S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7840
I N S E N A T E
January 12, 2022
___________
Introduced by Sen. RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the public health law and the education law, in relation
to expenses for potable water testing
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 1110 of the public health law, as amended by a
chapter of the laws of 2021 amending the public health law relating to
school potable water testing, as proposed in legislative bills numbers
S. 2122-A and A. 160-B, is amended to read as follows:
§ 1110. School potable water testing and standards. 1. In addition to
school districts already classified as a public water system under parts
141 and 142 of title 40 of the code of federal regulations, as such
regulations may, from time to time, be amended, every school district
and board of cooperative educational services shall conduct triennial
first-drawn tap testing of potable water systems to monitor for lead
contamination in each occupied school building under its jurisdiction as
required by regulations promulgated pursuant to this section. The test-
ing shall be conducted and the results analyzed by an entity or entities
approved by the commissioner.
2. Where a finding of lead contamination is made, the affected school
district shall: (a) continue first-drawn tap water testing pursuant to
regulations promulgated pursuant to this section; (b) provide school
occupants with an adequate supply of safe, free to the school occupants,
potable water for drinking as required by rules and regulations of the
department until future tests indicate lead levels pursuant to regu-
lations promulgated pursuant to this section; and (c) provide parents or
persons in parental relation to a child attending said school with writ-
ten notification of test results.
3. The commissioner, in consultation with the commissioner of educa-
tion, shall promulgate regulations to carry out the provisions of this
section. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the
regulations promulgated with regard to lead levels shall be consistent
with the requirements for those school districts classified as a public
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00523-08-2
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water system under parts 141 and 142 of title 40 of the code of federal
regulations as such regulations may, from time to time, be amended;
provided, however, that the lead action level is exceeded if the concen-
tration of lead is greater than 0.005 milligrams per liter.
4. THE COMMISSIONER MAY GRANT A WAIVER FROM THE TESTING REQUIREMENTS
OF THIS SECTION FOR CERTAIN SCHOOL BUILDINGS, PROVIDED THAT THE SCHOOL
DISTRICT HAS SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLIED WITH THE TESTING REQUIREMENTS AND
HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE BELOW LEAD LEVELS AS DETERMINED BY REGULATIONS
PROMULGATED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION, AS AMENDED, FOR SUCH BUILDINGS.
5. Each school district and board of cooperative educational services
conducting testing pursuant to subdivision one of this section and each
school district classified as a public water system under parts 141 and
142 of title 40 of the code of federal regulations, as such regulations
may, from time to time, be amended, shall make a copy of the results of
all such testing, including laboratory reports, and any lead remediation
plans available to the public on its website and any additional means as
chosen by such district. A copy of the results of all testing shall also
be immediately transmitted to the department and state education depart-
ment in a format to be determined by the commissioner and to the county
department of health in the local jurisdiction of the school building.
The commissioner of education, in conjunction with the commissioner,
shall publish a report triennially based on the findings from the tap
water testing conducted according to the provisions of this section.
Such report shall be sent to the commissioner, the governor, the tempo-
rary president of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly and shall
be made available on the department's and state education department's
websites.
[5.] 6. Expenses for remediation under this section and any regu-
lations promulgated thereto shall be fully reimbursable from funds
appropriated through the department of environmental conservation for
clean water infrastructure projects.
§ 2. Paragraph b of subdivision 5 of section 1950 of the education
law, as amended by chapter 296 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read
as follows:
b. The cost of services herein referred to shall be the amount allo-
cated to each component school district by the board of cooperative
educational services to defray expenses of such board, including
approved expenses from the testing of potable water systems of occupied
school buildings under the board's jurisdiction as required pursuant to
section eleven hundred ten of the public health law PROVIDED THAT SUCH
EXPENSES FOR TESTING OF POTABLE WATER SYSTEMS ARE NOT REIMBURSABLE FROM
ANOTHER STATE OR FEDERAL SOURCE, except that that part of the salary
paid any teacher, supervisor or other employee of the board of cooper-
ative educational services which is in excess of thirty thousand dollars
shall not be such an approved expense, and except also that administra-
tive and clerical expenses shall not exceed ten percent of the total
expenses for purposes of this computation. Any gifts, donations or
interest earned by the board of cooperative educational services or on
behalf of the board of cooperative educational services by the dormitory
authority or any other source shall not be deducted in determining the
cost of services allocated to each component school district. Any
payments made to a component school district by the board of cooperative
educational services pursuant to subdivision eleven of section six-p of
the general municipal law attributable to an approved cost of service
computed pursuant to this subdivision shall be deducted from the cost of
services allocated to such component school district. The expense of
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transportation provided by the board of cooperative educational services
pursuant to paragraph q of subdivision four of this section shall be
eligible for aid apportioned pursuant to subdivision seven of section
thirty-six hundred two of this chapter and no board of cooperative
educational services transportation expense shall be an approved cost of
services for the computation of aid under this subdivision. Transporta-
tion expense pursuant to paragraph q of subdivision four of this section
shall be included in the computation of the ten percent limitation on
administrative and clerical expenses.
