§ 970-r. State assistance for brownfield opportunity areas. 1.
Definitions. a. "Applicant" shall mean the municipality, community board
and/or community based organization submitting an application for state
assistance or a nomination for designation in the manner authorized by
this section.

b. "Commissioner" shall mean the commissioner of the department of
environmental conservation.

c. "Community based organization" shall mean a not-for-profit
corporation exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the internal
revenue code whose stated mission is promoting reuse of brownfield sites
or community revitalization within a specified geographic area in which
the community based organization is located; which has twenty-five
percent or more of its board of directors residing in the community in
such area; and represents a community with a demonstrated financial
need. "Community based organization" shall not include any
not-for-profit corporation that has caused or contributed to the release
or threatened release of a contaminant from or onto the brownfield site,
or any not-for-profit corporation that generated, transported, or
disposed of, or that arranged for, or caused, the generation,
transportation, or disposal of contamination from or onto the brownfield
site. This definition shall not apply if more than twenty-five percent
of the members, officers or directors of the not-for-profit corporation
are or were employed or receiving compensation from any person
responsible for a site under title thirteen or title fourteen of article
twenty-seven of the environmental conservation law, article twelve of
the navigation law or under applicable principles of statutory or common
law liability.

d. "Brownfield site" shall have the same meaning as set forth in
section 27-1405 of the environmental conservation law.

e. "Department" shall mean the department of state.

f. "Contamination" or "contaminated" shall have the same meaning as
provided in section 27-1405 of the environmental conservation law.

g. "Municipality" shall have the same meaning as set forth in
subdivision fifteen of section 56-0101 of the environmental conservation
law.

h. "Community board" shall have the same meaning as set forth in
section twenty-eight hundred of the New York city charter.

i. "Secretary" shall mean the secretary of state.

j. "Nomination" shall mean a written plan for redevelopment and
revitalization of any area (i) wherein one or more known or suspected
brownfield sites are located and (ii) that contains the elements
required for brownfield opportunity area designation as determined in
accordance with subdivision three of this section. It is not necessary
that all, or any, of the services used to identify, prepare, create, or
develop the elements required for designation be funded through this
section.

2. State assistance for pre-nomination study for brownfield
opportunity areas. a. Within the limits of appropriations therefor, the
secretary is authorized to provide, on a competitive basis, financial
assistance to municipalities, to community based organizations, to
community boards, or to municipalities and community based organizations
acting in cooperation to prepare a pre-nomination study for a brownfield
opportunity area designation. Such financial assistance shall not exceed
ninety percent of the costs of such pre-nomination study for any such
area.

b. Activities eligible to receive such assistance shall include, but
are not limited to, the assembly and development of basic information
about:

(1) the borders of the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(2) the number and size of known or suspected brownfield sites;

(3) current and anticipated uses of the properties in the proposed
brownfield opportunity area;

(4) current and anticipated future conditions of groundwater in the
proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(5) known data about the environmental conditions of the properties in
the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(6) ownership of the properties in the proposed brownfield opportunity
area and whether the owners are participating in the brownfield
opportunity area planning process; and

(7) preliminary descriptions of possible remediation strategies, reuse
opportunities, necessary infrastructure improvements and other public or
private measures needed to stimulate investment, promote revitalization,
support job growth, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase climate
resilience, enhance community health and environmental conditions, and
achieve environmental justice.

c. Funding preferences shall be given to applications for such
assistance that relate to areas having one or more of the following
characteristics:

(1) areas for which the application is a partnered application by a
municipality and a community based organization;

(2) areas with concentrations of known or suspected brownfield sites;

(3) areas for which the application demonstrates support from a
municipality and a community based organization;

(4) areas showing indicators of economic distress including low
resident incomes, high unemployment, high commercial vacancy rates,
depressed property values; and

(5) areas with known or suspected brownfield sites presenting
strategic opportunities to stimulate economic development, community
revitalization or the siting of public amenities.

