NY State Senate Bill 2025-S5764

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation 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 28, 2025	referred to environmental conservation

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Environmental Conservation
Law Section:: Environmental Conservation Law
Laws Affected:: Add §3-0322, En Con L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7052

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a wastewater infrastructure and drinking water program for the purpose of making payments toward the replacement and rehabilitation of existing local municipally-owned and funded drinking water, storm water and sanitary sewer systems.

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5764

SPONSOR: SKOUFIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
establishing the wastewater infrastructure and drinking water program

 
PURPOSE:

The purpose of this bill is to legislatively expand the Environmental
Planning Grant available for wastewater projects to include drinking
water projects and to appropriate six million dollars for this purpose.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Adds new section 3-0322 to the Environmental Conservation
Law,' establishing the Wastewater Infrastructure and Drinking Water
Program. This program shall apply to any drinking water system, stormwa-
ter system, or sanitary sewer system under the maintenance and/or opera-
tional jurisdiction of a county, city, town, village, or public authori-
ty, provided such system is not maintained or operated by a private

entity. The Commissioner and the Environmental Facilities corporation
shall promulgate all necessary rules and regulations to ensure the
program is distributed equitably. The program shall offer grants to
municipalities to pay for the initial planning of eligible projects.
Funding will be used to prepare an engineering report.

Section 2: Sets effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In 2022, the Construction Industry Council collaborated with Hudson
Valley Pattern for Progress on a report that examined the past 10 years
of infrastructure investments across a nine-county region directly north
of New York City. The most urgent findings of the report were related to
water and sewer infrastructure. Since 2015, the NYS Legislature has
appropriated approximately $4 billion to upgrade these systems, but only
18' of that money reached our communities. The research showed that many
small and medium-sized communities found the application process chal-
lenging, the up-front costs intimidating, or they wrongly believed the
programs were not intended for their villages, hamlets, or towns. As a
result, money is not reaching the communities so desperately in need of
these infrastructure upgrades. This legislation is one of two steps that
can be taken legislatively in the near term to minimize these challenges
facing small and medium communities.

Currently, Environmental Planning Grants are managed by New York State.
Environmental Facilities Corporation steers small and medium towns to
state funding to provide vital help with up-front engineering assist-
ance. Last year, about 3 million dollars were awarded statewide for
wastewater projects. This same engineering/planning is also necessary to
improve access to drinking water funds. This legislation will expand the
current Wastewater Infrastructure Engineering Planning Grant to include
Drinking Water so that water quality projects will be affordable for all
communities.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

Senate

2023: S7052, Referred to Finance

2024: S7052, Referred to Finance

Assembly

2023: A5851, Referred to Environmental Conservation

2024: A5851, Referred to Environmental Conservation

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

The current fiscal implications are unknown at this time.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law.

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5764
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 28, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
 
 AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
   establishing the wastewater infrastructure and drinking water program

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The environmental conservation law is amended by  adding  a
 new section 3-0322 to read as follows:
 § 3-0322. WASTEWATER INFRASTRUCTURE AND DRINKING WATER PROGRAM.
   1.  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY OTHER PROVISIONS OF THIS CHAPTER OR ANY OTHER
 LAW, RULE OR REGULATION, AND SUBJECT TO AN APPROPRIATION  MADE  THEREFOR
 AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION AND WITH THE RULES
 AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED BY THE COMMISSIONER IN CONNECTION THEREWITH,
 ON AND AFTER THE FIRST DAY OF APRIL, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX, A WASTEWA-
 TER  INFRASTRUCTURE AND DRINKING WATER PROGRAM IS HEREBY ESTABLISHED FOR
 THE PURPOSE OF MAKING PAYMENTS TOWARD THE REPLACEMENT AND REHABILITATION
 OF EXISTING LOCAL MUNICIPALLY-OWNED AND  FUNDED  DRINKING  WATER,  STORM
 WATER  AND  SANITARY  SEWER  SYSTEMS. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, SUCH
 PROGRAM SHALL APPLY TO ANY DRINKING WATER SYSTEM, STORM WATER SYSTEM  OR
 SANITARY  SEWER  SYSTEM  WITHIN  THE STATE THAT IS UNDER THE MAINTENANCE
 AND/OR OPERATIONAL JURISDICTION OF A  COUNTY,  CITY,  TOWN,  VILLAGE  OR
 PUBLIC AUTHORITY; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT SUCH SYSTEM SHALL NOT BE UNDER
 THE MAINTENANCE AND/OR OPERATIONAL JURISDICTION OF A PRIVATE ENTITY. THE
 COMMISSIONER,  IN  CONJUNCTION  WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL FACILITIES CORPO-
 RATION, SHALL PROMULGATE ALL NECESSARY RULES AND  REGULATIONS  TO  CARRY
 OUT  THE  PROGRAM SO THAT AN EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF AID SHALL BE MADE
 FOR THE GENERAL OPERATION AND/OR GENERAL MAINTENANCE OF ANY SUCH  EXIST-
 ING DRINKING WATER SYSTEM, STORM WATER SYSTEM OR SANITARY SEWER SYSTEM.
   2.  SUCH  PROGRAM SHALL OFFER GRANTS TO MUNICIPALITIES TO HELP PAY FOR
 THE INITIAL PLANNING  OF  ELIGIBLE  CLEAN  WATER  STATE  REVOLVING  FUND
 (CWSRF) WATER QUALITY PROJECTS.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09617-01-5

 S. 5764                             2
 
   3.  FUNDING  MAY  BE  USED BY MUNICIPALITIES FOR THE PREPARATION OF AN
 ENGINEERING REPORT. THIS INCLUDES PLANNING ACTIVITIES TO  DETERMINE  THE
 SCOPE  OF  WATER  QUALITY  ISSUES,  EVALUATION  OF ALTERNATIVES, AND THE
 RECOMMENDATION OF A CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT. IN ADDITION, THE  COSTS
 TO  CONDUCT  AN ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW FOR THE RECOMMENDED ALTERNATIVE ARE
 ELIGIBLE. DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION COSTS ARE NOT ELIGIBLE. PRIORITY SHALL
 BE GIVEN TO MUNICIPALITIES PROPOSING PLANNING ACTIVITIES THAT ARE:
   (A) REQUIRED BY AN EXECUTED ORDER ON CONSENT; OR
   (B) REQUIRED BY A DRAFT OR FINAL STATE POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION
 SYSTEM (SPDES) PERMIT (E.G. NUTRIENT REMOVAL, INFLOW  AND  INFILTRATION,
 DISINFECTION); OR
   (C) UPGRADING OR REPLACING AN EXISTING WASTEWATER SYSTEM; OR
   (D)  CONSTRUCTING  A WASTEWATER TREATMENT AND/OR COLLECTION SYSTEM FOR
 AN AREA WITH FAILING ONSITE SEPTIC SYSTEMS; OR
   (E) ADDRESSING A POLLUTANT OF CONCERN IN  A  WATERSHED  IMPLEMENTATION
 PLAN (I.E. TOTAL MAXIMUM DAILY LOAD (TMDL), NINE ELEMENT WATERSHED PLAN,
 OR DEC HABS ACTION PLAN).
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law.

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Senate Bill S5764

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S5764

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Sponsored By

James Skoufis

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5764 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments