The New York State Senate

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  7430--A
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                May 7, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. JENSEN, GALLAHAN, B. MILLER, MANKTELOW, SMULLEN,
   BYRNES -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation --
   committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
   recommitted to said committee
 
 AN  ACT to amend the canal law, in relation to requiring corporations to
   provide written notice to the  municipality  in  which  the  canal  is
   located and properties adjacent to such canal prior to commencing work
   along such canal
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 42 of the canal law, as amended by chapter  335  of
 the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
   §  42.  Removal  of encroachments, TREES AND VEGETATION. 1. The corpo-
 ration is authorized to cause to be  removed  from  canal  property  any
 building, part of a building or structure erected, placed, maintained or
 otherwise occupying such canal property, if, in its opinion, the removal
 is necessary for the improvement, use, maintenance, control, management,
 repair  or  operation  of  the canal system. It shall be the duty of any
 person owning or maintaining such a building,  part  of  a  building  or
 structure  to remove the same within thirty days from the service by the
 corporation upon said person of a notice ordering its removal. Upon  the
 failure  of  the  person  so  ordered  to remove the building, part of a
 building or structure, the corporation may,  without  liability  on  the
 part  of  the state or the corporation, take whatever action it may deem
 necessary to cause the removal. Service of the order of removal must  be
 personal  if  the  person to be served can be found within the state. If
 the corporation shall not be able to serve such notice or cause the same
 to be served on the said person within the state after making a  reason-
 able  effort  so  to do, service may be made by attaching such notice to
 the said building, part of a building or structure.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11088-02-1
 A. 7430--A                          2

 
   2. THE CORPORATION SHALL PROVIDE WRITTEN NOTICE TO ANY MUNICIPALITY IN
 WHICH ANY WORK ALONG A CANAL SHALL BE DONE, AS WELL AS ANY AND ALL PROP-
 ERTIES ADJACENT TO SUCH CANAL, NO LESS THAN NINETY DAYS AND NO MORE THAN
 ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS PRIOR TO THE START DATE  OF  SUCH  WORK.    WORK
 REQUIRING  NOTICE  SHALL  INCLUDE  BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO THE CLEARING OF
 TREES AND VEGETATION.  IF SUCH WORK STATED IN THE WRITTEN NOTICE TO  THE
 MUNICIPALITY  AND  ADJACENT  PROPERTIES HAS NOT STARTED WITHIN NINETY TO
 ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS FROM THE DATE OF SUCH WRITTEN NOTICE BEING SENT,
 THE CORPORATION MAY ISSUE A NOTICE OF EXTENSION TO SUCH MUNICIPALITY AND
 ADJACENT PROPERTIES WITH THE UPDATED DATE UPON WHICH WORK  SHALL  BEGIN.
 SUCH UPDATED DATE SHALL BE NO FURTHER OUT THAN AN ADDITIONAL THIRTY DAYS
 FROM  THE  ORIGINALLY  ANTICIPATED  START  DATE.   IF SUCH WORK FAILS TO
 COMMENCE WITHIN SUCH THIRTY-DAY EXTENSION, THE CORPORATION SHALL ISSUE A
 NEW NOTIFICATION OF SUCH WORK TO THE MUNICIPALITY AND  ADJACENT  PROPER-
 TIES  NO  LESS THAN NINETY DAYS AND NO MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS
 PRIOR TO THE NEW START DATE OF SUCH WORK.
   3. THE CORPORATION SHALL HOLD A  PUBLIC  HEARING  BETWEEN  THIRTY  AND
 FORTY-FIVE  DAYS  PRIOR TO THE SCHEDULED COMMENCEMENT OF ANY WORK OCCUR-
 RING ALONG ANY CANAL IN THE MUNICIPALITY IN WHICH THE WORK IS  SCHEDULED
 TO  TAKE  PLACE.    SUCH PUBLIC HEARING SHALL BE NOTICED TO RESIDENTS OF
 SUCH MUNICIPALITY IN A WAY THAT IS  DESIGNED  TO  PROPERLY  NOTICE  SUCH
 COMMUNITY.    SUCH NOTICE SHALL INCLUDE THE TIME, PLACE, AND LOCATION OF
 SUCH MEETING AS WELL AS THE PROPOSED SCOPE  OF  WORK  AND  THE  SPECIFIC
 LOCATION OF THE WORK TO BE UNDERTAKEN.  METHODS OF NOTICE TO A COMMUNITY
 INCLUDE  BUT  ARE  NOT LIMITED TO COVERAGE ON THE LOCAL NEWS AND WRITTEN
 NOTICE IN THE LOCAL PAPER.
   4. THE CORPORATION SHALL BE EXEMPTED FROM THE NOTIFICATION AND  PUBLIC
 HEARING  REQUIREMENTS  UNDER THIS SECTION IF THERE IS AN EMERGENCY SITU-
 ATION THAT COULD RESULT IN AN IMMEDIATE FAILURE OF CANAL DAMS OR EMBANK-
 MENTS, OR TO ADDRESS FLOODING THAT WOULD JEOPARDIZE LIVES AND  PROPERTY.
 REMOVAL  OF  DANGER TREES SHALL BE INCLUDED IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS. FOR
 PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION "DANGER TREE" SHALL MEAN ANY TREE THAT, DUE
 TO LOCATION AND CONDITION, POSES  AN  IMMINENT  THREAT  OF  FALLING  AND
 DAMAGING THE CANAL.
   §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.