Senate Bill S3456

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Relates to procedures for the adoption of local laws imposing more restrictive standards for construction than those under the state code

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2010	referred to housing, construction and community development
Mar 19, 2009	referred to housing, construction and community development

co-Sponsors

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Housing, Construction And Community Development
Law Section:: Executive Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §379, Exec L

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to procedures for the adoption of local laws imposing more restrictive standards for construction than those under the state uniform fire prevention and building code; requires approval of such higher standards by the state fire prevention and building code council.

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S3456

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the executive law, in relation to
the adoption by municipalities of local laws or ordinances imposing
higher or more restrictive standards for construction than are
applicable generally to municipalities in the state uniform fire
prevention and building code

 PURPOSE OF THE BILL :  This bill would amend Article 18 of the
Executive Law to provide that local laws and ordinances imposing more
restrictive local standards (MRLS) than are applicable generally under
the State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (Uniform Code)
shall not take effect until after such standards have been approved by
the State Fire Prevention and Building Code Council (the Code
Council).

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :  Section 1 amends Executive Law § 379(1) to
provide that proposed MRLS for construction imposed by a local law or
ordinance enacted or adopted by a local government (defined as a
village, town or city) shall not be effective until such standards
have been approved by the Code Council.

Section 2 amends Executive Law § 379(2) to clarify that the provisions
relating to Code Council review and approval of MRLS apply to
standards enacted or adopted by a local government (defined as a
village, town or city) or by Nassau County.

Section 3 amends Executive Law § 379(3) to clarify that subdivision
(3), which currently   provides that no municipality shall have the
power to supersede, void, repeal or make less restrictive any
provision of any rule or regulation made pursuant to Article 18 of the
Executive Law, does not limit the authority of any local government
(defined as a village, town or city) or Nassau County to enact or
adopt MRLS as provided in Executive Law §§ 379(1) and 379(5),
respectively.

Section 4 amends Executive Law § 379(5) to provide that MRLS for
construction imposed by a local law or ordinance enacted or adopted by
Nassau County shall not be effective until such standards have been
approved by the Code Council. Provisions relating to MRLS that may
have been enacted or adopted by Nassau County before the effective
date of the chapter law that originally added subdivision (5) to
section 379 of the Executive Law are no longer necessary, and would be
removed by section 4 of this bill.

Section 5 provides that the bill shall take effect immediately.

 EXISTING LAW :  Executive Law § 379(1) authorizes a local government
(defined as a village, town or city) to enact or adopt local laws or
ordinances imposing higher or more restrictive standards for
construction than are applicable generally under the Uniform Code.
Executive Law § 379(5) authorizes Nassau County to enact or adopt such
local laws or ordinances.

When a local government or Nassau County enacts or adopts such a local
law or ordinance, it must notify and petition the Code Council for a
determination of whether the standards imposed by such local law or
ordinance are higher or more restrictive than those imposed by the
Uniform Code. Such a local law or ordinance remains in full force and
effect during the period in which the Code Council is considering the
petition. The Code Council may "adopt" the higher or more restrictive
standards imposed by any such local law or ordinance only if the Code
Council finds (1) that such standards are reasonably necessary because
of special conditions prevailing within the local government, and (2)
that such standards conform with generally accepted engineering and

fire prevention practices and the purposes of Article 18 of the
Executive Law.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :  This is a new proposal.

 STATEMENT IN SUPPORT :  Executive Law § 379 currently authorizes
local governments (defined as a villages, towns or cities) and Nassau
County, to enact or adopt local laws or ordinances imposing MRLS for
construction that differ from those imposed by the Uniform Code.
Within thirty days of the enactment or adoption of any such local law
or ordinance, a local government or Nassau County, as the case may be,
must petition the council for a determination of whether the local law
or ordinance is in fact more stringent than the Uniform Code. Under
current law, while the Code Council is considering such a petition,
any such local law or ordinance remains in full force and effect.

The Code Council's approval is based on: 1) a determination that such
standards are, in fact, higher or more restrictive than those imposed
by the Uniform Code; 2) a finding that such standards are reasonably
necessary because of special conditions prevailing within the local
government; and 3) a finding that such standards conform with accepted
engineering and fire prevention practices and with the purposes of
Article IS of the Executive Law.

The Code Council may ultimately determine that the standards imposed
by a local law or ordinance are actually less restrictive than those
specified in the Uniform Code; that the standards cannot be approved
because they are not justified by special conditions prevailing in the
local government; or that they do not conform with accepted
engineering and fire prevention practices or the purposes of Article
18 of the Executive Law. Under such circumstances, the petitioning
government will have had less restrictive or otherwise conflicting
standards in effect during the period of time between the adoption of
its local law or ordinance and the disapproval of the standards by the
Code Council. Such a scenario leads to confusion on the part of
regulated parties and uncertainty about the state of the law.

Accordingly, this bill seeks to prevent such confusion and uncertainty
by requiring that the Code Council approve MRLS imposed by a local law
or ordinance before such standards may become effective.

 BUDGET IMPLICATIONS :  None.

Effective Date:  This bill would take effect immediately.