d. The secretary, upon the receipt of an application for such
assistance from a community based organization not in cooperation with
the local government having jurisdiction over the proposed brownfield
opportunity area, shall request the municipal government to review and
state the municipal government's support or lack of support; provided,
however, in the city of New York, such statement shall be provided by
the community board or boards for the district or districts in which the
proposed area is located. The municipal government's or community
board's statement shall be considered a part of the application.

e. Each application for assistance shall be submitted to the secretary
in a format, and containing such information, as prescribed by the
secretary but shall include, at a minimum, the following:

(1) a statement of the rationale or relationship between the proposed
assistance and the criteria set forth in this subdivision for the
evaluation and ranking of assistance applications;

(2) the processes by which local participation in the development of
the application has been sought;

(3) the process to be carried out with the state assistance including,
but not limited to, the goals of and budget for the effort, the work
plan and timeline for the attainment of these goals, and the intended
process for community participation in the process;

(4) the manner and extent to which public or governmental agencies
with jurisdiction over issues that will be addressed in the data
gathering process will be involved in this process;

(5) other planning and development initiatives proposed or in progress
in the proposed brownfield opportunity area; and

(6) for each community based organization which is an applicant or a
co-applicant, a copy of its determination of tax exempt status issued by
the federal internal revenue service pursuant to section 501 of the
internal revenue code, a description of the relationship between the
community based organization and the area that is the subject of the
application, its financial and institutional accountability, its
experience in conducting and completing planning initiatives and in
working with the local government associated with the proposed
brownfield opportunity area.

f. Prior to making an award for assistance, the secretary shall notify
the temporary president of the senate and speaker of the assembly.

g. Following notification to the applicant that assistance has been
awarded, and prior to disbursement of funds, a contract shall be
executed between the department and the applicant or co-applicants. The
secretary shall establish terms and conditions for such contracts as the
secretary deems appropriate, including provisions to define: applicant's
work scope, work schedule, and deliverables; fiscal reports on budgeted
and actual use of funds expended; and requirements for submission of a
final fiscal report. The contract shall also require the distribution of
work products to the department, and, for community based organizations,
to the applicant's municipality. Applicants shall be required to make
the results publicly available.

3. State assistance for nominations to designate brownfield
opportunity areas. a. Within the limits of appropriations therefor, the
secretary is authorized to provide, on a competitive basis, financial
assistance to municipalities, to community based organizations, to
community boards, or to municipalities and community based organizations
acting in cooperation to prepare a nomination for designation of a
brownfield opportunity area. Such financial assistance shall not exceed
ninety percent of the costs of such nomination for any such area. A
nomination study must include sufficient information to designate the
brownfield opportunity area. The contents of the nomination study shall
be developed based on pre-nomination study information, if conducted,
which shall principally consist of an area-wide study, documenting the
historic brownfield uses in the area proposed for designation.

b. An application for such financial assistance shall include an
indication of support from owners of brownfield sites in the proposed
brownfield opportunity area. All residents and property owners in the
proposed brownfield opportunity area shall receive notice in such form
and manner as the secretary shall prescribe.

c. No application for such financial assistance shall be considered
unless the applicant demonstrates that it has, to the maximum extent
practicable, solicited and considered the views of residents of the
proposed brownfield opportunity area, the views of state and local
officials elected to represent such residents and the local
organizations representing such residents.

d. Activities eligible to receive such financial assistance shall
include the identification, preparation, creation, development and
assembly of information and elements to be included in a nomination for
designation of a brownfield opportunity area, including but not limited
to:

(1) the borders of the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(2) the location and size of each known or suspected brownfield site
in the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(3) the identification of strategic sites within the proposed
brownfield opportunity area;

(4) the type of potential developments anticipated for sites within
the proposed brownfield opportunity area proposed by either the current
or the prospective owners of such sites;

(5) local legislative or regulatory action which may be required to
implement a plan for the redevelopment of the proposed brownfield
opportunity area;

(6) priorities for public and private investment in infrastructure,
open space, economic development, housing, or community facilities in
the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(7) identification and mapping of current and anticipated uses of the
properties and groundwater in the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(8) existing detailed assessments of individual brownfield sites and,
where the consent of the site owner has been obtained, the need for
conducting on-site assessments;

