Authorizes the department of environmental conservation to enter into agreements or easements for the sole purpose of interconnection of renewable energy installations across reforestation areas where such installations are located outside such reforestation areas; provides that such agreements or easements shall not interfere with the operation of such reforestation areas for the purposes for which they were acquired.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10483--A
IN ASSEMBLY
March 6, 2026
___________
Introduced by M. of A. LUNSFORD, STECK, COLTON, SIMONE, CUNNINGHAM --
read once and referred to the Committee on Environmental Conservation
-- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
agreements and easements related to renewable energy interconnection
across reforestation areas
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a
2 new section 9-0508 to read as follows:
3 § 9-0508. Agreements and easements related to renewable energy intercon-
4 nection.
5 Notwithstanding any provisions of article seven of the public lands
6 law to the contrary, the department may, in any lands acquired as
7 reforestation areas by the state in accordance with section 9-0501 of
8 this title, enter into agreements, including but not limited to leases,
9 or easements, for the sole purpose of aiding in the interconnection of
10 renewable energy installations located outside such lands and the trans-
11 mission and distribution of electricity therefrom. Such interconnection
12 rights shall not interfere with the operation of such reforestation
13 areas for the purposes for which they were acquired and as defined in
14 section three of article fourteen of the New York state constitution.
15 Any agreement made and entered into pursuant to this section shall be
16 recorded in the office of general services and be made available to the
17 public on the official website of such office.
18 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08654-05-6
