S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7117
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
March 20, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. REILLY -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to elim-
inating term limits for fish and wildlife management board members
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-
rial authority. A landowner representative must actually reside upon
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10488-01-9
A. 7117 2
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.] The term of the sportsmen's repre-
sentative and the board of supervisors or county legislative body repre-
sentative 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 landowner represen-
tative may also be appointed, who shall be available to serve in the
event of the temporary inability of the member sportsmen's represen-
tative 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.