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- Referred to cities
- Referred to cities
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Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S4704
Title of bill
An act to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to allowing property owners to prune tree branches within their reach
Purpose or general idea of bill
The purpose of the bill is to allow New York City property owners to prune obtrusive tree branches that are otherwise under the exclusive control of the Department of Parks and Recreation's (DPR) Commissioner.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill adds a new section 18-105.2, which provides that any owner of a class one or two property that is a residential condo or co-op, that is in whole or in part owner-occupied and used exclusively for residential purposes, and who finds their property obstructed by the branches of a tree that is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the DPR Commissioner, may prune the obstructing branches that are within the owner's reach. The owner may not use any device to aid their reach, such as a ladder or extended branch clippers.
Section 2 provides that this act shall take effect immediately.
Justification
City trees that are not properly pruned can at best create a nuisance, and at worst result in injury or even death. Injuries or deaths from falling branches have been the result of lawsuit settlements from the City of New York ranging from $4,000 to $14.8 million throughout last ten years. In New York City, trees are typically pruned only every 12-15 years, as DPR's budget for tree pruning has been cut to nearly a quarter of what it once was. The City's inability to keep up with the pruning demands of its 650,000 street trees has even been the subject of a recent audit by the New York City Comptroller, who concluded that the "city's performance is unacceptable," while noting the dangers of uncared for trees and falling branches.
Homeowners should not be subject to the dangers of trees that have not been pruned, and the risks of falling branches. This bill aims to provide a simple solution to this problem, by allowing homeowners to prune those tree branches that are within their reach.
Prior legislative history
None.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.