S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2041
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 18, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. BENJAMIN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the public authorities law,  in  relation  to  requiring
   public notice prior to certain transportation facility closures
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 1277 of the public authorities law, as  amended  by
 chapter 521 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
   §  1277.  Station  operation  and  maintenance. 1. [a.] The operation,
 maintenance and use of passenger stations shall be  public  purposes  of
 the  city  of  New  York and the counties within the district. The total
 cost to the authority and each of its subsidiary corporations of  opera-
 tion,  maintenance and use of each passenger station within the district
 serviced by one or more railroad facilities of the authority or of  such
 subsidiary  corporation,  including  the buildings, appurtenances, plat-
 forms, lands and approaches incidental or  adjacent  thereto,  shall  be
 borne  by  the  city of New York if such station is located in such city
 or, if not located in such city, by such county within the  district  in
 which such station is located. On or before June first of each year, the
 authority  shall, in accordance with the method specified herein, deter-
 mine and certify to the city of New York and to each county  within  the
 district  the  respective  allocation of costs related to the operation,
 maintenance and use of passenger stations within such city and each such
 other county, for the twelve month period  ending  the  preceding  March
 thirty-first.
   [(i)]  A.  For the year commencing April first, nineteen hundred nine-
 ty-nine, the total payment amount to be billed by the authority for  the
 operation, maintenance and use of each passenger station within the city
 of  New York and the counties of Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Dutchess,
 Putnam, Orange, and Rockland shall be calculated by  summing  the  total
 amount  listed  in the base amount table plus an adjustment to such base
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD07027-03-9

 S. 2041                             2
 
 year amount equal to the base amount times the increase or  decrease  in
 the  Consumer  Price Index for Wage Earners and Clerical Workers for the
 New York, Northeastern-New Jersey Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area
 for the twelve-month period being billed.
 
                             BASE AMOUNT TABLE
        County                                Base Amount
        Nassau                                $19,200,000
        Suffolk                               $11,834,091
        Westchester                           $13,269,310
        Dutchess                              $ 1,581,880
        Putnam                                $   618,619
        Orange                                $   327,247
        Rockland                              $    34,791
        City of New York                      $61,435,330
   [(ii)]  B.  For each year thereafter, such total payment for each such
 county shall be the same amount as the total payment  during  the  imme-
 diately  prior  year,  plus an adjustment equal to the prior year amount
 times the increase or decrease in the  Consumer  Price  Index  for  Wage
 Earners  and  Clerical Workers for the New York, Northeastern-New Jersey
 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area for the twelve-month period being
 billed.
   [b.] 2. On or before the following September first, of each year, such
 city and each such county shall pay to the authority such cost or amount
 so certified to it on or before the preceding June first.  Such city and
 each such county shall have power to finance such costs  to  it  by  the
 issuance  of budget notes pursuant to section 29.00 of the local finance
 law.  For the year beginning April first, two thousand four, the author-
 ity, the city of New York and the counties of Nassau, Suffolk, Westches-
 ter, Dutchess, Putnam, Orange, and Rockland may, after having reached an
 agreement, recommend to the legislature modifications to the amounts set
 forth above based upon changes made to commuter services  including  but
 not  limited  to changes in the number of passenger stations within such
 counties or the level of commuter rail  service  provided  to  any  such
 passenger stations.  Failure between the authority and between the coun-
 ties  to  reach  agreement will be referred to the state comptroller for
 mediation. If the mediation is unsuccessful, each party  and  the  state
 comptroller may submit a recommendation to the governor and the legisla-
 ture for legislative action.
   [c.]  3. In the event that a city or county shall fail to make payment
 to the authority for station maintenance as required  pursuant  to  this
 section, or any part thereof, the chief executive officer of the author-
 ity  or  such other person as the chairman shall designate shall certify
 to the state comptroller the amount due and owing the authority  at  the
 end of the state fiscal year and the state comptroller shall withhold an
 equivalent  amount  from the next succeeding state aid allocated to such
 county or city from the motor fuel tax and the motor  vehicle  registra-
 tion  fee  distributed  pursuant to former section one hundred twelve of
 the highway law, or amounts distributed pursuant to section ten-c of the
 highway law, or per capita local assistance pursuant to  section  fifty-
 four  of  the  state  finance  law subject to the following limitations:
 prior to withholding amounts due the authority from such county or city,
 the comptroller shall pay in full any amount due the state of  New  York
 municipal  bond  bank  agency, on account of any such county's or city's
 obligation to such agency; the city university construction fund  pursu-
 ant  to the provisions of the city university construction fund act; the

