Bill Text: NY S07163 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to requiring notice to neighboring landowners within one thousand feet of intention to develop in wetland areas; requires a public hearing on a wetland application.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-05-01 - REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION [S07163 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-S07163-Introduced.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7163
I N S E N A T E
May 1, 2012
___________
Introduced by Sen. LANZA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
requiring notice to adjacent landowners where certain development is
proposed in wetlands in a city with a population of one million or
more
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. Section 25-0402 of the environmental conservation law, as
2 added by chapter 790 of the laws of 1973, subdivision 2 as added by
3 chapter 233 of the laws of 1979, is amended to read as follows:
4 S 25-0402. Application for permits.
5 1. Any person proposing to conduct or cause to be conducted an activ-
6 ity regulated under this act upon any inventoried tidal wetland shall
7 file an application for a permit with the commissioner, in such form and
8 containing such information as the commissioner may prescribe. The
9 applicant shall have the burden of demonstrating that the proposed
10 activity will be in complete accord with the policy and provisions of
11 this act. Such application shall include a detailed description of the
12 proposed work and a map showing the area of tidal wetland directly
13 affected, with the location of the proposed work thereon, together with
14 the names of the owners of record of adjacent lands and the known claim-
15 ants of water rights in or adjacent to the tidal wetlands of whom the
16 applicant has notice. The commissioner shall cause a copy of such appli-
17 cation to be mailed to the chief administrative officer in the munici-
18 pality where the proposed work or any part of it is located. UPON
19 RECEIPT OF SUCH APPLICATION BY A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION
20 OR MORE, SUCH CITY SHALL CAUSE A NOTICE OF SUCH APPLICATION TO BE MAILED
21 TO OWNERS OF RECORD OF LAND WHICH IS LOCATED WITHIN ONE THOUSAND FEET OF
22 THE PROPOSED ACTIVITY.
23 2. NO SOONER THAN THIRTY DAYS AND NOT LATER THAN SIXTY DAYS AFTER THE
24 RECEIPT OF AN APPLICATION BY A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR
25 MORE, AND AFTER NOTICE OF APPLICATION HAS BEEN PUBLISHED BY THE APPLI-
26 CANT IN TWO NEWSPAPERS HAVING A GENERAL CIRCULATION IN THE AREA, THE
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00523-01-1
S. 7163 2
1 COMMISSIONER SHALL HOLD A PUBLIC HEARING ON SUCH APPLICATION AT A SUIT-
2 ABLE LOCATION IN SUCH CITY WHERE THE AFFECTED WETLAND IS SITUATED UNLESS
3 NO NOTICE OF OBJECTION HAS BEEN FILED OR UNLESS THE COMMISSIONER FINDS
4 THE ACTIVITY TO BE OF SUCH A MINOR NATURE AS NOT TO AFFECT OR ENDANGER
5 THE BALANCE OF SYSTEMS WITHIN THE WETLANDS, IN WHICH CASE THE COMMIS-
6 SIONER MAY, IN THE EXERCISE OF DISCRETION, DISPENSE WITH SUCH HEARING.
7 WHERE THE COMMISSIONER FINDS THAT A HEARING IS NOT NECESSARY, A DECISION
8 SETTING FORTH REASONS THEREFOR SHALL BE PREPARED, SHALL BE A MATTER OF
9 PUBLIC RECORD AND SHALL BE MAILED TO THE CITY AND THE OWNERS OF RECORD
10 OF PROPERTY LOCATED WITHIN ONE THOUSAND FEET OF THE WETLANDS WHERE THE
11 PROPOSED WORK OR ANY PART OF IT IS LOCATED AND TO ALL PERSONS WHO FILED
12 A STATEMENT FOLLOWING THE PUBLICATION OF SUCH NOTICE OF APPLICATION. ALL
13 OWNERS OF RECORD OF LAND WHICH IS LOCATED WITHIN ONE THOUSAND FEET OF
14 THE PROPOSED ACTIVITY AND THE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS WHERE THE PROPOSED
15 ACTIVITY IS LOCATED SHALL BE NOTIFIED BY CERTIFIED MAIL OF THE HEARING
16 NOT LESS THAN TWENTY-ONE DAYS PRIOR TO THE DATE SET FOR SUCH HEARING.
17 THE APPLICANT SHALL CAUSE NOTICE OF SUCH HEARING TO BE PUBLISHED IN TWO
18 NEWSPAPERS HAVING A GENERAL CIRCULATION IN THE AREA WHERE THE AFFECTED
19 WETLANDS ARE LOCATED AT LEAST TWENTY-ONE DAYS PRIOR TO THE HEARING. ALL
20 APPLICATIONS AND MAPS AND DOCUMENTS RELATING THERETO SHALL BE OPEN FOR
21 PUBLIC INSPECTION AT THE OFFICE OF THE CLERK OF THE COUNTY IN WHICH THE
22 WETLAND IS SITUATED. AT SUCH HEARING ANY PERSON OR PERSONS FILING A
23 REQUEST FOR A HEARING OR A TIMELY NOTICE OF APPEARANCE MAY APPEAR AND BE
24 HEARD.
25 3. The rules and regulations adopted by the department to implement
26 this article and the provisions of article 70 of this chapter and rules
27 and regulations adopted thereunder shall govern permit applications,
28 renewals, modifications, suspensions and revocations under this article,
29 PROVIDED HOWEVER, THAT AFTER THE DEPARTMENT HAS GIVEN NOTICE TO AN
30 APPLICANT THAT AN APPLICATION IS COMPLETE, OR THE APPLICATION IS DEEMED
