Albany – Senator Ken LaValle, (R-Port Jefferson) and Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. (I, D, WF-Sag Harbor) announced that their legislation (S.5324/A.7471) which would extend the Community Preservation Fund (CPF) from 2030 to 2050 and would authorize the five East End Towns to utilize a maximum of 20% of the annual revenues for water quality protection has been signed into law as Chapter 551 of the Laws of 2015.

The Peconic Bay Community Preservation Fund, initiated in 1999, has protected more than 10,000 acres of land with more than $1 billion dollars generated through a 2% real estate transfer tax. The original assumption inherent in land protection was that if the land was protected, the water would remain clean. However, it has become evident that in spite of the preservation of 10,000 acres, the legacy of existing development and land uses continues to increase nitrogen loadings to the East End’s waters.

Under the new State law, eligible water quality improvement projects would include: (1) wastewater treatment improvement projects; (2) non-point source abatement and control program projects; (3) aquatic habitat restoration projects; (4) pollution prevention projects, and (5) the operation of the Peconic Bay National Estuary Program.

It is estimated that this new effort would generate approximately $2.7 billion in revenues between 2016 and 2050 for the CPF. $1.5 billion of these revenues would be new revenues generated between 2031 and 2050. There would be a minimum of $963 million in new additional money for land preservation generated between 2031 and 2050. The maximum that could be generated for water quality projects from 2016 until 2050 would be $540 million. Towns would continue to possess full home rule power to determine their spending priorities, but could, if they choose, spend up to 20% of their revenue on water quality projects.

The enactment of authorizing State legislation is just the first step. As with any proposed CPF extension, the voters must ultimately approve the change via a public referendum. Each Town must also devise and approve a plan for water quality protection projects and adopt a local law that ensures the continued integrity of the CPF. Voters must know exactly how each Town would spend the additional CPF funds if the voters were to approve the program.

Senator Ken LaValle said, “The newly extended and expanded Community Preservation Fund (CPF) will be utilized to protect Long Island’s clean water for generations to come. Throughout my career, I have made it a priority to preserve and protect our fragile environment. Prior to this new law, the CPF was a mechanism that enabled us to preserve important lands, and now, I am hopeful it will have the same success protecting our water.”

Assemblyman Fred Thiele noted, “The Community Preservation Fund has been an extraordinarily successful land preservation tool. This new law will provide for another twenty years of priority land acquisitions in addition to presenting a local mechanism to address the East End’s water quality crisis and further protect the resources with which our economy is so heavily reliant on.”