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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

                                  3456

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             March 19, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sen. ESPADA -- (at request of the Department of State) --
  read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to
  the Committee on Housing, Construction and Community Development

AN  ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to the adoption by muni-
  cipalities of  local  laws  or  ordinances  imposing  higher  or  more
  restrictive  standards  for construction than are applicable generally
  to municipalities in the state uniform fire  prevention  and  building
  code

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

  Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section  379  of  the  executive  law,  as
amended  by  chapter  772  of  the  laws  of 1986, is amended to read as
follows:
  1. Except in the case of factory manufactured homes, intended for  use
as  one  or  two family dwelling units or multiple dwellings of not more
than two stories in height, the legislative body of any local government
may duly enact or adopt local laws or ordinances imposing higher or more
restrictive standards for construction within the jurisdiction  of  such
local  government than are applicable generally to such local government
in the uniform code. Within thirty days of such enactment  or  adoption,
the  chief  executive  officer, or if there be none, the chairman of the
legislative body of such local government, shall so notify the  council,
and shall petition the council for a determination of whether THE STAND-
ARDS  FOR CONSTRUCTION IMPOSED BY such local laws or ordinances are more
stringent than the standards for construction  applicable  generally  to
such  local  government in the uniform code. [During the period in which
the council is considering such petition, such local laws or  ordinances
shall  remain  in full force and effect.] THE STANDARDS FOR CONSTRUCTION
IMPOSED BY SUCH LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE SHALL NOT BE EFFECTIVE UNTIL SUCH
STANDARDS SHALL HAVE BEEN APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL PURSUANT  TO  SUBDIVI-
SION  TWO  OF  THIS  SECTION.  IF  SO  APPROVED, SUCH STANDARDS SHALL BE

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD08284-02-9

S. 3456                             2

SUBJECT TO SUCH LIMITATIONS AS TO TERM OR DURATION AND SUCH OTHER CONDI-
TIONS AS MAY BE SPECIFIED BY THE COUNCIL AND  SUCH  STANDARDS  SHALL  BE
SUBJECT  TO TERMINATION BY THE COUNCIL AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF
THIS SECTION.
  S  2.  Subdivision  2 of section 379 of the executive law, as added by
chapter 707 of the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows:
  2. If the council  finds  (A)  THAT  THE  STANDARDS  FOR  CONSTRUCTION
IMPOSED  BY  A LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE DULY ENACTED OR ADOPTED BY A LOCAL
GOVERNMENT PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF  THIS  SECTION  OR  BY  NASSAU
COUNTY  PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION FIVE OF THIS SECTION ARE HIGHER AND MORE
RESTRICTIVE THAN THE STANDARDS FOR CONSTRUCTION APPLICABLE GENERALLY  TO
SUCH  LOCAL  GOVERNMENT OR TO SUCH COUNTY, AS THE CASE MAY BE, UNDER THE
UNIFORM CODE, AND (B) that such higher or more restrictive standards are
reasonably necessary because of  special  conditions  prevailing  within
[the]  SUCH  local government OR WITHIN SUCH COUNTY, AS THE CASE MAY BE,
and (C) that such standards conform with accepted engineering  and  fire
prevention practices and the purposes of this article, the council shall
[adopt] APPROVE such standards, in whole or part. The council shall have
the power to limit the term or duration of such standards, impose condi-
tions  in connection with the [adoption] APPROVAL thereof, and to termi-
nate such standards at such times, and in such manner as the council may
deem necessary, desirable or proper.
  S 3. Subdivision 3 of section 379 of the executive law,  as  added  by
chapter 707 of the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows:
  3.  Nothing in this article shall be construed to prohibit any munici-
pality from adopting or enacting any building  regulations  relating  to
any  matter  as  to  which the uniform fire prevention and building code
does not provide, but no municipality shall have the power to supersede,
void, repeal or make more or less restrictive  any  provisions  of  this
article  or  of  rules  or  regulations  made pursuant hereto, EXCEPT AS
PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISIONS ONE AND FIVE OF THIS SECTION.
  S 4. Subdivision 5 of section 379 of the executive law,  as  added  by
chapter 622 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as follows:
  5.  Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision one of this section,
the legislative body of Nassau county [may have duly enacted or  adopted
or]  may duly enact or adopt local laws or ordinances imposing higher or
more restrictive standards for construction within the  jurisdiction  of
the  county  than  are applicable generally to the county in the uniform
code. [The] WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF SUCH ENACTMENT OR ADOPTION, THE  chief
executive  officer, or if there be none, the chairman of the legislative
body of the county, shall notify the council,  and  shall  petition  the
council  for  a determination of whether [such preexisting local laws or
ordinances, or within thirty days of such enactment or adoption of]  THE
STANDARDS  FOR  CONSTRUCTION IMPOSED BY such local laws or ordinances[,]
are more stringent than the standards for construction applicable gener-
ally to such county in the uniform code. [During the period in which the
council is considering such petition,  such  local  laws  or  ordinances
shall  remain  in full force and effect.] THE STANDARDS FOR CONSTRUCTION
IMPOSED BY SUCH LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE SHALL NOT BE EFFECTIVE UNTIL SUCH
STANDARDS SHALL HAVE BEEN APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL PURSUANT  TO  SUBDIVI-
SION  TWO  OF  THIS  SECTION.  IF  SO  APPROVED, SUCH STANDARDS SHALL BE
SUBJECT TO SUCH LIMITATIONS AS TO TERM OR DURATION AND SUCH OTHER CONDI-
TIONS AS MAY BE SPECIFIED BY THE COUNCIL AND  SUCH  STANDARDS  SHALL  BE
SUBJECT  TO TERMINATION BY THE COUNCIL AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF
THIS SECTION.
  S 5. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S3456

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

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co-Sponsors

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Details

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Pedro Espada Jr.

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

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co-Sponsors

Ruth Hassell-Thompson

Suzi Oppenheimer

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Details

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2009-S3456 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments