriate by the 28 agency, including supporting documents and information provided by or on 29 behalf of the applicant: 30 (a) the name and address of the project applicant; 31 (b) a description of the proposed project for which financial assist- 32 ance or payments in lieu of taxes is requested, including the type of 33 project, proposed location and purpose of the project; 34 (c) the amount and type of financial assistance or payments in lieu of 35 taxes being requested, including the estimated value of each type of tax 36 exemption sought to be claimed by reason of agency involvement in the 37 project; 38 (d) a statement that there is a likelihood that the project would not 39 be undertaken but for the financial assistance or payments in lieu of 40 taxes provided by the agency or, if the project could be undertaken 41 without financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes provided by 42 the agency, a statement indicating why the project should be undertaken 43 by the agency; 44 (e) an estimate of capital costs of the project, including all costs 45 of real property and equipment acquisition and building construction or 46 reconstruction, financed from private sector sources, an estimate of the 47 percentage of project costs financed from public sector sources, and an 48 estimate of both the amount to be invested by the applicant and the 49 amount to be borrowed to finance the project[.]; 50 (f) the projected number of full time equivalent jobs that would be 51 retained and that would be created if the request for financial assist- 52 ance or payments in lieu of taxes is granted, the projected timeframe 53 for the creation of new jobs, the estimated salary and fringe benefit 54 averages or ranges for categories of the jobs that would be retained or 55 created if the request for financial assistance or payments in lieu of 56 taxes is granted, and an estimate of the number of residents of theS. 4720--A 3 1 economic development region as established pursuant to section two 2 hundred thirty of the economic development law or the labor market area 3 as defined by the agency, in which the project is located that would 4 fill such jobs. The labor market area defined by the agency for this 5 purpose may include no more than six contiguous counties in the state, 6 including the county in which the project is to be located; 7 (g) a statement to the effect that the provisions of subdivision one 8 of section eight hundred sixty-two of this [chapter] title will not be 9 violated if financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes is 10 provided for the proposed project; 11 (h) a statement that the owner, occupant or operator receiving finan- 12 cial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes is in substantial compli- 13 ance with applicable local, state and federal tax, worker protection and 14 environmental laws, rules and regulations; and 15 (i) a statement acknowledging that the submission of any knowingly 16 false or knowingly misleading information may lead to the immediate 17 termination of any financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes and 18 the reimbursement of an amount equal to all or part of any tax 19 exemptions claimed by reason of agency involvement in the project. 20 5. Each agency shall develop, and adopt by resolution, uniform crite- 21 ria for the evaluation and selection for each category of projects for 22 which financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes will be 23 provided. At a minimum, the criteria shall require that, for each 24 project, the following must occur prior to the approval of the provision 25 of financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes: 26 (a) an assessment by the agency of all material information included 27 in connection with the application for financial assistance or payments 28 in lieu of taxes, as necessary to afford a reasonable basis for the 29 decision by the agency to provide financial assistance or payments in 30 lieu of taxes for the project; 31 (b) a written cost-benefit analysis by the agency that identifies the 32 extent to which a project will create or retain permanent, private 33 sector jobs; the estimated value of any tax exemptions to be provided; 34 the amount of private sector investment generated or likely to be gener- 35 ated by the proposed project; the likelihood of accomplishing the 36 proposed project in a timely fashion; and the extent to which the 37 proposed project will provide additional sources of revenue for munici- 38 palities and school districts; and any other public benefits that might 39 occur as a result of the project; 40 (c) a statement by the applicant that the project, as of the date of 41 the application, is in substantial compliance with all provisions of 42 this article including, but not limited to, the provisions of this 43 section and subdivision one of section eight hundred sixty-two of this 44 [chapter] title; and 45 (d) if the project involves the removal or abandonment of a facility 46 or plant within the state, notification by the agency to the chief exec- 47 utive officer or officers of the municipality or municipalities in which 48 the facility or plant was located. 49 6. Each agency shall develop a uniform agency project agreement that 50 sets forth terms and conditions under which financial assistance or 51 payments in lieu of taxes shall be provided. The uniform agency project 52 agreement shall be used by the agency and no financial assistance or 53 payments in lieu of taxes shall be provided in the absence of the 54 execution of such an agreement. The uniform agency project agreement 55 shall, at a minimum:S. 4720--A 4 1 (a) describe the project and the financial assistance or payments in 2 lieu of taxes, including the amount and type, to be provided, and the 3 agency purpose to be achieved; 4 (b) require each project owner, occupant or operator receiving finan- 5 cial benefits or payments in lieu of taxes to provide annually a certi- 6 fied statement and documentation: (i) enumerating the full time equiv- 7 alent jobs retained and the full time equivalent jobs created as a 8 result of the financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes, by 9 category, including full time equivalent independent contractors or 10 employees of independent contractors that work at the project location, 11 and (ii) indicating that the salary and fringe benefit averages or rang- 12 es for categories of jobs retained and jobs created that was provided in 13 the application is still accurate and if it is not still accurate, 14 providing a revised list of salary and fringe benefit averages or ranges 15 for categories of jobs retained and jobs created[.]; 16 (c) indicate the dates when PILOT payments are to be made and provide 17 an estimate of the amounts for each affected tax jurisdiction of any 18 payments in lieu of taxes that are included as part of the transaction, 19 or formula or formulas by which those amounts may be calculated. In lieu 20 of providing such information, a copy of an executed payment in lieu of 21 tax agreement that contains the same information may be attached to the 22 uniform agency project agreement; 23 (e) provide for the suspension or discontinuance of financial assist- 24 ance or payments in lieu of taxes, or for the modification of any 25 payment in lieu of tax agreement to require increased payments, in 26 accordance with policies developed by the agency pursuant to section 27 eight hundred seventy-four of this title; 28 (f) provide for the return of all or a part of the financial assist- 29 ance or payments in lieu of taxes provided for the project, including 30 all or part of the amount of any tax exemptions, which shall be redis- 31 tributed to the appropriate affected tax jurisdiction, as provided for 32 in policies developed by the agency pursuant to section eight hundred 33 seventy-four of this title, unless agreed to otherwise by any local 34 taxing jurisdiction or jurisdictions; and 35 (g) provide that the owner, occupant or operator receiving financial 36 assistance or payments in lieu of taxes shall certify, under penalty of 37 perjury, that it is in substantial compliance with all local, state and 38 federal tax, worker protection and environmental laws, rules and regu- 39 lations. 40 § 2. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section 41 859-c to read as follows: 42 § 859-c. Notice of agenda. A printed calendar of items to be heard, 43 which may be subject to later amendment, shall be made available to the 44 public and forwarded to the members and chairman of the industrial 45 development agency at least three days in advance of the meeting. Where 46 an industrial development agency maintains a website, the notice of 47 agenda shall also be posted on such industrial development agency's 48 website. 49 § 3. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section 50 859-d to read as follows: 51 § 859-d. School board reporting. Every industrial development agency, 52 continued or created by this chapter or any other law of the state shall 53 submit to the local school board president and superintendent or boards 54 presidents and superintendents overlapping with an industrial develop- 55 ment agency, within ninety days after the end of its fiscal year, a copy 56 of the final report required by subdivision two of section twenty-eightS. 4720--A 5 1 hundred of the public authorities law and the audits required by subdi- 2 vision two of section twenty-eight hundred two of the public authorities 3 law. 4 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
