S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
9186
I N S E N A T E
May 12, 2022
___________
Introduced by Sen. REICHLIN-MELNICK -- read twice and ordered printed,
and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to certain notice
requirements for the acquisition of real property for open space,
historic preservations, or urban renewal purposes
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 247 of the general municipal law,
as amended by chapter 892 of the laws of 1972, is amended to read as
follows:
2. The acquisition of interests or rights in real property for the
preservation of open spaces and areas shall constitute a public purpose
for which public funds may be expended or advanced, and any county,
city, town or village after [due notice and] a public hearing UPON TEN
DAYS' NOTICE may acquire, by purchase, gift, grant, bequest, devise,
lease or otherwise, the fee or any lesser interest, development right,
easement, covenant, or other contractual right necessary to achieve the
purposes of this chapter, to land within such municipality. In the case
of a village the cost of such acquisition of interests or rights may be
incurred wholly at the expense of the village, at the expense of the
owners of the lands benefited thereby, or partly at the expense of such
owners and partly at the expense of the village at large as a local
improvement in the manner provided by article twenty-two in the village
law entitled local improvements.
§ 2. Subdivision 3 of section 119-dd of the general municipal law, as
added by chapter 354 of the laws of 1980, is amended to read as follows:
3. After [due notice and] A public hearing UPON TEN DAYS' NOTICE, by
purchase, gift, grant, bequest, devise, lease or otherwise, acquire the
fee or any lesser interest, development right, easement, covenant or
other contractual right necessary to achieve the purposes of this arti-
cle, to historical or cultural property within its jurisdiction. After
acquisition of any such interest pursuant to this subdivision, the
effect of the acquisition on the valuation placed on any remaining
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13534-02-2
S. 9186 2
private interest in such property for purposes of real estate taxation
shall be taken into account.
§ 3. Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 505 of the general municipal law,
subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 723 of the laws of 1963 and subdivi-
sion 3 as amended by chapter 133 of the laws of 1996, are amended to
read as follows:
2. The urban renewal plan for the designated area, or for a part or
portion of such area, shall be submitted to the commission which shall
certify, after a public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE,
whether such plan complies with the provisions of subdivision seven of
section five hundred two of this article and conforms to the finding
made pursuant to section five hundred four of this article. The commis-
sion shall submit its report to the governing body, not later than ten
weeks from the date of referral of the plan to it, certifying its
unqualified approval, its disapproval, or its qualified approval with
recommendations for modifications therein.
3. After a public hearing, held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE after
the report is received or due from the commission, the governing body
may:
(a) if the commission shall have certified its unqualified approval,
approve the plan by a majority vote;
(b) if the commission shall have certified its disapproval or shall
have failed to make its report within ten weeks from the date such plan
was submitted to it by the agency, nevertheless approve the plan, but
only by a three-fourths vote;
(c) if the commission shall have certified its qualified approval
together with recommendations for modifications, approve the plan
together with the modifications recommended by the commission by a
majority vote, or approve the plan without such modifications but only
by a three-fourths vote.
§ 4. Section 506 of the general municipal law, as added by chapter 402
of the laws of 1961, subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 947 of the laws
of 1965, paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 748 of the
laws of 1967 and paragraph c of subdivision 1 as added by chapter 772 of
the laws of 1967, is amended to read as follows:
§ 506. Acquisition of property. 1. [(a)] A municipality, acting
through its governing body, may acquire by purchase, gift, devise,
lease, condemnation or otherwise, in accordance with the provisions of
the appropriate general, special or local law applicable to the acquisi-
tion of real property by such municipality, real property or any inter-
est therein, including but not limited to air rights, and easements or
other rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air
rights, to be developed as air rights sites for the elimination of the
blighting influences of an area or areas consisting principally of land
in streets, alleys, highways, and other public rights of way, railway or
subway tracks, bridge or tunnel approaches or entrances, or other simi-
lar facilities which have a blighting influence on the surrounding area,
necessary for or incidental to a program of urban renewal for residen-
tial, commercial, industrial, public, semi-public, community or other
uses or combinations of such uses in accordance with an urban renewal
plan for a designated area, or for a part or portion of such area,
provided, however, that the acquisition of any air rights over railroad
tracks, rights of way or facilities and easements or other rights of
user necessary for the use and development of such air rights are to be
subject to the provision of section fifty-one-a of the railroad law. The
acquisition of real property within a designated urban renewal area
S. 9186 3
shall in every case be deemed to be and constitute a continuous rather
than separate takings.
