NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9885
SPONSOR: Simone TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the New York state urban development corporation act, in
relation to extending the amount of time between notice of a project and
a public hearing
PURPOSE:
To ensure that the general public and the community, as well as parties
specifically affected by proposed Urban Development Corporation (UDC)
projects are given adequate notice of public hearings so they can attend
and participate.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
In relation to the following four Sections of the UDC Act-6(c); 8(2);
14(2); and 16(2)(b)(iii)-the current ten day window between public
notice of a project and public hearing is expanded to thirty business
days.
EXISTING LAW:
The current provisions of the UDC Act require a maximum of ten days
between public notice and public hearing.
JUSTIFICATION:
The public consultation provisions of the Urban Development Corporation
(UDC) Act disempower communities impacted by massive redevelopment
projects. Under the current provisions, a public hearing must be held
within ten days of publication of notice of a redevelopment project.
Some examples of failings, with respect to the City of New York include:
the fact that projects are developed in secret and not as part of a
community planning process; and the fact that the Mayor and the City
Clerk are notified about projects, but residents who live at project
sites are not. Community Boards are supposed to be notified about a
project before a public hearing occurs; however, more often than not,
they do not learn about a hearing until after it has actually occurred.
It is not uncommon for these public hearings to be held with no attend-
ance whatsoever.
The current ten-day period between public notice and hearing is a short
window that often deprives community members of the opportunity to be
heard. This legislation will expand the current ten day period between
notice of a project and a public hearing to thirty business days. This
change addresses concerns expressed by the Governor in Past veto
messages that longer windows of time would delay the delivery of econom-
ic development assistance.(See Veto No. 507 of 2014 and Veto No. 214 of
2015).
Ensuring that the public, and specifically, affected parties, have addi-
tional time to actually learn of public hearings and subsequently mobi-
lize, draft and execute meaningful public participation (in the form of
comments, testimony and proposed alternative considerations) will
promote transparency, accountability and good governance.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S791- Amended from fourteen to thirty business days on A print
2022: S2940- Passed Senate. No same-as.
2019: S.1875-Passed Senate.
2018: A.9993-A-Veto Memo No. 321 of 2018
2017: A.3749- advanced to third reading
2015-16:A.7416/S.2415- Veto Memo No.214 of 2015
2013-14:A.9798/S.7384-Veto Memo No.507 of 2014
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9885
IN ASSEMBLY
April 26, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SIMONE -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Economic Development
AN ACT to amend the New York state urban development corporation act, in
relation to extending the amount of time between notice of a project
and a public hearing
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision (c) of section 6 of section 1 of chapter 174 of
2 the laws of 1968 constituting the New York state urban development
3 corporation act is amended to read as follows:
4 (c) to any other person, firm, partnership or corporation, without
5 public bidding or public sale, provided there is published in at least
6 one newspaper of general circulation in the municipality in which the
7 project is located a notice which shall include a statement of the iden-
8 tity of the proposed purchaser or lessee and of his proposed use or
9 reuse of the land use improvement project area or applicable portion
10 thereof, the price or rental to be paid by such purchaser or lessee, all
11 other essential conditions of such sale or lease, and a statement that a
12 public hearing upon such sale or lease will be held before the corpo-
13 ration at a specified time and place on a date not less than [ten] thir-
14 ty days after such publication, and provided further that such public
15 hearing is held in accordance with such notice.
16 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 8 of section 1 of chapter 174 of the
17 laws of 1968 constituting the New York state urban development corpo-
18 ration act is amended to read as follows:
19 (2) Before any sale or lease of all or a substantial part of a project
20 as authorized by subdivision one of this section is consummated, there
21 shall be published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in
22 the municipality in which the project is located a notice which shall
23 include a statement of the identity of the proposed purchaser or lessee,
24 the price or rental to be paid, all other essential conditions of such
25 sale or lease, and a statement that a public hearing upon such sale or
26 lease will be held before the corporation at a specified time and place
27 on a date not less than [ten] thirty days after such publication, and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03325-03-4
A. 9885 2
1 such hearing shall be held in accordance with such notice; provided,
2 however, that if the corporation determines that trade secrets or other
3 confidential information about the prospective purchaser's or lessee's
4 business operations, products, processes or designs would otherwise be
5 revealed by such public notice and public hearing, the requirements of
6 this subdivision may be waived by unanimous vote of the directors of the
7 corporation.
8 § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 14 of section 1 of chapter 174 of the
9 laws of 1968 constituting the New York state urban development corpo-
10 ration act, as amended by chapter 576 of the laws of 1969, is amended to
11 read as follows:
12 (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local
13 law or charter, any municipality, by resolution of its local governing
14 body, is hereby empowered without referendum, public auction, sealed
15 bids or public notice, to sell, lease for a term not exceeding ninety-
16 nine years, grant or convey to the corporation any real property owned
17 by it which the corporation shall certify to be necessary or convenient
18 for its corporate purposes. Any such sale, lease, grant or conveyance
19 shall be made with or without consideration and upon such terms and
20 conditions as may be agreed upon by such municipality and the corpo-
21 ration. Certification shall be evidenced by a formal request from the
22 president of the corporation. Before any such sale, lease, grant or
23 conveyance may be made to the corporation, a public hearing shall be
24 held by the local governing body to consider the same. Notice of such
25 hearing shall be published at least [ten] fourteen business days before
26 the date set for the hearing in such publication and in such manner as
27 may be designated by the local governing body.
28 § 4. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (b) of subdivision 2 of section
29 16 of section 1 of chapter 174 of the laws of 1968 constituting the New
30 York state urban development corporation act, as amended by chapter 732
31 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
32 (iii) in any city having a population of one million or more, provide
33 to any community board in which the project will be located, a notice
34 that such plan will be filed upon its adoption by the corporation and
35 that digests thereof will be available, which notice shall also state
36 that a public hearing will be held to consider the plan at a specified
37 time and place on a date not less than [ten] fourteen business days
38 after such publication;
39 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
