What's happening
This bill allows lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge, or flooding to qualify as sending districts for transfer of development rights in New York.
Why it matters
Expands land conservation options. By allowing lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge, or flooding to serve as sending districts, the bill makes it more attractive for owners of vulnerable properties to preserve open space or undeveloped land, instead of seeking to develop it.
Facilitates climate adaptation and resilience. Including at-risk lands in transfer of development rights (TDR) programs gives municipalities another tool to manage retreat from areas increasingly threatened by climate change, potentially reducing future disaster costs and risks to life and property.
Encourages smarter growth and infrastructure investment. Directing development rights away from flood-prone areas and toward areas better equipped for growth supports more sustainable land use, infrastructure planning, and public investment, aligning with comprehensive or master plans.
Helps protect municipal tax bases. By formalizing a process for shifting potential development out of high-risk areas, municipalities can mitigate future tax base erosion due to property loss or devaluation from climate impacts, and minimize unfair tax burden shifts between districts.
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Who cares
City, town and village boards
The bill would let them designate land at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding as sending districts for transfers of development rights.
Owners of at-risk land
Their properties could become eligible to send development rights to other districts under locally established transfer programs.
Developers in receiving districts
They could use development rights transferred from newly eligible at-risk lands, subject to existing planning, infrastructure and environmental requirements.
Coastal and floodplain conservation advocates
The bill would explicitly add protection of lands threatened by sea level rise, storm surge or flooding as a purpose of development-rights transfers.
Headline styles
Protect Flood-Prone Land
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
History
- Substituted by A5505
- Ordered to third reading cal.1530
- Print number 6424a
- Amend and recommit to rules
- Referred to rules
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Protect Flood-Prone Lands
Signed by Governor · Sponsor Fred Thiele
Full text
4 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
6424--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
June 10, 2019
Introduced by Sens. MARTINEZ, LAVALLE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the general city law, the town law and the village law, in relation to identifying lands at risk from sea level rise or flooding as eligible sending districts
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The opening paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 20-f of the general city law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
In addition to existing powers and authorities to regulate by planning or zoning including authorization to provide for transfer of development rights pursuant to other enabling law, the legislative body of any city is hereby empowered to provide for transfer of development rights subject to the conditions hereinafter set forth and such other conditions as the city legislative body deems necessary and appropriate that are consistent with the purposes of this section, except that in cities of over one million any transfer of development rights shall be provided in the zoning ordinance after adoption by the city planning commission and board of estimate. The purpose of providing for transfer of development rights shall be to protect the natural, scenic or agricultural qualities of open lands, to enhance sites and areas of special character or special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic interest or value, to protect lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding, and to enable and encourage flexibility of design and careful management of land in recognition of land as a basic and valuable natural resource. The conditions hereinabove referred to are as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13291-02-9
S. 6424--A 2
§ 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 20-f of the general city law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
a. That transfer of development rights, and the sending and receiving districts, shall be established in accordance with a well-considered plan within the meaning of subdivision twenty-five of section twenty of this article. The sending district from which transfer of development rights may be authorized shall consist of natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural or open land or sites of special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic values sought to be protected or lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding. Every receiving district, to which transfer of development rights may be authorized, shall have been found by the legislative body of the city, after evaluating the effects of potential increased development which is possible under the transfer of development rights provisions, to contain adequate resources, environmental quality and public facilities including adequate transportation, water supply, waste disposal and fire protection, and that there will be no significant environmentally damaging consequences and such increased development is compatible with the development otherwise permitted by the city and by the federal, state, and county agencies having jurisdiction to approve permissible development within the district. A generic environmental impact statement pursuant to the provisions of article eight of the environmental conservation law shall be prepared by the city for the receiving district before any such district, or any sending district, is designated, and such statement shall be amended from time to time by the city if there are material changes in circumstances. Where a transfer of development rights affects districts in two or more school, special assessment or tax districts, it may not unreasonably transfer the tax burden between the taxpayers of such districts. The receiving and sending districts need not be coterminous with zoning districts.
