Senate Bill S1028

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

                                  1028

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             January 8, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  AVELLA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities

AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the  city  of  New  York,  in
  relation  to requiring municipal and government agencies, and individ-
  ual members of the public to abstain from disposing and destroying  of
  public  trees,  tree  parts  that  are  involved  in  property damage,
  personal injury or death to persons  from  trees  growing  within  and
  across the public-right-of-ways, including parks and street trees

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

  Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as "Yingyi's law".
  S 2. The administrative code of the city of New  York  is  amended  by
adding a new section 4-209 to read as follows:
  S  4-209 PUBLIC  TREES. 1. THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT AND ALL
RELEVANT AGENCIES SHALL CONTRACT WITH A FULL-TIME INDEPENDENT CONSULTING
ARBORIST TO INSPECT, DIAGNOSE AND ANALYZE FOR DEFECTS  AND  DISEASE  ALL
PUBLIC TREES, TREE PARTS INVOLVED IN PROPERTY DAMAGE, PERSONAL INJURY OR
DEATH  WITHIN FORTY-EIGHT HOURS. SUCH CONSULTING ARBORIST SHALL GENERATE
A REPORT WHICH WILL BE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE ON-LINE WITHIN THIRTY DAYS  OF
SUCH INSPECTION.
  2.  THE  CONDITION  AND CAUSE OF THE TREE FAILURE SHALL BE DOCUMENTED.
TREES AND/OR TREE PARTS SHALL BE INSPECTED, ANALYZED AND  DIAGNOSED  FOR
DEFECTS, DISEASE AND DETERMINE PRESUMED/OPINION AS TO THE CAUSE OF FAIL-
URE  BY  A  FULL-TIME  INDEPENDENT  CONSULTING ARBORIST (CA) TRAINED AND
SKILLED IN TREE DIAGNOSTIC PRACTICES, LAB SAMPLING, PHOTO DOCUMENTATION,
FORENSICS AND LEGALLY BINDING REPORT WRITING.  THE  CONSULTING  ARBORIST
WITH  THIS  SKILL  SET  SHALL  BE  A MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL ORGANIZATION
REPRESENTING THE PROFESSION-THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CONSULTING ARBORISTS
(ASCA) AND PREFERABLY REFERRED TO AS A REGISTERED  CONSULTING  ARBORISTS
(RCA) BY THAT ORGANIZATION.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD02064-01-5

              

S. 1028                             2

  3.   THE   INSPECTION/SAMPLING  AND  DIAGNOSIS  MUST  BE  MADE  WITHIN
FORTY-EIGHT HOURS OF THE INCIDENT. EVERY EFFORT SHALL BE MADE TO PROVIDE
THE CONSULTING ARBORIST WITH ACCESS TO THE SPECIMEN AT THE INITIAL  SITE
OF  OCCURRENCE AND OR ANY SUBSEQUENT LOCATION THAT THE SPECIMEN HAS BEEN
MOVED  TO  FOR STORAGE AND PRESERVATION WITHIN THE BOROUGH OF OCCURRENCE
IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
  4. EVERY REASONABLE EFFORT MUST BE MADE TO SAVE AND PRESERVE THE  TREE
AND/OR  TREE PART SAMPLE AT THE SCENE OF THE INCIDENT. IN THE EVENT THAT
AN INDEPENDENT CONSULTING ARBORIST IS UNABLE TO VISIT THE SITE TO SECURE
THE SPECIMEN OR SPECIMENS IN A REASONABLE PERIOD OF  TIME,  A  CHAIN  OF
CUSTODY SHALL BE ESTABLISHED BY THE CITY OF NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF PARKS
AND RECREATION FORESTRY AND/OR CLIMBER AND PRUNER PERSONNEL.
  5.  IN THE EVENT THE TREES INHABIT PROPERTIES BELONGING TO OTHER AGEN-
CIES SUCH AS THE BOARD OF EDUCATION, OR DCAS, MTA, STATE DOT, NYCHA ETC.
THE CHAIN OF CUSTODY REVERTS TO THE INDIVIDUAL AGENCY.  THE  CITY  SHALL
MAINTAIN A LIST OF APPROVED CONSULTING ARBORISTS, CREATED FROM THE ISSU-
ANCE  OF  A  REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS. A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE INDIVIDUAL
AGENCIES SHALL BE DESIGNATED TO CALL THE APPROVED ARBORISTS.
  6. RESULTS ON THE FINDINGS ABOUT THE CONDITION OF  TREES  AND/OR  TREE
LIMBS  INVOLVED  IN  PERSONAL  INJURIES AND PROPERTY DAMAGE MUST BE MADE
PERMANENTLY AVAILABLE ON-LINE WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF THE  INCIDENT  ON  A
WEBSITE  MAINTAINED  BY  THE  CITY OF NEW YORK; AND THAT THE INDEPENDENT
REPORTING IN THE FORM OF A CONSULTING ARBORIST REPORT SHALL OCCUR BY THE
CONSULTING ARBORIST WHO WILL VERIFY THE PERFORMED TREE AND/OR TREE  PART
DIAGNOSIS AND LAB ANALYSIS. THE FORMAT OF SUCH REPORT FOR ON-LINE INTER-
NET AVAILABILITY SHALL BE DETERMINED BY THE CITY OF NEW YORK.
  7. IN THE EVENT OF STORMS OR A SERIES OF STORMS THAT RESULT IN A LARGE
VOLUME  OF  TREE  LOSSES  OR  TREE  FAILURES THAT CAUSE PROPERTY DAMAGE,
PERSONAL INJURIES OR DEATH TO PERSONS, EVERY REASONABLE EFFORT  MUST  BE
MADE TO MARK, LABEL AND IDENTIFY THE TREE/TREE PARTS AT THAT LOCATION BY
THE CONSULTING ARBORIST, ONCE CONTACTED.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.