NY State Senate Bill 2019-S7008

Senate Bill S7008

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to the use of pollinator friendly plant species in medians along the highways of the state

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last 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
Jan 08, 2020	referred to transportation

co-Sponsors

2019-S7008 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Transportation
Law Section:: Highway Law
Laws Affected:: Add §19-a, Hway L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S660

2019-S7008 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to the use of pollinator friendly plant species in medians along the highways of the state.

2019-S7008 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S7008

SPONSOR: MAY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the highway law, in relation to the use of pollinator
friendly plant species in medians along the highways of the state

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill amends the highway law to encourage the redevelopment and
rehabilitation of medians along state highways and other roadways into
pollinator friendly zones through new planting practices, mowing
routines, and expansion of adopt-a-highway programs.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Legislative intent

Section 2: Amends the highway law by adding a new section 19-a to create
pollinator friendly medians along highways. A definition of pollinator

friendly plant species is provided. The section requires the commission-
er to: develop policies and procedures to use pollinator friendly plant
species in medians along highways and to develop mowing standards that
will reduce, where consistent with public safety, the amount of highway
median that is mowed; to expand the adopt-a-highway program to include
the redevelopment and rehabilitation of medians into pollinator friendly
areas; and to allow political subdivisions of the state to designate
portions of medians within their boundaries eligible for voluntary beau-
tification as pollinator friendly zones.

Section 3: effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Many species of the most common pollinators, such as bees, wasps,
butterflies and beetles, are threatened because of lost habitat and the
use of pesticides. One of the most effective ways to support the many
varieties of pollinators responsible for the reproduction of flowering
plants and for pollinating billions of dollars in agricultural crops
each year is to encourage pollinator friendly planting. Gardens are one
of the most typical sources of pollinator friendly planting in cities,
but these gardens are not sufficient alone to provide food and habitats
for many species. New York's state and local highway system encompasses
over 110,000 miles of roadway and bridges. Many of these highways have
medians. With the right planting of native species and mowing practices
that allow some portion of the medians to become wild, these highway
medians can become pollinator friendly areas that will expand habitats
for pollinators while simultaneously supporting natural beauty through-
out the state.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Minimal

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
120 days after becoming law

2019-S7008 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7008
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 8, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MAY  --  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 the  use  of  pollinator
   friendly plant species in medians along the highways of the state
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that the planting
 of pollinator friendly plant species in medians along  the  highways  of
 this  state  is  consistent with the state goal of beautifying the land-
 scape along such highways. Therefore, it is the intent of  the  legisla-
 ture  to  encourage  the use of pollinator friendly plant species by the
 state and its political subdivisions in designing, developing and  main-
 taining such medians whenever safe and feasible.
   §  2.  The highway law is amended by adding a new section 19-a to read
 as follows:
   § 19-A. POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANT SPECIES; MEDIANS. 1. FOR PURPOSES OF
 THIS SECTION THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   A. "POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANT SPECIES" SHALL MEAN PLANTS NATIVE TO THE
 STATE, COMPOSED OF A VARIETY OF NECTAR AND POLLEN-RICH  FLOWERS  WITH  A
 WIDE  RANGE  AND  VARIETY  OF  SHAPES, SIZES, AND COLORS THAT BLOSSOM AT
 VARIOUS TIMES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. THE TERM "POLLINATOR  FRIENDLY  PLANT
 SPECIES" SHALL NOT INCLUDE MODERN PLANT HYBRIDS; AND
   B.  "POLITICAL SUBDIVISION" SHALL MEAN A COUNTY, TOWN, CITY OR VILLAGE
 OF THE STATE.
   2. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL, IN COOPERATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVI-
 RONMENTAL CONSERVATION, DEVELOP POLICIES AND  PROCEDURES  TO  ENCOURAGE,
 TRAIN  AND ASSIST THE STATE AND POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS TO USE POLLINATOR
 FRIENDLY PLANT SPECIES IN MEDIANS ALONG HIGHWAYS.
   3. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL DEVELOP POLICIES AND PROCEDURES  FOR  MOWING
 HIGHWAYS  THAT  WILL, WHEREVER FEASIBLE AND CONSISTENT WITH STANDARDS OF
 SAFETY FOR MOTOR VEHICLE OPERATORS, CYCLISTS,  AND  PEDESTRIANS,  REDUCE
 THE AMOUNT OF AREA WITHIN A HIGHWAY MEDIAN THAT IS MOWED.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14375-01-9

 S. 7008                             2
 
   4.  THE  COMMISSIONER  SHALL  DEVELOP  POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR THE
 ADOPT-A-HIGHWAY PROGRAM TO ALLOW VOLUNTEER GROUPS, BUSINESSES, ORGANIZA-
 TIONS, AND INDIVIDUALS TO VOLUNTARILY ADOPT MEDIANS  AND  REDEVELOP  AND
 REHABILITATE  THEM  INTO  MEDIANS POPULATED BY POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANT
 SPECIES.
   5. A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION MAY, WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE COMMISSIONER,
 DESIGNATE  PORTIONS OF MEDIANS WITHIN ITS BOUNDARY FOR VOLUNTARY BEAUTI-
 FICATION BY VOLUNTEER GROUPS, BUSINESSES,  ORGANIZATIONS,  AND  INDIVID-
 UALS.  SUCH  VOLUNTARY BEAUTIFICATION SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH THE POLI-
 CIES AND PROCEDURES  DEVELOPED  BY  THE  COMMISSIONER  AND  THE  USE  OF
 POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANT SPECIES SET FORTH IN THIS SECTION.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be  made  and
 completed on or before such date.

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Senate Bill S7008

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Sponsored By

Rachel May