Expands smart growth public infrastructure criteria to apply to the New York State urban development corporation; adds the additional criteria of promoting public transit ridership and ensuring existing transit riders are able to access employment opportunities and cultural and recreational amenities with ease through the construction of transit facilities protected from extreme weather and traffic violence less than one quarter of a mile walking distance to such opportunities and amenities.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7365
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 11, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. HARCKHAM -- 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 smart
growth public infrastructure criteria
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 6-0107 of the environmental
2 conservation law, as added by chapter 433 of the laws of 2010, is
3 amended to read as follows:
4 1. In addition to meeting other criteria and requirements of law
5 governing approval, development, financing and state aid for the
6 construction of new or expanded public infrastructure or the recon-
7 struction thereof, no state infrastructure agency or the New York state
8 urban development corporation shall approve, undertake, support or
9 finance a public infrastructure project, including providing grants,
10 awards, loans or assistance programs, unless, to the extent practicable,
11 it is consistent with the relevant criteria specified in subdivision two
12 of this section.
13 § 2. Paragraphs i, j and k of subdivision 2 of section 6-0107 of the
14 environmental conservation law, paragraphs i and j as added by chapter
15 433 of the laws of 2010 and paragraph k as added by chapter 355 of the
16 laws of 2014, are amended and a new paragraph l is added to read as
17 follows:
18 i. to ensure predictability in building and land use codes; [and]
19 j. to promote sustainability by strengthening existing and creating
20 new communities which reduce greenhouse gas emissions and do not compro-
21 mise the needs of future generations, by among other means encouraging
22 broad based public involvement in developing and implementing a communi-
23 ty plan and ensuring the governance structure is adequate to sustain its
24 implementation[.];
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11604-01-5
S. 7365 2
1 k. to mitigate future physical climate risk due to sea level rise,
2 and/or storm surges and/or flooding, based on available data predicting
3 the likelihood of future extreme weather events, including hazard risk
4 analysis data if applicable[.]; and
5 l. to promote public transit ridership and ensure existing transit
6 riders are able to access employment opportunities and cultural and
7 recreational amenities with ease through the construction of transit
8 facilities protected from extreme weather and traffic violence less than
9 one quarter of a mile walking distance to such opportunities and amen-
10 ities.
11 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
