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History
- Recommit, enacting clause stricken
- Referred to environmental conservation
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.340
- Print number 2741a
- Amend and recommit to environmental conservation
- Referred to environmental conservation
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S2741A
Title of bill
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to establishing the seagrass protection act
Purpose
The bill authorizes the Department of Environmental Conservation to adopt rules and regulations to regulate coastal and marine activities that threaten seagrass.
Summary of provisions
The DEC shall have authority to:
o Restrict the types of mechanically powered fishing gear in seagrass areas that could be harmful to the grass.
o Identify harmful pesticides and chemicals to seagrass and make recommendations in regards to restricting their use in seagrass areas.
o Make this information available on the DEC website.
o Develop and adopt, after consultation with stakeholders, a seagrass management plan for designated seagrass management areas to protect seagrass beds and preserve traditional recreational activities.
Justification
New York seagrass beds are a vital habitat and nursery grounds for numerous commercially, recreationally and ecologically important fish and shellfish species. Seagrass beds used to be much larger-some estimates reaching as large as 200,000 acres in 1930. Today only 21,803 acres remain. Seagrass is such a vital part of our underwater environment. The DEC should have authority to protect it. The substance of this legislation was recommended by the NYS Seagrass Task Force. The 2011 bill has been modified to address the substantive concerns laid out in Veto Memo 6779 of 2010.
Legislative history
2010: S.8343 Foley/A.10269-B Sweeney, 61-0, Vetoed by the Governor; Veto Memo 6779.
Fiscal impact on the state
Minimal.
Effective date
150th day after enactment.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.