STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7172
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 14, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. N. RIVERA, CAHILL, MAGNARELLI, COLTON, JAFFEE,
CASTRO, P. RIVERA, STEVENSON, ROBERTS, COOK, ENGLEBRIGHT -- Multi-
Sponsored by -- M. of A. ARROYO, BARRON, BOYLAND, CAMARA, CASTELLI,
CLARK, CRESPO, GOODELL, JEFFRIES, LINARES, MARKEY, MENG, MOYA, RAMOS,
J. RIVERA, RODRIGUEZ, SIMOTAS -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Environmental Conservation
AN ACT providing for the creation of a temporary state commission on the
economic costs and benefits of hydraulic fracturing in New York state;
and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration there-
of
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. A temporary state commission, to be known as the commission
2 on the economic costs and benefits of hydraulic fracturing in New York
3 state, hereinafter referred to as the commission, is hereby created to
4 examine, evaluate, make recommendations and to collect data concerning
5 the economic impact of hydraulic fracturing on the entire economy of New
6 York state and the impact on local economies where hydraulic fracturing
7 will occur. Specifically, such data shall include at least the follow-
8 ing:
9 (a) the impact and costs to the housing sector including rental and
10 home ownership;
11 (b) the impact on infrastructure including roads and bridges;
12 (c) the impact on the environment;
13 (d) the impact on costs to the state for the displacement of individ-
14 uals and families from affected areas;
15 (e) the projected public safety costs for municipalities housing
16 hydraulic operations; and
17 (f) all foreseen costs to the state from allowing hydraulic fracturing
18 operations to be established, maintained, operated, dismantled and
19 decommissioned as well as run dry.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09978-03-1
A. 7172 2
1 § 2. The commission shall consist of fifteen members, to be appointed
2 as follows: seven members to be appointed by the governor; three members
3 to be appointed by the temporary president of the senate and shall
4 include at least one member of the Business Council of New York State or
5 the Partnership for New York city and one member of the Sierra Club or
6 the New York Public Interest Group; three members to be appointed by the
7 speaker of the assembly and shall include at least one member of the
8 Business Council of New York State or the Partnership for New York City
9 and one member of the Sierra Club or the New York Public Interest Group;
10 one member to be appointed by the minority leader of the senate; and one
11 member to be appointed by the minority leader of the assembly. The
12 commission shall be housed at and staffed by the New York state depart-
13 ment of economic development and of the fifteen appointed members at
14 least one representative from that agency and each of the following
15 agencies; department of transportation, division of home and community
16 renewal, department of environmental conservation, the department of tax
17 and finance, and the office of temporary and disability assistance. The
18 governor shall designate the chairperson and vice-chairperson of the
19 commission. Vacancies in the membership of the commission and among its
20 officers shall be filled in the manner provided for original appoint-
21 ments or designations.
22 § 3. Members of the commission shall receive no compensation for their
23 services, but shall be allowed their actual and necessary expenses
24 incurred in the performance of their duties hereunder. To the maximum
25 extent feasible, the commission shall be entitled to request and receive
26 and shall utilize and be provided with such facilities, resources, and
27 data of any court, department, division, board, bureau, commission, or
28 agency of the state or any political subdivision thereof as it deems
29 necessary or desirable to carry out properly its powers and duties here-
30 under.
31 § 4. The commission may employ and at pleasure remove such personnel
32 as it may deem necessary for the performance of its functions and fix
33 their compensation within the amounts made available therefor.
34 § 5. The commission may meet within and outside the state, shall hold
35 public hearings, and shall have all the powers of a legislative commit-
36 tee pursuant to the legislative law.
37 § 6. (a) The commission shall make and submit its findings, including
38 any recommendations for legislative action as it may deem necessary and
39 appropriate in a report to the governor, the temporary president of the
40 senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority leader of the senate
41 and the minority leader of the assembly not later than one hundred
42 eighty days after it first convenes. Such report shall include:
43 (1) the overall environmental and social impact of hydraulic fractur-
44 ing in other states where the industry has been established;
45 (2) tax collection rates and tax schedules of those states which were
46 imposed on hydraulic fracturing operations; and
47 (3) a comparison of the annual revenue collected by the state from
48 hydraulic operations to costs incurred by those states in maintaining
49 and repairing infrastructure, cost to remedy displacement of families
50 and individuals, cost of environmental damage and remediation, cost from
51 loss of affordable housing due to demand for housing by hydraulic frac-
52 turing workforce, and any and all related costs to New York state that
53 will be incurred by hydraulic fracturing operations.
54 (b) Recommendations included in such report shall include:
55 (1) a tax structure for hydraulic fracturing firms and operations that
56 will take into account related costs to New York in order for policy
A. 7172 3
1 makers to assess any potential tax collection benefits, if any, if full-
2 scale hydraulic fracturing is allowed to take place in New York;
3 (2) the projected potential number of total jobs created by hydraulic
4 fracturing;
5 (3) the projected revenue from tax collection under current business
6 tax structure;
7 (4) the projected number of housing units needed by new workforce; and
8 (5) the recommended amount of bonding and/or insurance needed for
9 hydraulic fracturing firms to cover potential natural and/or environ-
10 mental disasters and/or accidents.
11 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the
12 appointment of members to the New York state commission on the economic
13 costs and benefits of hydraulic fracturing shall be completed within
14 thirty days of such effective date, provided further, that this act
15 shall remain in effect until thirty days after the commission submits
16 the report required by section six of this act, at which time this act
17 shall expire and be deemed repealed.