(9) known data about the environmental conditions of properties in the
proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(10) ownership of the known or suspected brownfield properties in the
proposed brownfield opportunity area to the extent such information is
publicly available;

(11) descriptions of possible remediation strategies, reuse
opportunities, brownfield redevelopment, necessary infrastructure
improvements and other public or private measures needed to stimulate
investment, promote revitalization, support job growth, reduce
greenhouse gas emissions, increase climate resilience, enhance community
health and environmental conditions, and achieve environmental justice;

(12) the goals and objectives, both short term and long term, for the
economic revitalization of the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(13) the publicly controlled and other developable lands and buildings
within the proposed brownfield opportunity area which are or could be
made available for residential, industrial and commercial development;
and

(14) a community participation strategy to maximize public awareness
and to solicit and consider the views of residents, businesses and other
stakeholders of the proposed brownfield opportunity area.

e. Funding preferences shall be given to applications for such
assistance that relate to areas having one or more of the following
characteristics:

(1) areas for which the application is a partnered application by a
municipality and a community based organization;

(2) areas with concentrations of known or suspected brownfield sites;

(3) areas for which the application demonstrates support from a
municipality and a community based organization;

(4) areas showing indicators of economic distress including low
resident incomes, high unemployment, high commercial vacancy rates,
depressed property values; and

(5) areas with known or suspected brownfield sites presenting
strategic opportunities to stimulate economic development, community
revitalization or the siting of public amenities.

f. Each application for such assistance shall be submitted to the
secretary in a format, and containing such information, as prescribed by
the secretary but shall include, at a minimum, the following:

(1) a statement of the rationale or relationship between the proposed
assistance and the criteria set forth in this section for the evaluation
and ranking of assistance applications;

(2) the processes by which local participation in the development of
the application has been sought;

(3) the process to be carried out under the state assistance
including, but not limited to, the goals of and budget for the effort,
the work plan and timeline for the attainment of these goals, and the
intended process for public participation in the process;

(4) the manner and extent to which public or governmental agencies
with jurisdiction over issues that will be addressed in the data
gathering process will be involved in this process;

(5) other planning and development initiatives proposed or in progress
in the proposed brownfield opportunity area;

(6) for each community based organization which is an applicant or a
co-applicant, a copy of its determination of tax exempt status issued by
the federal internal revenue service pursuant to section 501 of the
internal revenue code, a description of the relationship between the
community based organization and the area that is the subject of the
application, its financial and institutional accountability, its
experience in conducting and completing planning initiatives and in
working with the local government associated with the proposed
brownfield opportunity area; and

(7) the financial commitments the applicant will make to the
brownfield opportunity area for activities including, but not limited
to, marketing of the area for business development, human resource
services for residents and businesses in the brownfield opportunity
area, and services for small and minority and women-owned businesses.

g. An application for such assistance from a community based
organization not in cooperation with the local government having
jurisdiction over the proposed brownfield opportunity area, shall
include a resolution from the city, town, or village with planning and
land use authority in which the brownfield opportunity area is proposed,
stating support or lack of support; provided, however, in the city of
New York, such resolution shall be provided by the community board or
boards for the district or districts in which the proposed area is
located. The resolution from each city, town, village, or community
board shall be considered a part of the application.

h. Prior to making an award for assistance, the secretary shall notify
the temporary president of the senate and speaker of the assembly.

i. Following notification to the applicant that assistance has been
awarded, and prior to disbursement of funds, a contract shall be
executed between the department and the applicant or co-applicants. The
secretary shall establish terms and conditions for such contracts as the
secretary deems appropriate, including provisions to define: applicant's
work scope, work schedule, and deliverables; fiscal reports on budgeted
and actual use of funds expended; and requirements for submission of a
final fiscal report. The contract shall also require the distribution of
work products to the department, and, for community based organizations,
to the applicant's municipality. Applicants shall be required to make
the results publicly available. Such contract shall further include a
provision providing that if any responsible party payments become
available to the applicant, the amount of such payments attributable to
expenses paid by the award shall be paid to the department by the
applicant; provided that the applicant may first apply such responsible
party payments toward any actual project costs incurred by the
applicant.

3-a. State assistance for activities to advance brownfield opportunity
area revitalization. a. Within amounts appropriated therefor, the
secretary is authorized to provide, on a competitive basis, financial
assistance to municipalities, to community based organizations, to
community boards, or to community based organizations acting in
cooperation with a municipality, to conduct predevelopment activities
within a designated brownfield opportunity area to advance the goals and
priorities of the brownfield opportunity area program set forth in the
nomination of such area. Such financial assistance shall not exceed
ninety percent of the costs of such activities. Activities eligible to
receive such assistance shall include: development and implementation of
marketing strategies; development of plans and specifications; real
estate services; building condition studies; infrastructure analyses;
zoning and regulatory updates; environmental, housing and economic
studies, analyses and reports; renewable energy feasibility studies,
legal and financial services; and public outreach.

b. Funding preferences shall be given to applications for such
assistance that relate to areas having one or more of the following
characteristics:

(1) areas showing indicators of economic distress including low
resident incomes, high unemployment, high commercial vacancy rates,
depressed property values; and

(2) areas with known or suspected brownfield sites presenting
strategic opportunities to stimulate economic development, community
revitalization or the siting of public amenities.

c. Prior to making an award for assistance, the secretary shall notify
the temporary president of the senate and speaker of the assembly.

d. Following notification to the applicant that assistance has been
awarded, and prior to disbursement of funds, a contract shall be
executed between the department and the applicant or co-applicants. The
secretary shall establish terms and conditions for such contracts as the
secretary deems appropriate, including provisions to define: applicant's
work scope, work schedule, and deliverables; fiscal reports on budgeted
and actual use of funds expended; and requirements for submission of a
final fiscal report. The contract shall also require the distribution of
work products to the department, and, for community based organizations,
to the applicant's municipality. Applicants shall be required to make
the results publicly available. Such contract shall further include a
provision providing that if any responsible party payments become
available to the applicant, the amount of such payments attributable to
expenses paid by the award shall be paid to the department by the
applicant; provided that the applicant may first apply such responsible
party payments toward any actual project costs incurred by the
applicant.

4. Designation of brownfield opportunity area. Upon completion of a
nomination for designation of a brownfield opportunity area, it shall be
forwarded by the applicant to the secretary, who shall determine whether
it is consistent with the provisions of this section. The secretary may
review and approve a nomination for designation of a brownfield
opportunity area at any time. If the secretary determines that the
nomination is consistent with the provisions of this section, the
brownfield opportunity area shall be designated. If the secretary
determines that the nomination is not consistent with the provisions of
this section, the secretary shall make recommendations in writing to the
applicant of the manner and nature in which the nomination should be
amended.

5. Priority and preference. The designation of a brownfield
opportunity area pursuant to this section is intended to serve as a
planning tool. It alone shall not impose any new obligations on any
property or property owner. To the extent authorized by law, projects in
brownfield opportunity areas designated pursuant to this section shall
receive a priority and preference when considered for financial
assistance pursuant to articles fifty-four and fifty-six of the
environmental conservation law. To the extent authorized by law,
projects in brownfield opportunity areas designated pursuant to this
section may receive a priority and preference when considered for
financial assistance pursuant to any other state, federal or local law.

6. State assistance for brownfield site assessments in brownfield
opportunity areas. a. Within the limits of appropriations therefor, the
secretary of state, is authorized to provide, on a competitive basis,
financial assistance to municipalities, to community based
organizations, to community boards, or to municipalities and community
based organizations acting in cooperation to conduct brownfield site
assessments. Such financial assistance shall not exceed ninety percent
of the costs of such brownfield site assessment.

b. Brownfield sites eligible for such assistance must be owned by a
municipality, or volunteer as such term is defined in section 27-1405 of
the environmental conservation law.

