S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   716

                       2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 5, 2011
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ -- read once and referred to the Commit-
  tee on Environmental Conservation

AN  ACT  to  amend  the  environmental  conservation law, in relation to
  public hearings

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  Legislative  finding.  The legislature finds and declares
that in order to assure full review of applications and proposed depart-
ment actions on them and to enhance protection of the  state's  environ-
ment,  additional  criteria are needed which lead to department of envi-
ronmental conservation adjudicatory proceedings as a result of  requests
from the public and applicants.
  S  2.  Subdivision 1 of section 70-0119 of the environmental conserva-
tion law, as added by chapter 723 of the laws of  1977,  is  amended  to
read as follows:
  1.    After evaluating an application for a permit and any comments of
department staff, other state agencies or units of government or members
of the public, the department shall, on or before  sixty  calendar  days
after  it mails notice to the applicant that the application is complete
or on or before sixty days after  the  application  is  deemed  complete
pursuant  to the provisions of this article, determine whether or not to
conduct a public hearing on the application and mail written  notice  to
the  applicant  of  a  determination  to conduct a public hearing.  Such
determination shall be based on whether the evaluation or comments raise
substantive and significant issues [relating]  WHICH (A) RELATE  to  any
findings  or  determinations the department is required to make pursuant
to this chapter, [including] (B) CREATE the reasonable likelihood that a
permit applied for will be denied or [can be] granted only with  [major]
SIGNIFICANT modifications to the project because the project as proposed
may not meet statutory or regulatory criteria or standards, OR (C) RAISE

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD04336-01-1

A. 716                              2

THE  POTENTIAL  OF SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVING THE PERMIT AND THE QUALITY OF
THE ENVIRONMENT OR MITIGATING THE PROJECT'S IMPACT THROUGH  MODIFICATION
OF PERMIT CONDITIONS OR THE PROJECT IN THE DISCRETION OF THE DEPARTMENT;
provided,  however,  where  any  comments  received  from members of the
public, PUBLIC OFFICIALS or otherwise raise substantive and  significant
issues  relating to the application and resolution of any such issue may
result in denial of the  permit  [or],  the  imposition  of  significant
conditions thereon, OR MODIFICATION OF THE PERMIT TO SIGNIFICANTLY BENE-
FIT THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE PUBLIC INTEREST, the department shall hold a
public hearing on the application.
  S  3. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding
the date upon which it shall have become a law, provided,  however  that
effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule
or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effec-
tive  date  is  authorized and directed to be made and completed through
regular rulemaking procedures on or before such effective date.