STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
243
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE(Prefiled)
January 6, 2021
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Introduced by Sens. MAYER, SKOUFIS, BIAGGI, HARCKHAM, KRUEGER, SAVINO,
STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to industrial
development agencies
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 854 of the general municipal law is amended by
2 adding a new subdivision 21 to read as follows:
3 (21) "Labor organization" -- shall mean any organization which exists
4 and is constituted for the purpose, in whole or in part, of collective
5 bargaining, or of dealing with employers concerning grievances, terms or
6 conditions of employment, or of other mutual aid or protection and which
7 is not a company union.
8 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 856 of the general municipal law, as
9 amended by chapter 356 of the laws of 1993, is amended to read as
10 follows:
11 2. An agency shall be a corporate governmental agency, constituting a
12 public benefit corporation. Except as otherwise provided by special act
13 of the legislature, an agency shall consist of not less than three nor
14 more than seven members who shall be appointed by the governing body of
15 each municipality and who shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing
16 authority. Such members [may] shall include [representatives] at least
17 one representative of [local government, school boards, organized labor
18 and business] a local labor organization. A member shall continue to
19 hold office until his successor is appointed and has qualified. The
20 governing body of each municipality shall designate the first chairman
21 and file with the secretary of state a certificate of appointment or
22 reappointment of any member. Such members shall receive no compensation
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02639-01-1
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1 for their services but shall be entitled to the necessary expenses,
2 including traveling expenses, incurred in the discharge of their duties.
3 § 3. Section 859-a of the general municipal law, as added by chapter
4 356 of the laws of 1993 and subdivisions 4, 5 and 6 as added by chapter
5 563 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
6 § 859-a. Additional prerequisites to the provisions of financial
7 assistance or payments in lieu of taxes. Prior to providing any finan-
8 cial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes of more than one hundred
9 thousand dollars to any project, the agency must comply with the follow-
10 ing prerequisites:
11 1. The agency must adopt a resolution describing the project and the
12 financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes that the agency is
13 contemplating with respect to such project. Such assistance or payments
14 in lieu of taxes shall be consistent with the uniform tax exemption
15 policy adopted by the agency pursuant to subdivision four of section
16 eight hundred seventy-four of this [chapter] title, unless the agency
17 has followed the procedures for deviation from such policy specified in
18 paragraph (b) of such subdivision.
19 2. The agency must hold a public hearing with respect to the project
20 and the proposed financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes being
21 contemplated by the agency. Said public hearing shall be held in a city,
22 town or village where the project proposes to locate. At said public
23 hearing, interested parties shall be provided reasonable opportunity,
24 both orally and in writing, to present their views with respect to the
25 project.
26 3. The agency must give at least ten days published notice of said
27 public hearing and shall, at the same time, provide notice of such hear-
28 ing to the chief executive officer of each affected tax jurisdiction
29 within which the project is located, each school board president and
30 superintendent of each school district within which the project is
31 located, and to all state senators and members of the state assembly who
32 represent any portion of any affected tax jurisdiction that is subject
33 to the proposed financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes. The
34 notice of hearing must state the time and place of the hearing, contain
35 a general, functional description of the project, describe the prospec-
36 tive location of the project, identify the initial owner, operator or
37 manager of the project and generally describe the financial assistance
38 or payments in lieu of taxes contemplated by the agency with respect to
39 the project.
40 4. Each agency shall develop a standard application form, which shall
41 be used by the agency to accept requests for financial assistance or
42 payments in lieu of taxes from all individuals, firms, companies, devel-
43 opers or other entities or organizations. The standard application form
44 shall be submitted by or on behalf of the applicant, and subscribed and
45 affirmed under the penalties of perjury by the applicant, or on behalf
46 of the applicant by the chief executive officer or such other individual
47 that is duly authorized to bind the applicant, as true, accurate and
48 complete to the best of his or her knowledge. The standard application
49 form shall include the following, and may include such other supple-
50 mental information as determined to be necessary and appropriate by the
51 agency, including supporting documents and information provided by or on
52 behalf of the applicant:
53 (a) the name and address of the project applicant;
54 (b) a description of the proposed project for which financial assist-
55 ance or payments in lieu of taxes is requested, including the type of
56 project, proposed location and purpose of the project;
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1 (c) the amount and type of financial assistance or payments in lieu of
2 taxes being requested, including the estimated value of each type of tax
3 exemption sought to be claimed by reason of agency involvement in the
4 project;
5 (d) a statement that there is a likelihood that the project would not
6 be undertaken but for the financial assistance or payments in lieu of
7 taxes provided by the agency or, if the project could be undertaken
8 without financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes provided by
9 the agency, a statement indicating why the project should be undertaken
10 by the agency;
11 (e) an estimate of capital costs of the project, including all costs
12 of real property and equipment acquisition and building construction or
13 reconstruction, financed from private sector sources, an estimate of the
14 percentage of project costs financed from public sector sources, and an
15 estimate of both the amount to be invested by the applicant and the
16 amount to be borrowed to finance the project[.];
17 (f) the projected number of full time equivalent jobs that would be
18 retained and that would be created if the request for financial assist-
19 ance or payments in lieu of taxes is granted, the projected timeframe
20 for the creation of new jobs, the estimated salary and fringe benefit
21 averages or ranges for categories of the jobs that would be retained or
22 created if the request for financial assistance or payments in lieu of
23 taxes is granted, and an estimate of the number of residents of the
24 economic development region as established pursuant to section two
25 hundred thirty of the economic development law or the labor market area
26 as defined by the agency, in which the project is located that would
27 fill such jobs. The labor market area defined by the agency for this
28 purpose may include no more than six contiguous counties in the state,
29 including the county in which the project is to be located;
30 (g) a statement to the effect that the provisions of subdivision one
31 of section eight hundred sixty-two of this [chapter] title will not be
32 violated if financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes is
33 provided for the proposed project;
34 (h) a statement that the owner, occupant or operator receiving finan-
35 cial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes is in substantial compli-
36 ance with applicable local, state and federal tax, worker protection and
37 environmental laws, rules and regulations; and
38 (i) a statement acknowledging that the submission of any knowingly
39 false or knowingly misleading information may lead to the immediate
40 termination of any financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes and
41 the reimbursement of an amount equal to all or part of any tax
42 exemptions claimed by reason of agency involvement in the project.