c. Brownfield site assessment activities eligible for funding include,
but are not limited to, testing of properties to determine the nature
and extent of the contamination (including soil and groundwater),
environmental assessments, the development of a proposed remediation
strategy to address any identified contamination, and any other
activities deemed appropriate by the commissioner in consultation with
the secretary of state. Any environmental assessment shall be subject to
the review and approval of such commissioner.

d. Applications for such assistance shall be submitted to the
secretary in a format, and containing such information, as prescribed by
the secretary in consultation with the commissioner.

e. Funding preferences shall be given to applications for such
assistance that relate to areas having one or more of the following
characteristics:

(1) areas for which the application is a partnered application by a
municipality and a community based organization;

(2) areas with concentrations of known or suspected brownfield sites;

(3) areas for which the application demonstrates support from a
municipality and a community based organization;

(4) areas showing indicators of economic distress including low
resident incomes, high unemployment, high commercial vacancy rates,
depressed property values; and

(5) areas with known or suspected brownfield sites presenting
strategic opportunities to stimulate economic development, community
revitalization or the siting of public amenities.

f. The secretary, upon the receipt of an application for such
assistance from a community based organization not in cooperation with
the local government having jurisdiction over the proposed brownfield
opportunity area, shall request the municipal government to review and
state the municipal government's support or lack of support. The
municipal government's statement shall be considered a part of the
application.

g. Prior to making an award for assistance, the secretary shall notify
the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly.

h. Following notification to the applicant that assistance has been
awarded, and prior to disbursement of funds, a contract shall be
executed between the department and the applicant or co-applicants. The
commissioner shall establish terms and conditions for such contracts as
the commissioner deems appropriate in consultation with the secretary of
state, including provisions to define: applicant's work scope, work
schedule, and deliverables; fiscal reports on budgeted and actual use of
funds expended; and requirements for submission of a final fiscal
report. The contract shall also require the distribution of work
products to the department, and, for community based organizations, to
the applicant's municipality. Applicants shall be required to make the
results publicly available. Such contract shall further include a
provision providing that if any responsible party payments become
available to the applicant, the amount of such payments attributable to
expenses paid by the award shall be paid to the department by the
applicant; provided that the applicant may first apply such responsible
party payments towards actual project costs incurred by the applicant.

7. Amendments to designated area. Any proposed amendment to a
brownfield opportunity area designated pursuant to this section shall be
proposed, and reviewed by the secretary, in the same manner and using
the same criteria set forth in this section and applicable to an initial
nomination for the designation of a brownfield opportunity area.

8. Community participation requirements. a. All applications for state
assistance for pre-nomination or nomination study or applications for
designation of a brownfield opportunity area shall demonstrate that the
following community participation activities have been or will be
performed by the applicant:

(1) identification of the interested public and preparation of a
contact list;

(2) identification of major issues of public concern;

(3) public notice and newspaper notice of (i) the intent of the
municipality and/or community based organization to undertake a
pre-nomination or nomination study or apply for designation of a
brownfield opportunity area, and (ii) the availability of such
application and any supporting documents in a manner convenient to the
public.

b. Application for designation of a brownfield opportunity area shall
provide the following minimum community participation activities:

(1) a comment period of at least thirty days on a draft nomination;

(2) a public meeting on an application;

(3) public access to such application, nomination, and any supporting
documents in the manner convenient to the public.

9. Financial assistance; advance payment. Notwithstanding any other
law to the contrary, financial assistance pursuant to this section
provided by the commissioner and the secretary pursuant to an executed
contract may include an advance payment up to twenty-five percent of the
contract amount.

10. The secretary shall establish criteria for brownfield opportunity
area conformance determinations for purposes of the brownfield
redevelopment tax credit component pursuant to clause (ii) of
subparagraph (B) of paragraph five of subdivision (a) of section
twenty-one of the tax law. In establishing criteria, the secretary shall
be guided by, but not limited to, the following considerations: how the
proposed use and development advances the designated brownfield
opportunity area plan's vision statement, goals and objectives for
revitalization; how the density of development and associated buildings
and structures advances the plan's objectives, desired redevelopment and
priorities for investment; and how the project complies with zoning and
other local laws and standards to guide and ensure appropriate use of
the project site.