 S. 2041                             3
 
 New  York  city  housing  development  corporation,  pursuant   to   the
 provisions  of  the  New  York  city housing development corporation act
 (article twelve of the private housing finance  law);  and  the  transit
 construction  fund pursuant to the provisions of title nine-A of article
 five of this chapter.  The comptroller shall give the  director  of  the
 budget notification of any such payment. Such amount or amounts so with-
 held by the comptroller shall be paid to the authority and the authority
 shall  use  such  amount  for the repayment of the state advances hereby
 authorized. When such amount or amounts are received by  the  authority,
 it  shall  credit  such amounts against any amounts due and owing by the
 city or county on whose account such amount was withheld and paid.
   [2. A public hearing or hearings shall be held at  least  thirty  days
 prior to the closure of any transportation facility due to construction,
 improvement,  reconstruction  or rehabilitation where such facility will
 be out-of-service for ninety days or longer. Public hearings required by
 this subdivision shall be held at one  or  more  locations  conveniently
 accessible to the persons who would be affected by such closure.]
   §  2.  Subdivision 5 of section 1205 of the public authorities law, as
 added by chapter 930 of the laws of 1977, is amended to read as follows:
   5. (A) Any complete or partial closing of a passenger  station  within
 the  city  of  New York, or any means of public access to such facility,
 except for purposes of repair or renovation  or  in  case  of  emergency
 shall  be  accomplished  only if approved by resolution of the authority
 adopted by not less than a majority of the whole number  of  members  of
 the  authority  then  in  office,  and only after a public hearing. Such
 hearing shall be held not less than thirty days  after  notice  of  such
 proposed  closing  has  been  given to, and comments solicited from, the
 community board as established pursuant to section  eighty-four  of  the
 New  York  city  charter whose area of jurisdiction includes the station
 proposed to be closed or otherwise affected.
   (B) IN THE CASE OF A PLANNED COMPLETE CLOSURE OF A  PASSENGER  STATION
 FOR  PURPOSES OF REPAIR OR RENOVATION, WHERE SUCH STATION WILL BE OUT OF
 SERVICE FOR SIXTY DAYS OR LONGER THE MTA BOARD  SHALL  ADOPT  A  POLICY,
 WITHIN  NINETY  DAYS OF THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF
 TWO THOUSAND NINETEEN WHICH AMENDED THIS SUBDIVISION, THAT  WILL  ENSURE
 ADEQUATE  COMMUNICATION OF SUCH WORK TO IMPACTED STAKEHOLDERS WHERE SUCH
 PASSENGER STATION IS LOCATED INCLUDING BUT  NOT  LIMITED  TO:    ELECTED
 REPRESENTATIVES,  SENATE  AND  ASSEMBLY  REPRESENTATIVES,  AND COMMUNITY
 BOARDS AT LEAST FORTY-FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO SUCH CLOSURE. SUCH POLICY SHALL
 REQUIRE THE AUTHORITY TO NOTIFY THE  COMMUNITY  BOARD  OR  BOARDS  WHOSE
 DISTRICT  CONTAINS  A  PASSENGER  STATION  SUBJECT TO A PLANNED COMPLETE
 CLOSURE OR IS CONTIGUOUS TO A DISTRICT THAT CONTAINS A PASSENGER STATION
 SUBJECT TO A PLANNED COMPLETE  CLOSURE  LOCATED  ON  THE  SAME  LINE  OF
 SERVICE  AS  THE  PASSENGER  STATION SUBJECT TO CLOSURE IN WRITING. SUCH
 WRITTEN NOTICE SHALL PROVIDE SUCH BOARD OR  BOARDS  WITH  AN  OPTION  TO
 REQUEST  A  PRESENTATION  FROM  THE  AUTHORITY  REGARDING  SUCH  PLANNED
 COMPLETE CLOSURE. UPON REQUEST FROM SUCH BOARD OR BOARDS  THE  AUTHORITY
 SHALL,  AT  A  DATE  CONVENIENT  TO  SUCH  BOARD OR BOARDS PRIOR TO SUCH
 CLOSURE, PRESENT INFORMATION REGARDING SUCH CLOSURE AND RELATED  SERVICE
 ALTERNATIVES  AND  ALSO  ALLOW FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. THE POLICY SHALL ALSO
 REQUIRE THAT THE AUTHORITY PROVIDE NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC AT LEAST  THIRTY
 DAYS  PRIOR  TO  SUCH  CLOSURE  BY:  (I) POSTING NOTICE IN THE PASSENGER
 STATIONS THAT ARE SCHEDULED FOR CLOSURE; AND (II) POSTING NOTICE ON  THE
 AUTHORITY'S  WEBSITE  AND  SOCIAL  MEDIA ACCOUNTS; PROVIDING INFORMATION
 ABOUT THE PLANNED COMPLETE CLOSURE, SERVICE ALTERNATIVES, AND DIRECTIONS
 ON HOW THE PUBLIC CAN PROVIDE COMMENT TO THE  AUTHORITY  REGARDING  SUCH

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 CLOSURE.  THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL NOT APPLY TO EMERGENCY STATION CLOSURES
 RESULTING FROM UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE SUCH CLOSURE IS  NECESSARY
 TO ENSURE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELFARE.
   §  3.  This  act  shall take effect immediately and shall apply to any
 passenger station closings that occur no sooner than 90 days after  such
 effective date.