NY State Senate Bill 2023-S9211

Senate Bill S9211

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Lowers the required service life threshold for consolidated local street and highway improvement program capital projects

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Transportation Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 06, 2024	referred to transportation

2023-S9211 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Transportation
Law Section:: Highway Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §10-c, Hway L

2023-S9211 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Lowers the required service life threshold for consolidated local street and highway improvement program capital projects from ten years to five years.

2023-S9211 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S9211

SPONSOR: BORRELLO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the highway law, in relation to lowering the required
service life threshold for consolidated local street and highway
improvement program capital projects

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill lowers the required service life threshold for consolidated
local street and highway improvement program capital projects (CHIPS)
from ten years to five years.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Amends subdivision 5 of section 10-c of the highway law by
changing the service life of a project to five years.

Section 2. Provides that the act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Per a July 2023 update to the NYSDOT Program Guidelines, "CHIPS, EWR,
PAVE-NY, and STR allow the following resurfacing project sub types with
a 5-year service life: (1) micro surfacing; (2) paver placed surface
treatment; (3) single course surface treatment involving chip seals or
oil and stone; or (4) double course surface treatment involving chip
seals or oil and stone. Under NYSDOT policy, if a municipality is reim-
bursed for expenditures on one of these four resurfacing treatments, the
municipality is not eligible for reimbursement a second treatment at the
same location for another ten (10) years." This policy has long been
ignored by NYSDOT and its enforcement will result in the deterioration
of roadways and increased property taxes.

Historically, NYSDOT has permitted preventative maintenance treatments
under various programs, acknowledging their cost-effectiveness and bene-
fits to taxpayers. Most county and town highway departments use preven-
tative maintenance treatments like chipseal (oil & stone), micro paving,
or paver placed surface treatments to extend the life of the road. They
are by far the most economical choice to maintain roads and provide the
best cost to benefit the taxpayers. While these treatments commonly must
be reapplied after 5-7 years, they often do last 10 years or longer and
they remain part of the road base, often for decades. These treatments
certainly improve the value of road, which is the asset against the
bonds. These are all excellent reasons why NYSDOT accepted them as
eligible expenses under the programs.

The lookback policy is going to require county and town highway super-
intendents to either defer maintenance outside of the 10-yr lookback
period or switch to more expensive reconstructions and overlays, which
will severely limit the mileage that can be repaired each year. To make
up for these limitations, municipalities will either need to increase
taxes to raise local funds for preventative maintenance or let roads
decline.

Overall, this legislation is necessary for several reasons. It facili-
tates more frequent maintenance of roads and highways, leading to
improved safety, and cost savings. By lowering the service life thresh-
old for CHIPS capital projects to five years, it enables local authori-
ties to address infrastructure needs more promptly and effectively,
ultimately benefiting both residents and the broader economy.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2022: S.4767 Referred to Codes

2020: S.7219/A .5464-A Passed Senate

2019: S.880/A.5464 Referred to Codes/Passed Assembly

2018: S.7218/A.9723 Passed Senate/held for consideration in codes

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S9211 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9211
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                May 6, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. BORRELLO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
 
 AN ACT to amend the highway law, in relation to  lowering  the  required
   service  life  threshold  for  consolidated  local  street and highway
   improvement program capital projects
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  5  of  section  10-c  of the highway law, as
 amended by chapter 20 of the  laws  of  1983,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   5.  For  amounts  to be distributed pursuant to this section above the
 funding level, as defined in this subdivision, received by  any  munici-
 pality,  such  municipality  shall  use at least seventy-five percent of
 such apportioned moneys for the construction, reconstruction or improve-
 ment of  local  highways,  bridges  and/or  highway-railroad  crossings,
 including   right  of  way  acquisition,  preliminary  engineering,  and
 construction supervision and inspection, where the service life  of  the
 project  is at least [ten] FIVE years. Such moneys made available may be
 used to match other state and federal  funds  made  available  for  such
 projects under federal-aid highway acts. The remainder of the apportion-
 ment, may be used for any highway purposes, except debt service, includ-
 ing  but  not  limited  to,  the  acquisition of materials and equipment
 devoted to operation and maintenance of local highways,  bridges  and/or
 highway-railroad crossings and the payment of any costs directly attrib-
 utable  to  operation  and maintenance of local highways, bridges and/or
 highway-railroad crossings. At the discretion of the  commissioner,  the
 requirement  specified  in this subdivision may be waived for assistance
 payments in amounts of less than five thousand dollars. For purposes  of
 this  section "funding level" shall mean the average amounts, calculated
 for each municipality, received over  two  years  ending  March  thirty-
 first, nineteen hundred eighty-two from the provisions of the town high-
 way  improvement  program,  the  distribution made by former section one
 hundred twelve of this chapter, as repealed by section twenty-one of the
 transportation systems assistance and financing act of 1981  of  amounts
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD15379-01-4
 S. 9211                             2
 
 collected  from  taxes  on  motor  fuel  imposed by sections two hundred
 eighty-four and two hundred eighty-four-a of the tax law and  on  Diesel
 motor  fuel imposed by sections two hundred eighty-two-a and two hundred
 eighty-two-b  of the tax law, and from motor vehicle fees collected from
 residents pursuant to the vehicle and traffic law, and the  distribution
 made  by  former  section  two  hundred seventy-nine of this chapter, as
 repealed by section twenty-one of the transportation systems  assistance
 and financing act of 1981.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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