§ 3. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph b of subdivision 6 of section 3602 of
the education law, as amended by section 12 of part C of chapter 57 of
the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
(1) The apportionment for school building purposes to any district
shall be determined by adding the amount of its current year approved
expenditures for lease or other annual payments under the provisions of
section four hundred three-b, subdivision eight of section twenty-five
hundred three, or subdivision six of section twenty-five hundred fifty-
four of this chapter, other than payments under a lease-purchase agree-
ment or an equivalent agreement, plus the amount of its current year
approved expenditures under an assumed amortization for capital outlays
for school building purposes from its general fund, capital fund or from
a reserve fund to the amount of its current year approved expenditures
for debt service for such purposes and multiplying the sum by its aid
ratio. Expenditures made for computer equipment, including original
purchase and installation of hardware, conduit, wiring, and powering of
hardware installations in computer classrooms, or for building or
campuswide local area network systems and in-building elements of other
wide area networks, including the original purchase and installation of
conduit, wiring, and powering of hardware installations, may be included
in approved expenditures for building aid pursuant to this paragraph on
the approval of the commissioner regardless of any minimum cost require-
ment that may be applied to other approved expenditures pursuant to this
section. Such equipment expenses claimed for aid under this subdivision
shall not be claimed for aid under any other provisions of this chapter.
PROVIDED FURTHER THAT ANY LEAD REMEDIATION EXPENSE REQUIRED PURSUANT TO
SECTION ELEVEN HUNDRED TEN OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW, WHERE SUCH EXPENSE
IS REIMBURSABLE FROM ANOTHER STATE OR FEDERAL SOURCE, SHALL NOT BE AN
APPROVED EXPENDITURE FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
§ 4. Subdivision 6-h of section 3602 of the education law, as amended
by section 52-d of part YYY of chapter 59 of the laws of 2019, is
amended to read as follows:
6-h. Building aid for testing and filtering of potable water systems
for lead contamination. In addition to the apportionments payable to a
school district pursuant to subdivision six of this section, the commis-
sioner is hereby authorized to apportion to any school district addi-
tional building aid pursuant to this subdivision for its approved
expenditures, otherwise ineligible for building aid, in the base year
for the testing of potable water systems required pursuant to section
eleven hundred ten of the public health law [and], PROVIDED THAT SUCH
EXPENSES FOR TESTING OF POTABLE WATER SYSTEMS ARE NOT REIMBURSABLE FROM
ANOTHER STATE OR FEDERAL SOURCE. THE COMMISSIONER IS ALSO AUTHORIZED TO
APPORTION TO ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT ADDITIONAL BUILDING AID PURSUANT TO
THIS SUBDIVISION FOR ITS APPROVED EXPENDITURES, OTHERWISE INELIGIBLE FOR
BUILDING AID, IN THE BASE YEAR for the installation of filters and/or
other effective remedial measures for immediate remediation in cases
where a finding of lead contamination is made pursuant to such section
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and verified by confirmatory sampling, provided that the cost of instal-
lation of such filters and/or other effective remedial measures shall be
deemed an approved expenditure only if (i) such installation and/or
other effective remedial measures have been approved or reviewed by a
professional with expertise in the field of water quality and remedi-
ation and (ii) such cost is incurred prior to July first, two thousand
nineteen. Such aid shall equal the product of the building aid ratio
defined pursuant to paragraph c of subdivision six of this section and
the actual approved expenditures incurred in the base year pursuant to
this subdivision. Commencing in the two thousand nineteen--two thousand
twenty school year and every year thereafter, additional building aid
pursuant to this subdivision shall include approved expenses for testing
of potable water systems for lead contamination pursuant to section
eleven hundred ten of the public health law, PROVIDED THAT SUCH EXPENSES
FOR TESTING OF POTABLE WATER SYSTEMS ARE NOT REIMBURSABLE FROM ANOTHER
STATE OR FEDERAL SOURCE.
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however that
section one of this act shall take effect on the same date and in the
same manner as a chapter of the laws of 2021 amending the public health
law relating to school potable water testing, as proposed in legislative
bills numbers S. 2122-A and A. 160-B, takes effect.