43 5. Each agency shall develop, and adopt by resolution, uniform crite-
44 ria for the evaluation and selection for each category of projects for
45 which financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes will be
46 provided. At a minimum, the criteria shall require that, for each
47 project, the following must occur prior to the approval of the provision
48 of financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes:
49 (a) an assessment by the agency of all material information included
50 in connection with the application for financial assistance or payments
51 in lieu of taxes, as necessary to afford a reasonable basis for the
52 decision by the agency to provide financial assistance or payments in
53 lieu of taxes for the project;
54 (b) a written cost-benefit analysis by the agency that identifies the
55 extent to which a project will create or retain permanent, private
56 sector jobs; the estimated value of any tax exemptions to be provided;
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1 the amount of private sector investment generated or likely to be gener-
2 ated by the proposed project; the likelihood of accomplishing the
3 proposed project in a timely fashion; and the extent to which the
4 proposed project will provide additional sources of revenue for munici-
5 palities and school districts; and any other public benefits that might
6 occur as a result of the project;
7 (c) a statement by the applicant that the project, as of the date of
8 the application, is in substantial compliance with all provisions of
9 this article including, but not limited to, the provisions of this
10 section and subdivision one of section eight hundred sixty-two of this
11 [chapter] title; and
12 (d) if the project involves the removal or abandonment of a facility
13 or plant within the state, notification by the agency to the chief exec-
14 utive officer or officers of the municipality or municipalities in which
15 the facility or plant was located.
16 6. Each agency shall develop a uniform agency project agreement that
17 sets forth terms and conditions under which financial assistance or
18 payments in lieu of taxes shall be provided. The uniform agency project
19 agreement shall be used by the agency and no financial assistance or
20 payments in lieu of taxes shall be provided in the absence of the
21 execution of such an agreement. The uniform agency project agreement
22 shall, at a minimum:
23 (a) describe the project and the financial assistance or payments in
24 lieu of taxes, including the amount and type, to be provided, and the
25 agency purpose to be achieved;
26 (b) require each project owner, occupant or operator receiving finan-
27 cial benefits or payments in lieu of taxes to provide annually a certi-
28 fied statement and documentation: (i) enumerating the full time equiv-
29 alent jobs retained and the full time equivalent jobs created as a
30 result of the financial assistance or payments in lieu of taxes, by
31 category, including full time equivalent independent contractors or
32 employees of independent contractors that work at the project location,
33 and (ii) indicating that the salary and fringe benefit averages or rang-
34 es for categories of jobs retained and jobs created that was provided in
35 the application is still accurate and if it is not still accurate,
36 providing a revised list of salary and fringe benefit averages or ranges
37 for categories of jobs retained and jobs created[.];
38 (c) indicate the dates when PILOT payments are to be made and provide
39 an estimate of the amounts for each affected tax jurisdiction of any
40 payments in lieu of taxes that are included as part of the transaction,
41 or formula or formulas by which those amounts may be calculated. In lieu
42 of providing such information, a copy of an executed payment in lieu of
43 tax agreement that contains the same information may be attached to the
44 uniform agency project agreement;
45 (e) provide for the suspension or discontinuance of financial assist-
46 ance or payments in lieu of taxes, or for the modification of any
47 payment in lieu of tax agreement to require increased payments, in
48 accordance with policies developed by the agency pursuant to section
49 eight hundred seventy-four of this title;
50 (f) provide for the return of all or a part of the financial assist-
51 ance or payments in lieu of taxes provided for the project, including
52 all or part of the amount of any tax exemptions, which shall be redis-
53 tributed to the appropriate affected tax jurisdiction, as provided for
54 in policies developed by the agency pursuant to section eight hundred
55 seventy-four of this title, unless agreed to otherwise by any local
56 taxing jurisdiction or jurisdictions; and
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1 (g) provide that the owner, occupant or operator receiving financial
2 assistance or payments in lieu of taxes shall certify, under penalty of
3 perjury, that it is in substantial compliance with all local, state and
4 federal tax, worker protection and environmental laws, rules and regu-
5 lations.
6 § 4. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section
7 859-d to read as follows:
8 § 859-d. Notice of agenda. A printed calendar of items to be heard,
9 which may be subject to later amendment, shall be made available to the
10 public and forwarded to the members and chairman of the industrial
11 development agency at least three days in advance of the meeting. Where
12 an industrial development agency maintains a website, the notice of
13 agenda shall also be posted on such industrial development agency's
14 website.
15 § 5. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new section
16 859-e to read as follows:
17 § 859-e. School board reporting. Every industrial development agency,
18 continued or created by this chapter or any other law of the state shall
19 submit to the local school board president and superintendent or boards
20 presidents and superintendents overlapping with an industrial develop-
21 ment agency, within ninety days after the end of its fiscal year, a copy
22 of the final report required by subdivision two of section twenty-eight
23 hundred of the public authorities law and the audits required by subdi-
24 vision two of section twenty-eight hundred two of the public authorities
25 law.
26 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.