[(b)] 2. Property so acquired by a municipality shall be exempt from
taxation until sold, leased for a term not exceeding ninety-nine years
or otherwise disposed of in accordance with the provisions of this arti-
cle of this chapter; provided however, that any such municipality shall
have the power and authority, with respect to such property, to pay or
transfer, out of funds available to it for the effectuating of such
urban renewal program, annual sums in lieu of taxes to any taxing juris-
diction providing services to the urban renewal area, or to the part or
portion thereof within such taxing jurisdiction, in order that no such
taxing jurisdiction shall suffer an inequitable loss of revenue by
virtue of such urban renewal program; provided, further, that the amount
so paid or transferred for any year with respect to any such property
shall not exceed the lesser of [(1)]: (A) the sum last levied for the
benefit of such taxing jurisdiction as an annual tax on such property
prior to the time of its acquisition for urban renewal purposes; or
[(2)] (B) such amount as shall be approved by the commissioner, pursuant
to such rules, regulations, limitations and conditions as he may
prescribe, as an eligible and proper charge against such urban renewal
program. Upon the sale, lease or disposition of such property to any
person, firm or corporation not entitled to an exemption from taxation
or entitled to only a partial tax exemption such property shall imme-
diately become subject to taxation in whole or in part, as the case may
be, and shall be taxed pro rata for the unexpired portion of the taxable
year.
As used in this [paragraph] SUBDIVISION, the term "taxing jurisdic-
tion" means any municipal corporation or district corporation, including
any school district or any special district, having the power to levy or
collect taxes and benefit assessments upon real property, or in whose
behalf such taxes or benefit assessments may be levied or collected.
[c.] 3. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, a muni-
cipality may acquire by purchase, gift, devise, lease, condemnation or
otherwise, upon recommendation of the agency and in accordance with the
appropriate provisions of any general, special or local law or charter
applicable to the acquisition of real property by such municipality,
such real property or any interest therein, within an area designated
pursuant to this article as appropriate for urban renewal, as it may
deem ultimately necessary or proper to effectuate the purposes of this
article although temporarily not required for such purposes, provided
that the early acquisition of such property is approved as follows:
[(1)] (A) In a municipality where there is a planning commission, the
agency shall submit the proposal for early acquisition to the commission
for its approval. Such planning commission shall, not later than ten
weeks from the date of the referral of the proposal to it, after a
public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE, submit its report
to the governing body certifying its unqualified consent, its disap-
proval, or its qualified consent with recommendations for modifications
of the proposal.
After public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE after the
report is received or due from the planning commission, the governing
body may:
(i) if the commission shall have certified its unqualified consent,
approve the proposal by a majority vote:
(ii) if the commission shall have certified its disapproval or shall
have failed to make its report within ten weeks from the date such
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proposal was submitted to it by the agency, nevertheless approve the
proposal, but only by a three-fourths vote:
(iii) if the commission shall have certified its qualified consent
together with recommendations for modifications of the proposal, approve
the proposal together with the modifications recommended by the commis-
sion by a majority vote, or approve the proposal without such modifica-
tions but only by a three-fourths vote.
[(2)] (B) In a municipality where there is no planning commission, the
agency shall submit the proposal to the governing body which, after
public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE, may either approve
or disapprove the proposal.
