S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  3723

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             March 30, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sens. SEWARD, GRIFFO, O. JOHNSON, LARKIN, MORAHAN -- 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 elim-
  inating term limits for regional fish and wildlife management boards

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision 4  of  section  11-0501  of  the
environmental  conservation law, as amended by chapter 64 of the laws of
1987, is amended to read as follows:
  a. A regional fish and wildlife management board shall be appointed in
each of the regions established under subdivision  3  of  this  section.
Such  regional  board  shall  consist  of three members from each county
within the region which has appointed its members. In each  county,  one
member  shall  be  a  member of or represent the board of supervisors or
county legislative body, one member shall represent  the  landowners  of
the  county  and one member shall represent the sportsmen of the county.
Such members from each county shall be appointed by the chairman of  the
board  of  supervisors  of such county with the approval of the board of
supervisors, except that in a county having a county president, a county
executive or other chief executive officer, the chief executive  officer
shall  appoint the members representing such county with the approval of
the board of supervisors of such county. In a county having  an  elected
legislative body the presiding officer shall appoint the members repres-
enting  such  county with the approval of the legislative body. If there
is no presiding officer then the members representing such county  shall
be  appointed  by  the  legislative  body as a whole. If a member of the
board of supervisors or legislative body is not  available  to  actively
participate  on the fish and wildlife management board, a representative
shall be selected who is an elected county official or who  is  employed
by  the county government in a position having administrative or manage-

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD10466-02-9
              

S. 3723                             2

rial authority. A landowner representative  must  actually  reside  upon
rural  lands  within the county and actually be engaged in the operation
of such lands for  production  of  agricultural  commodities  or  forest
products.  If a landowner representative with such qualifications is not
available to actively participate on the fish  and  wildlife  management
board,  a representative may be appointed who has been for at least five
of the past ten years, before commencing his first term in any series of
consecutive terms, engaged in such operation of  rural  lands,  and  who
resides  within the county he represents. If no landowner representative
with either of these qualifications is available to actively participate
on the fish and  wildlife  management  board  a  representative  may  be
appointed  who is a resource manager engaged in such operations on rural
lands, and designated by the corporate owner of those lands to represent
the landowner's agricultural or silvicultural interests. In the case  of
certain  counties  designated by the full state board with a scarcity of
rural lands operated  for  production  of  agricultural  commodities  or
forest products, the landowner representative shall own such rural lands
in New York state, whether or not those properties lie within the county
wherein  he resides and represents. A sportsman representative must be a
resident of the county.   The said chief  executive  officer,  presiding
officer  or  legislative body shall receive and consider for appointment
as the landowner representative, the recommendations made by the  county
farm  bureau  and  Pomona grange, and for appointment as the sportsmen's
representative, the recommendations made by the county units  of  organ-
ized  sportsmen's  groups,  AS WELL AS CONSIDERING THE ADVANTAGES OF NEW
REPRESENTATIVES.  The term of office of regional board members shall  be
two  calendar  years. A member shall be eligible [to succeed himself not
more than three times and shall thereafter be eligible for reappointment
only after one term out of office] FOR REAPPOINTMENT TO SUCCESSIVE TERMS
OF OFFICE WITHOUT LIMITATION WHERE OTHERWISE QUALIFIED.  The term of the
sportsmen's representative and the board of supervisors or county legis-
lative body representative shall expire at the end of the  odd  numbered
years;  the term of the landowner representative shall expire at the end
of the even numbered years. An alternate board of supervisors or  county
legislative body representative, sportsmen's representative and landown-
er representative may also be appointed, who shall be available to serve
in the event of the temporary inability of the member sportsmen's repre-
sentative  or member landowner representative or board of supervisors or
county legislative body representative to  so  function.  A  vacancy  in
membership of a regional board shall be filled in the same manner as the
original  appointment for the balance of the unexpired term during which
the vacancy occurs; if a supervisor member or  county  legislative  body
member  shall cease to be a supervisor or member of the legislative body
before the expiration of his term as a member of the regional  board,  a
successor  shall be appointed for the unexpired balance of the term as a
member of the regional board. The chairman of the Board of Directors  of
each  soil  and  water  conservation  district  and the chairman of each
regional forest practice board within the fish and  wildlife  management
region, or his or their representatives, shall be advisory members with-
out vote.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.