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This entry was published on 2014-09-22
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SECTION 1078
Powers
Public Authorities (PBA) CHAPTER 43-A, ARTICLE 5, TITLE 4
§ 1078. Powers. The powers and duties of the authority shall be as
follows:

1. To sue and be sued.

2. To have a seal and alter the same.

3. To acquire, in the name of the authority, lease, hold and dispose
of property or any interest therein for its corporate purposes,
including the power to purchase prospective or tentative awards in
connection with the exercise of the power of condemnation hereinafter
granted.

4. (a) To purchase, in the name of the authority, any water supply
system, water distribution system, including plants, works,
instrumentalities or parts thereof and appurtenances thereto, lands,
easements, rights in land and water rights, rights-of-way, contract
rights, franchises, approaches, connections, dams, reservoirs, water
mains and pipe lines, pumping stations and equipment, or any other
property incidental to and included in such system or part thereof, and
any improvements, extensions and betterments, situated wholly within the
county for the purpose of supplying water for domestic, commercial and
public purposes at retail to individual consumers within the county of
Suffolk or at wholesale in the manner provided by subdivision seven of
this section as a means of so acquiring for such purposes, and subject
to the approval of the public service commission, the authority may
purchase all of the stock of any existing privately owned water
corporation or company, and thereafter, within a reasonable time, such
water corporation or company shall be dissolved.

(b) To condemn in the name of the authority, except where located in
another county, any water supply system, water distribution system,
including plants, works, instrumentalities, or parts thereof and
appurtenances thereto, lands, easements, rights in land and water
rights, rights-of-way, contract rights, franchises, approaches,
connections, dams, reservoirs, water mains and pipe lines, pumping
stations and equipment, or any other property incidental to and included
in such system or part thereof, and any improvements, extensions and
betterments for the purpose of supplying water for domestic, commercial
and public purposes at retail to individual consumers within the county
of Suffolk or at wholesale in the manner provided by subdivision seven
of this section. The authority shall exercise the power of condemnation
hereby granted in the manner provided either by the condemnation law or
by the Suffolk county improvement act. In the exercise of such power of
condemnation, the property being condemned shall be deemed, when so
determined by the authority, to be for a public use superior to the
public use in the hands of any other person, association, or
corporation, provided, however, that the authority shall have no power
to condemn property the legal title to which is vested in a municipality
unless such municipality shall consent thereto.

(c) To construct, develop and operate any water supply system, water
distribution system, including plants, works, instrumentalities, or
parts thereof, and appurtenances thereto, dams, reservoirs, water mains,
pipe lines, pumping stations and equipment, or any other property
incidental to or included in such system or part thereof within the
county of Suffolk, and to acquire, by condemnation in the manner
provided by this title, or by purchase, lands, easements, rights in land
and water rights and rights-of-way in connection therewith within such
county; and to own and operate, maintain, repair, improve, reconstruct,
enlarge and extend, subject to the provisions of this title, any of its
properties acquired or constructed under this title, all of which,
together with the acquisition of such properties are hereby declared to
be public purposes.

(d) To acquire, hold, use, lease, sell, transfer and dispose of any
property, real, personal or mixed, or interest therein, for its
corporate purposes.

5. To purchase water in bulk from any person, private corporation or
municipality when necessary or convenient for the operation of such
water supply and distribution system. To sell water in bulk to any
not-for-profit corporation, public corporation, private corporation or
person at its regular retail rates.

6. To fix, alter, charge and collect rates and other charges for the
use of water by the inhabitants of the county or other consumers
thereof, at reasonable rates to be determined by the authority for the
purpose of providing for the payment of the expenses of the authority,
the construction, improvement, repair, maintenance and operation of the
water supply and distribution system of the authority, the payment of
the principal of and interest on the obligations of the authority, and
to fulfill the terms and provisions of any agreements made with the
purchasers or holders of any such obligations.

7. To sell water by volume to any or all municipalities or privately
owned public water supply and distribution systems in such county. The
fact that any municipality has procured or is about to procure an
independent source of water supply shall not prevent such municipality
from purchasing water from the authority. Subject to the approval of the
board of supervisors of Suffolk county to sell any water not needed in
such county to any municipality or privately owned public water supply
and distribution system outside of the county in which created. Not only
may the authority sell any surplus water it may have developed, but it
may, with the consent of such board of supervisors, develop and provide
a sufficient amount of water so as to supply water outside of the county
to any municipality or privately owned public water supply and
distribution system.

8. To make contracts and execute all instruments necessary or
convenient.

9. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs
and the regulation of and the charges made for water sold.

10. To appoint officers, agents and employees.

11. To enter upon any lands, waters and premises for the purpose of
making surveys, soundings, drillings and examinations.

12. To enter into cooperative agreements with other water authorities,
municipalities, or utility companies, for the interconnection of
facilities, the exchange or inter-change of services and commodities or
for any other lawful purposes necessary or desirable to effect the
purposes of this title, provided, however, that any such agreement with
a municipality located in a county, other than Suffolk county, shall be
subject to the approval of the board of supervisors of such county, if
any.

12-a. To enter into a contract or contracts with the board of
supervisors of Suffolk county for the acquisition, construction and
development of a water supply and distribution system, or any part or
parts thereof, on behalf of a county water district, and to contract for
the operation and management of such county water district, all as
provided in article five-a of the county law and article five-b of the
general municipal law. Such water authority shall be deemed the agent of
Suffolk county under any such contract. If such contract shall authorize
the water authority to purchase supplies or equipment or to construct
public works, such authority shall be subject to all provisions of law
to which Suffolk county would be subject in relation to advertising and
awarding any such contracts for supplies, equipment or public works.

13. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers
expressly given or necessarily implied in this title.

In exercising the powers granted by this title, the authority shall
not sell water in any area which is served by a water system owned or
operated by a municipality unless the governing board of such
municipality shall adopt a resolution requesting the authority to sell
water in such area.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority may not
approve by resolution or otherwise make a final determination regarding
a construction project for any new structure which exceeds thirty feet
in height unless it holds a public hearing in the municipality where the
construction will take place not less than fifteen days after notice has
been given as hereinafter provided. Notice of such public hearing shall
be published once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of
general circulation in the area affected by the proposed construction
project.