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BILL NUMBER:S2851A

TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the requirements for lead agency

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Amends the environmental quality review law with regard to what entity may serve as lead agency.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1 amends section 8-0111 of the environmental conservation law so that if an action to be carried out or approved by two or more agencies involves the religious exercise of a person, only a county or state agency may act as lead agency.

Section 2 provides that this act shall take effect immediately.

JUSTIFICATION: The State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) was enacted in 1976, so that environment impacts are duly considered when projects are building in the state's cities, towns, villages and rural areas. However, when projects are complex or controversial, is it possible for consultants, or developers, or citizens groups, or well organized opponents or advocate groups to effectively remove control of the SEQRA process from the local public officials who should be leading and shaping the process. Such loss of control by local public officials of the SEQRA process is problematic because the public officials taking part in the process are expected to be honest brokers who will keep the process objective and fact-driven.

On a local level, conflicts between groups over projects concerning the exercise of one's religion, can often polarize the SEQRA process to a point where local officials have difficulty maintaining the objectivity of the process. This legislation will help ensure the objectivity of the local SEQRA process in such circumstances by requiring that where an action involves the religious exercise of a person or persons, as such is defined under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, a county or state agency will be the lead agency.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None. This is new legislation.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.

Text

STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________

2851--A

2011-2012 Regular Sessions

IN SENATE

February 2, 2011
___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  PARKER, KRUGER -- read twice and ordered printed,
  and when printed to be committed to  the  Committee  on  Environmental
  Conservation  -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted
  as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation  to  the
  requirements for lead agency

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision  6  of  section  8-0111  of  the  environmental
conservation  law,  as  added  by  chapter  612  of the laws of 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
  6. Lead Agency. When an action is to be carried out or approved by two
or more agencies, the determination of whether the  action  may  have  a
significant  effect  on the environment shall be made by the lead agency
having principal responsibility  for  carrying  out  or  approving  such
action  and  such  agency  shall  prepare,  or  cause  to be prepared by
contract or otherwise, the environmental impact statement for the action
if such a statement is required by this article. In the event that there
is a question as to which is the lead agency, any agency may submit  the
question  to  the  commissioner and the commissioner shall designate the
lead agency, giving due consideration to the capacity of such agency  to
fulfill  adequately  the  requirements of this article.  NOTWITHSTANDING
ANY OTHER PROVISION OF THIS ARTICLE OR ANY OTHER LAW TO THE CONTRARY, IN
ANY CIRCUMSTANCE WHEN AN ACTION TO BE CARRIED OUT OR APPROVED BY TWO  OR
MORE  AGENCIES  INVOLVES  THE RELIGIOUS EXERCISE OF A PERSON, AS SUCH IS
DEFINED BY THE RELIGIOUS LAND USE AND INSTITUTIONALIZED PERSONS  ACT  OF
2000  (RLUIPA),  42  U.S.C.  SS  2000CC, ET SEQ., ONLY A COUNTY OR STATE
AGENCY MAY ACT AS THE LEAD AGENCY.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD07304-03-1