NY State Senate Bill 2025-S5392

Senate Bill S5392

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Permits certain not-for-profit corporations engaged in engineering for certain conservation efforts to do business or provide professional engineering, land surveying or professional geology services in the state

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Higher Education 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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 21, 2025	referred to higher education

2025-S5392 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A483
Current Committee:: Senate Higher Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§7209 & 7210, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S8850, A10016

2025-S5392 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to permitting certain not-for-profit corporations engaged in engineering for certain conservation efforts to do business or provide professional engineering, land surveying, or professional geology services in the state.

2025-S5392 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5392

SPONSOR: SCARCELLA-SPANTON
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to permitting certain
not-for-profit corporations engaged in engineering for certain conserva-
tion efforts to do business or provide professional engineering, land
surveying, or professional geology services in the state

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Allows for foreign not-for-profit corporations to obtain a
certificate of authority to engage in engineering for conservation
efforts associated with wetlands - both tidal and freshwater.

Section 2. Authorizes foreign not-for-profits to engage in engineering
works around tidal and freshwater wetlands.

Section 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Wetlands are one of many vital ecosystems found in the State of New
York. Providing a habitat to a wide range of unique flora and fauna,
their significance has grown more well-recognized in recent years.
Unfortunately, wetlands have had to come a long way to see this rebirth.

For many years, they were perceived as undesirable or an alternative to
sewers. Years of poor land-use, dumping, and other forms of pollution
have made efforts to protect wetlands more essential than they ever have
before.

This act would permit foreign firms to work on projects concerning the
conservation of these green spaces. Works that a company may carry out
in order to promote wetland conservation include restoring them to their
natural state, recharging groundwater reserves, constructing natural
infrastructure, and other efforts that, in any way, make wetlands a more
desirable place for plants, animals, and people alike.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2024; Held in Assembly Higher Education Committee.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

No Impact

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This legislation will take effect immediately.

2025-S5392 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5392
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in  relation  to  permitting  certain
   not-for-profit corporations engaged in engineering for certain conser-
   vation  efforts  to  do  business or provide professional engineering,
   land surveying, or professional geology services in the state
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  7209 of the education law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 10 to read as follows:
   10. NOTHING IN THIS ARTICLE SHALL PROHIBIT  A  FOREIGN  NOT-FOR-PROFIT
 CORPORATION, AS DEFINED IN SECTION ONE HUNDRED TWO OF THE NOT-FOR-PROFIT
 CORPORATION LAW, ENGAGED IN ENGINEERING FOR CONSERVATION EFFORTS ASSOCI-
 ATED  WITH  (A)  TIDAL WETLAND, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION
 25-0103 OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION LAW, RESTORATION, (B) FRESHWA-
 TER WETLAND, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF  SECTION  24-0107  OF  THE
 ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION  LAW,  RESTORATION, (C) HABITAT RESTORATION,
 (D) GROUNDWATER RECHARGE, OR (E) NATURAL INFRASTRUCTURE FROM OBTAINING A
 CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY TO DO  BUSINESS  IN  THE  STATE  OF  NEW  YORK,
 PROVIDED  THAT  THE  BUSINESS PROPOSED TO BE DONE BY SUCH NOT-FOR-PROFIT
 CORPORATION  WITHIN  THIS  STATE  RELATES  TO  THE  STATED  CONSERVATION
 RESOURCES  AND SHALL BE CONDUCTED BY A PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER PURSUANT TO
 THIS ARTICLE.
   § 2. Subdivisions 1, 2, and 3 of section 7210 of  the  education  law,
 subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 475 of the laws of 2014 and subdivi-
 sions 2 and 3 as amended by chapter 483 of the laws of 2001, are amended
 to read as follows:
   1.  Domestic  or  foreign  professional  service  corporations, design
 professional service corporations, professional service limited  liabil-
 ity companies, foreign professional service limited liability companies,
 registered  limited  liability partnerships, New York registered foreign
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02534-01-5

 S. 5392                             2
 
 limited liability partnerships, FOREIGN NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATIONS,  AS
 DEFINED  IN  SECTION  ONE  HUNDRED TWO OF THE NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION
 LAW, ENGAGED IN ENGINEERING FOR CONSERVATION EFFORTS ASSOCIATED WITH (A)
 TIDAL  WETLAND,  AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 25-0103 OF THE
 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION LAW, RESTORATION, (B) FRESHWATER WETLAND,  AS
 DEFINED  IN  SUBDIVISION  ONE  OF  SECTION  24-0107 OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL
 CONSERVATION LAW, RESTORATION, (C) HABITAT RESTORATION, (D)  GROUNDWATER
 RECHARGE,  OR  (E) NATURAL INFRASTRUCTURE, partnerships and joint enter-
 prises specified in subdivision four of section seventy-two hundred nine
 of this article, provided each of the foregoing entities  is  authorized
 to  provide  professional  engineering,  land  surveying or professional
 geology services and general business corporations authorized to provide
 professional engineering or land surveying services pursuant to subdivi-
 sion six of section seventy-two hundred nine of this article  may  offer
 to  provide  or  provide  professional  engineering,  land  surveying or
 professional geology services only  after  obtaining  a  certificate  of
 authorization  from  the  department.  Except as otherwise authorized by
 statute, rule or regulation, other business entities are not  authorized
 to  offer or provide professional engineering, land surveying or profes-
 sional geology services and may not obtain certificates of authorization
 provided that nothing contained herein shall prohibit an individual  who
 is  licensed  to  practice  professional  engineering, land surveying or
 professional geology under this article from obtaining a certificate  of
 authorization  upon  application  and  payment  of  the appropriate fees
 provided for under this section.
   2. Upon application a certificate of authorization shall be issued  by
 the  department  to all individuals, corporations, NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPO-
 RATIONS, limited liability companies,  limited  liability  partnerships,
 partnerships  and joint enterprises specified in subdivision one of this
 section and which are authorized to provide professional engineering  or
 land surveying services and pay the appropriate fee.
   3.  A  "certificate of authorization" shall authorize such individual,
 corporation,  NOT-FOR-PROFIT  CORPORATION,  limited  liability  company,
 limited  liability  partnership,  partnership  or  joint  enterprise  to
 provide professional engineering or land surveying  services  for  three
 years  from  the date of issuance subject to, as otherwise prescribed by
 law, the supervision of the regents of the university of  the  state  of
 New  York  including the power to discipline and impose penalties in the
 same manner and to the same extent as is provided with respect to  indi-
 viduals and their licenses and registration pursuant to this title.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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