§ 3. The opening paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 261-a of the town law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
In addition to existing powers and authorities to regulate by planning or zoning, including authorization to provide for transfer of development rights pursuant to other enabling law, a town board is hereby empowered to provide for transfer of development rights subject to the conditions hereinafter set forth and such other conditions as the town board deems necessary and appropriate that are consistent with the purposes of this section. The purpose of providing for transfer of development rights shall be to protect the natural, scenic or agricultural qualities of open lands, to enhance sites and areas of special character or special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic interest or value, to protect lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding and to enable and encourage flexibility of design and careful management of land in recognition of land as a basic and valuable natural resource. The conditions hereinabove referred to are as follows:
§ 4. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 261-a of the town law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
a. That transfer of development rights, and the sending and receiving districts, shall be established in accordance with a comprehensive plan within the meaning of section two hundred sixty-three of this article. The sending district from which transfer of development rights may be authorized shall consist of natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural, forest, or open land or sites of special historical, cultural, aesthetic
S. 6424--A 3
or economic values sought to be protected or lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding. Every receiving district to which transfer of development rights may be authorized, shall have been found by the town board, after evaluating the effects of potential increased development which is possible under the transfer of development rights provisions, to contain adequate resources, environmental quality and public facilities, including adequate transportation, water supply, waste disposal and fire protection, and that there will be no significant environmentally damaging consequences and such increased development is compatible with the development otherwise permitted by the town and by the federal, state, and county agencies having jurisdiction to approve permissible development within the district. A generic environmental impact statement pursuant to the provisions of article eight of the environmental conservation law shall be prepared by the town board for the receiving district before any such district, or any sending district, is designated, and such statement shall be amended from time to time by the town board if there are material changes in circumstances. Where a transfer of development rights affects districts in two or more school, special assessment or tax districts, it may not unreasonably transfer the tax burden between the taxpayers of such districts. The receiving and sending districts need not be coterminous with zoning districts.
§ 5. The opening paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 7-701 of the village law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
In addition to existing powers and authorities to regulate by planning or zoning, including authorization to provide for transfer of development rights pursuant to other enabling law, a board of trustees is hereby empowered to provide for transfer of development rights subject to the conditions hereinafter set forth and such other conditions as a village board of trustees deems necessary and appropriate that are consistent with the purposes of this section. The purpose of providing for transfer of development rights shall be to protect the natural, scenic or agricultural qualities of open lands, to enhance sites and areas of special character or special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic interest or value, to protect lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding, and to enable and encourage flexibility of design and careful management of land in recognition of land as a basic and valuable natural resource. The conditions hereinabove referred to are as follows:
§ 6. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 7-701 of the village law, as added by chapter 40 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
a. That the transfer of development rights, and the sending and receiving districts, shall be established in accordance with a comprehensive master plan within the meaning of section 7-722 of this article. The sending district from which transfer of development rights may be authorized shall consist of natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural or open land or sites of special historical, cultural, aesthetic or economic values sought to be protected or lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding. Every receiving district, to which transfer of development rights may be authorized shall have been found by the board of trustees, after evaluating the effects of potential increased development which is possible under the transfer of development rights provisions to contain adequate resources, environmental quality and public facilities, including adequate transportation, water supply,
S. 6424--A 4
waste disposal and fire protection, and that there will be no significant environmentally damaging consequences and such increased development is compatible with the development otherwise permitted by the village and by the federal, state, and county agencies having jurisdiction to approve permissible development within the district. A generic environmental impact statement pursuant to the provisions of article eight of the environmental conservation law shall be prepared by the village for the receiving district before any such district, or any sending district, is designated, and such statement shall be amended from time to time by the village, if there are material changes in circumstances. Where a transfer of development rights affects districts in two or more school, special assessment or tax districts, it may not unreasonably transfer the tax burden between the taxpayers of such districts. The receiving and sending districts need not be coterminous with zoning districts.
§ 7. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the general city law, the town law and the village law, in relation to identifying lands at risk from sea level rise or flooding as eligible sending districts
Purpose
To authorize the transfer of development rights for lands at risk, from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 would amend the general city law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, flooding or storm surge in the list of purposes for transfer of development rights.
Section 2 would amend the general city law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding in the authorization to be designated as a sending district for purposes of the transfer of devel- opment rights.
Section 3 would amend the town law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding in the list of purposes for transfer of development rights.
Section 4 would amend the town law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding for purposes of the transfer of rights.
Section 5 would amend the village law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, flooding or storm surge to the list of purposes for transfer of development rights
Section 6 would amend the village law to include lands at risk from sea level rise, storm surge or flooding in the authorization to be desig- nated as a sending district for, purposes of the transfer of development rights.
Justification
Transfer of development rights (TDR) is a land use tool that provides municipalities in New York State with an effective, flexible and market based mechanism for managing and balancing development and preservation. TDR allows municipalities to detach the development rights from lands specified by the municipality to remain undeveloped ("sending area") while at the same time permitting those right s to be transferred to areas deemed to be more appropriate for a higher concentration and mix of development ("receiving area"). Regarding storm resiliency, TDR can help relocate development away from high-risk area (such as land in flood zones or on steep slopes) to more appropriate low risk.
Legislative history
2018 Similar S.8493A/A.11124 - passed Assembly
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
Immediately
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.