31 COMPLETE, THE APPLICANT SHALL CAUSE A NOTICE OF COMPLETION OF THE APPLI-
32 CATION TO BE PUBLISHED IN A NEWSPAPER OF GENERAL CIRCULATION IN THE
33 AFFECTED AREA AS PROVIDED IN RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT.
34 S 2. Subdivisions 1, 2 and 3 of section 24-0703 of the environmental
35 conservation law, subdivisions 1 and 2 as amended and subdivision 3 as
36 added by chapter 233 of the laws of 1979, are amended to read as
37 follows:
38 1. Any person proposing to conduct or cause to be conducted a regu-
39 lated activity upon any freshwater wetland shall file an application for
40 a permit with the clerk of the local government having jurisdiction or
41 the department, as the case may be. Review of the application shall be
42 made by the local government or the commissioner, as the case may be, in
43 accordance with applicable law and such rules hereunder as may be
44 adopted by the commissioner. Such application shall include a detailed
45 description of the proposed activity and a map showing the area of
46 freshwater wetland directly affected, with the location of the proposed
47 activity thereon. The clerk or commissioner shall cause notice of such
48 application to be mailed to all local governments where the proposed
49 activity or any part of it is located. UPON RECEIPT OF SUCH APPLICATION
50 BY A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR MORE, SUCH CITY SHALL
51 CAUSE A NOTICE OF SUCH APPLICATION TO BE MAILED TO OWNERS OF RECORD OF
52 LAND WHICH IS LOCATED WITHIN ONE THOUSAND FEET OF THE PROPOSED ACTIVITY.
53 2. No sooner than thirty days and not later than sixty days after the
54 receipt by a local government of an application, and after notice of
55 application has been published by the applicant in two newspapers having
56 a general circulation in the area, the local government OR THE COMMIS-
S. 7163 3
1 SIONER shall hold a public hearing on such application at a suitable
2 location in the local government where the affected wetland is situated
3 unless no notice of objection has been filed or unless the [local
4 government finds the] activity HAS BEEN FOUND to be of such a minor
5 nature as not to affect or endanger the balance of systems within the
6 wetlands, in which case the local government OR THE COMMISSIONER may, in
7 the exercise of discretion, dispense with such hearing. Where the local
8 government OR THE COMMISSIONER finds that a hearing is not necessary, a
9 decision setting forth reasons therefor shall be prepared, shall be a
10 matter of public record and shall be mailed to all local governments,
11 AND IN A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION OR MORE TO OWNERS OF
12 RECORD OF PROPERTY LOCATED WITHIN ONE THOUSAND FEET OF THE WETLANDS,
13 where the proposed work or any part of it is located and to all persons
14 who filed a statement with the local government OR THE COMMISSIONER,
15 following the publication of such notice of application. All owners of
16 record of the adjacent land, AND, IN A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE
17 MILLION OR MORE ALL OWNERS OF RECORD OF PROPERTY WHICH IS LOCATED WITHIN
18 ONE THOUSAND FEET OF THE PROPOSED ACTIVITY, and the local governments
19 where the proposed activity is located shall be notified by certified
20 mail of the hearing not less than [fifteen] TWENTY-ONE days prior to the
21 date set for such hearing. The local government OR THE COMMISSIONER
22 shall cause notice of such hearing to be published in two newspapers
23 having a general circulation in the area where the affected freshwater
24 wetlands are located. All applications and maps and documents relating
25 thereto shall be open for public inspection at the office of the clerk
26 of the local government, OR IN A CITY WITH A POPULATION OF ONE MILLION
27 OR MORE, IN THE OFFICE OF THE CLERK OF THE COUNTY in which the wetland
28 is situated. At such hearing any person or persons filing a request for
29 a hearing or a timely notice of appearance may appear and be heard.
30 3. In addition to the provisions of article 70 of this chapter and
31 rules and regulations adopted thereunder, the rules and regulations
32 adopted by the department pursuant to this article to implement its
33 processing of permit applications, renewals, modifications, suspensions
34 and revocations shall govern permit administration by the department
35 under this article, provided however, that after the department has
36 given notice to an applicant that an application is complete, or the
37 application is deemed complete, the applicant shall cause a notice of
38 COMPLETION OF THE application to be published in a newspaper of general
39 circulation in the affected area as provided in rules and regulations of
40 the department.
41 S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
