The New York State Senate

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

                                 8663--A

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              July 1, 2020
                               ___________

Introduced by Sens. KENNEDY, LITTLE, KAMINSKY, PERSAUD -- read twice and
  ordered  printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
  Rules -- committee discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted  as
  amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to establish the Adirondack road salt reduction task force, pilot
  plan and test program; and providing for the repeal of such provisions
  upon expiration thereof

  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  the  "Randy
Preston road salt reduction act".
  §  2. 1. There is hereby established an Adirondack road salt reduction
task force, hereinafter referred to as the "task force",  to  conduct  a
comprehensive review of road salt contamination and road management best
practices  within  the Adirondack park. Such task force shall consist of
fourteen members which shall include the commissioner of  transportation
or  their  designee,  the  commissioner of environmental conservation or
their designee, the commissioner of health or their designee, the execu-
tive director of the Adirondack park agency or their designee,  and  ten
other  members  to be appointed by the governor as follows: two upon the
recommendation of the temporary president of the senate,  two  upon  the
recommendation  of the speaker of the assembly, one upon the recommenda-
tion of the minority leader of the senate, one upon  the  recommendation
of  the minority leader of the assembly, and four without recommendation
from any other person.
  2. Task force members shall receive no compensation for their services
but shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary  expenses  incurred  in
the  performance  of  their duties, to the extent funds are appropriated
for such purpose. The commissioner of environmental conservation and the
commissioner of transportation shall serve as joint chairs of  the  task
force.    A majority of the members of the task force shall constitute a
quorum for the transaction of business or the exercise of any  power  or
function  of  the task force.   Any vacancies on the task force shall be
filled in the manner provided for in the initial appointment.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD13704-11-0

S. 8663--A                          2

  3.  The task force shall be authorized to  hold  public  hearings  and
meetings, and to consult with any organization, educational institution,
or  other  government  entity  or person, to enable it to accomplish its
duties. To effectuate the purposes of  this  act,  the  task  force  may
request  and shall receive from any department, division, board, bureau,
commission or other agency of the state or any  state  public  authority
such  assistance,  information and data as will enable the task force to
properly carry out its powers and duties hereunder.
  4. The task force shall undertake a review and assessment of road salt
contamination within the Adirondack park, assess current  department  of
transportation  policies  and  practices  with  respect to state roadway
management in winter weather within the  Adirondack  park,  and  roadway
management  best practices.   This review and assessment shall take into
consideration the best available science concerning  road  salt  contam-
ination  and  the  nature,  scope and magnitude of associated impacts to
surface and ground  waters,  public  and  private  lands,  property  and
infrastructure.
  5. The task force shall prepare and submit to the governor, the tempo-
rary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the chairs of
the  senate committees on transportation, environmental conservation and
health, and the chairs of the  assembly  committees  on  transportation,
environmental conservation and health, on or before September first, two
thousand twenty-one, a report containing:
  (a)  findings of an initial assessment of the nature, scope and magni-
tude of associated impacts of road salt on surface  and  ground  waters,
public  and  private  lands,  property, health and infrastructure in the
Adirondack park;
  (b) a review of current state road management practices and levels  of
service for state and local roadways in the Adirondack park;
  (c)  recommendations  for  state  and local governments and the public
with respect to:
  i. enhancement of winter road maintenance levels of service  and  best
management  practices  and road salt reduction techniques to reduce road
salt contamination of surface and ground waters in the Adirondack park;
  ii. methods for rapid response  to  surface  and  groundwater  contam-
ination  in  the Adirondack park with the intent to minimize impacts for
homeowners;
  iii. establishment of a training program for state  and  local  winter
road maintenance workers; and
  iv.  advancement  of  a public education campaign to inform the public
about road salt contamination and how the public can reduce the need for
road salt;
  (d) a calculation of the average amount of road salt applied on  state
roadways annually for the years 2008 through 2018 in the Adirondack park
between October and April of each winter road management season to serve
as a baseline amount;
  (e)  recommendations for a publicly accessible record-keeping database
system for road salt purchases and applications  within  the  Adirondack
park;
  (f) recommendations for road salt reduction targets for the Adirondack
park  to  guide  the department of transportation, department of health,
and department of  environmental  conservation  in  measurably  reducing
sodium and chloride levels in surface and ground waters; and
  (g)  recommendations  for an Adirondack park road salt reduction pilot
plan and test program including monitoring and operational  plan  goals,

S. 8663--A                          3

objectives,  and  activities to be implemented pursuant to section three
of this act.
  §  3.  1.  There  is  hereby  established an Adirondack park road salt
reduction pilot plan and test program to be conducted by the  department
of  transportation,  in cooperation with the department of environmental
conservation, between October 15 and June 30 each  year  beginning  2021
through  2024,  to  test  best  management  practices, updated levels of
service, and overall road salt reduction targets within  the  Adirondack
park.    The pilot plan and test shall be implemented on all state-owned
roadways within the boundary of the Adirondack park.
  2. For the duration of the pilot plan  and  test,  the  department  of
transportation and department of environmental conservation shall test a
variety  of application techniques and road management strategies within
the Adirondack park, and shall issue a report on  the  effectiveness  of
such techniques and strategies which shall include the resulting impacts
on  water quality and state roadway levels of service for each technique
and strategy. The techniques and strategies employed shall include,  but
not be limited to:
  (a) varying application methods, rates and frequencies with the intent
to  measurably  reduce  road  salt  applied to state roadways within the
Adirondack park. This shall include  test  comparisons  of  applications
consisting  primarily of abrasives and applications consisting primarily
of deicers, especially anti-icing and deicing brines;
  (b) implementation of well-established best practices such as  cutting
back  the  canopy where legal and appropriate, and pre-wetting abrasives
or solid deicers;
  (c) use of the best available technology and equipment for winter road
management;
  (d) changes to traffic management when weather events make road condi-
tions hazardous;
  (e) monitoring of water quality of surface and ground waters on  down-
hill slopes of state roadways in the Adirondack park;
  (f)  monitoring  of  road  conditions  along state roadways within the
Adirondack park;
  (g) monitoring of truck operators using post-trip reporting;
  (h) tracking of weather-related crash rates on state  roadways  within
the Adirondack park; and
  (i)  the  conducting  of  a  public education and outreach campaign to
inform Adirondack park residents and visitors of changes to winter  road
maintenance  practices  and engaging the public in changing behaviors to
support road salt reduction efforts.
  3. Following the completion of the pilot plan and test, the department
of transportation and department  of  environmental  conservation  shall
submit  a  summary  report  to  the governor, temporary president of the
senate, and speaker of the assembly by August 30, 2024, of  the  results
of  such  pilot plan and test, including the identification of effective
and ineffective techniques  for  winter  road  maintenance  and  revised
levels of service in the Adirondack park.
  §  4.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
deemed repealed December 31, 2024.