§ 5. Section 555 of the general municipal law, as amended by chapter
912 of the laws of 1966, paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 as amended by
chapter 748 of the laws of 1967, paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 as added
by chapter 311 of the laws of 1968, the opening paragraph of paragraph
(c) of subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 247 of the laws of 1970 and
subparagraphs 1 and 2 of paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 as amended by
chapter 1002 of the laws of 1969, is amended to read as follows:
§ 555. Acquisition of property. 1. [(a)] Real property or any interest
therein, including but not limited to air rights, and easements or other
rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air rights,
to be developed as air rights sites for the elimination of the blighting
influences over an area or areas consisting principally of land in
streets, alleys, highways, and other public rights of way, railway or
subway tracks, bridge or tunnel approaches or entrances, or other simi-
lar facilities which have a blighting influence on the surrounding area
necessary for or incidental to any urban renewal program or part thereof
in accordance with an urban renewal plan may be acquired by an agency by
gift, grant, devise, purchase, condemnation or otherwise and by a muni-
cipality for and on behalf of an agency by condemnation. Property may
be acquired by condemnation by an agency or by a municipality for an
agency pursuant to the condemnation law or pursuant to the laws relating
to the condemnation of land by the municipality for which the agency is
acting or the municipality, as the case may be.
[(b)] 2. Property so acquired by an agency, or by a municipality in
behalf of an agency, shall be exempt from taxation until sold, leased
for a term not exceeding ninety-nine years or otherwise disposed of in
accordance with the provisions of this article or article fifteen of
this chapter; provided, however, that any such agency shall have the
power and authority, with respect to such property, to pay, out of funds
available to it for the effectuating of such urban renewal program,
annual sums in lieu of taxes to any taxing jurisdiction providing
services to the urban renewal area, or to the part or portion thereof
within such taxing jurisdiction, in order that no such taxing jurisdic-
tion shall suffer an inequitable loss of revenue by virtue of such urban
renewal program; provided, further, that the amount so paid for any year
with respect to any such property shall not exceed the lesser of [(1)]:
(A) the sum last levied for the benefit of such taxing jurisdiction as
an annual tax on such property prior to the time of its acquisition for
urban renewal purposes; or [(2)] (B) such amount as shall be approved by
the commissioner, pursuant to such rules, regulation, limitations and
conditions as he may prescribe, as an eligible and proper charge against
such urban renewal program. Upon the sale, lease or disposition of such
property to any person, firm or corporation not entitled to an exemption
from taxation or entitled to only a partial tax exemption such property
shall immediately become subject to taxation in whole or in part, as the
S. 9186 5
case may be, and shall be taxed pro rata for the unexpired portion of
the taxable year.
As used in this [paragraph] SUBDIVISION, the term "taxing jurisdic-
tion" means any municipal corporation or district corporation including
any school district or any special district, having the power to levy or
collect taxes and benefit assessments upon real property, or in whose
behalf such taxes or benefit assessments may be levied or collected.
[(c)] 3. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, an
agency may acquire by purchase, gift, devise, condemnation or otherwise,
in accordance with the appropriate provisions of any general, special or
local law or charter applicable to the acquisition of real property by
such agency, such real property or any interest therein, within an area
designated pursuant to article fifteen of this chapter as appropriate
for urban renewal, as it may deem ultimately necessary or proper to
effectuate the purposes of this article although temporarily not
required for such purposes, provided that the early acquisition of such
property is approved as follows:
[(1)] (A) In a municipality where there is a planning commission, the
agency shall submit the proposal for early acquisition to the commission
for its approval. Such planning commission shall, not later than ten
weeks from the date of the referral of the proposal to it, after a
public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE, submit its report
to the governing body certifying its unqualified consent, its disap-
proval, or its qualified consent with recommendations for modifications
of the proposal.
After public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE after the
report is received or due from the planning commission, the governing
body may:
(i) if the commission shall have certified its unqualified consent, by
majority vote authorize the agency to proceed with the acquisition;
(ii) if the commission shall have certified its disapproval or shall
have failed to make its report within ten weeks from the date such
proposal was submitted to it, nevertheless authorize the agency to
proceed with the acquisition, but only by a three-fourths vote;
(iii) if the commission shall have certified its qualified consent
together with recommendations for modifications of the proposal, author-
ize the agency to proceed with the acquisition in accordance with the
modifications recommended by the commission, by majority vote, or
authorize such acquisition without such modifications but only by a
three-fourths vote.
[(2)] (B) In a municipality where there is no planning commission, the
agency shall submit the proposal to the governing body which after
public hearing held on [due notice] TEN DAYS' NOTICE, may either approve
or disapprove the proposal.
§ 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
