Establishes a right of first refusal in the state for federal public land to be transferred to private parties; prohibits the recording of any deeds for lands that have been transferred out of federal ownership to private ownership without giving the state the right of first refusal.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2775
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 24, 2023
___________
Introduced by Sens. SKOUFIS, GOUNARDES, KRUEGER -- read twice and
ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
Investigations and Government Operations
AN ACT to amend the public lands law, in relation to establishing a
right of first refusal in the state for federal public land to be
transferred; and to amend the real property law, in relation to estab-
lishing the manner in which documents regarding federal lands shall be
recorded
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public lands law is amended by adding a new section
2 21-a to read as follows:
3 § 21-a. Conveyance of federal lands. 1. For purposes of this section,
4 the following terms apply:
5 a. "Conservation plan" means a habitat conservation plan developed
6 pursuant to section 10 of the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
7 U.S.C. Sec. 1539) and its implementing regulations, as the federal act
8 and regulations exist as of the first of January, two thousand twenty-
9 two.
10 b. "Conveyance" includes any method, including sale, donation or
11 exchange, by which all or a portion of the right, title, and interest of
12 the United States in and to federal lands located in the state is trans-
13 ferred to another entity.
14 c. "Federal public land" means any land owned and managed by the
15 United States, including the surface estate, the subsurface estate, or
16 any improvement on those estates, which is owned and managed by the fish
17 and wildlife service, the forest service and the national park service.
18 d. "Infrastructure" means any development or construction that is not
19 on or appurtenant to the federal public land at the time of transfer.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05795-01-3
S. 2775 2
1 2. a. Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, it is the policy
2 of the state to discourage conveyances that transfer ownership of feder-
3 al public lands in the state from the federal government.
4 b. (i) Except as provided in this section, conveyances of federal
5 public lands in the state are void ab initio unless the commissioner of
6 general services was provided with the right of first refusal to the
7 conveyance or the right to arrange for the transfer of the federal
8 public land to another entity.
9 (ii) The commissioner of general services may seek declaratory and
10 injunctive relief from a court of competent jurisdiction to contest
11 conveyances made to any entity unless the requirements of this section
12 are met.
13 (iii) The commissioner of general services shall formally consider its
14 right of first refusal or arrange for the transfer of federal public
15 lands to a third party at a public hearing.
16 (iv) (A) Prior to the conveyance of federal public lands in state, if
17 the commissioner of general services was provided with the right of
18 first refusal or the right to arrange for the transfer of the federal
19 public lands to another entity, the commissioner of general services
20 shall issue a certificate affirming compliance with this section.
21 (B) The commissioner of general services shall waive its right of
22 first refusal or the right to arrange for the transfer of the federal
23 public lands to another entity, and issue a certification of compliance
24 affirming compliance with this section for a conveyance that is deemed
25 by the commissioner of general services to be routine. A conveyance
26 deemed by the commissioner of general services to be routine includes,
27 but is not limited to, the exchange of lands of equal value between the
28 federal government and a private entity. The commissioner of general
29 services may adopt regulations to establish a process and criteria for
30 determining the types of conveyances it considers to be routine.
31 (v) The commissioner of general services, and the department of envi-
32 ronmental conversation shall enter into a memorandum of understanding
33 that establishes a state policy that both agencies shall undertake all
34 feasible efforts to protect against any future unauthorized conveyance
35 or any change in federal public land designation, including, but not
36 limited to, any change in use, classification, or legal status of any
37 lands designated as federal monuments pursuant to the federal Antiqui-
38 ties Act of 1906.
39 3. The state shall not be responsible for any costs associated with
40 conveyed federal public land that the commissioner of general services
41 did not accept, purchase, or arrange for the transfer of, pursuant to
42 this section. Costs include, but are not limited to, management costs
43 and infrastructure development costs.
44 4. The commissioner of general services may establish, through regu-
45 lations or another appropriate method, a process for engaging with
46 federal land managers and potential purchasers of federal public lands
47 early in the conveyance process.
48 5. The commissioner of general services shall ensure, for any conveyed
49 federal public land the commissioner accepts, purchases, or arranges for
50 the transfer of, that future management of the conveyed federal public
51 land is determined in a public process that gives consideration of past
52 recognized and legal uses of those lands. At a minimum, the public proc-
53 ess required by this subdivision shall include a noticed and open meet-
54 ing.
55 6. The commissioner of general services shall waive its right of first
56 refusal or the right to arrange for the transfer of the federal public
S. 2775 3
1 lands to another entity, and issue a certification of compliance affirm-
2 ing compliance with this section for any of the following:
3 a. The conveyance of federal public lands pursuant to a conservation
4 plan.
5 b. The renewal of a lease in existence as of the first of January, two
6 thousand twenty-two.
7 c. The conveyance of federal public lands to a federally recognized
8 Native American tribe or lands taken into or out of trust for a Native
9 American tribe or individual Native American.
10 7. The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of
11 this section or its application is held invalid, the invalidity shall
12 not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect
13 without the invalid provision or application.
14 8. This section shall not apply to the sale of real property acquired
15 by a federal agency through a foreclosure proceeding.
16 § 2. The real property law is amended by adding a new section 291-k to
17 read as follows:
18 § 291-k. Recording of documents regarding federal lands. 1. A person
19 shall not knowingly present for recording or filing with a county clerk
20 a deed, instrument, or other document related to a conveyance subject to
21 section twenty-one-a of the public lands law unless it is accompanied by
22 a certificate of compliance from the commissioner of general services.
23 Further, a deed, instrument, or other document related to a conveyance
24 that is subject to section twenty-one-a of the public lands law shall be
25 titled "Federal Public Land Deed of Conveyance" and shall not be
26 recorded without a certificate from the commissioner of general
27 services. The federal agency wishing to convey federal public lands
28 shall ensure that the deed, instrument, or other conveyance document is
29 titled in the manner required by this section.
30 2. A person who presents for recording or filing with a county clerk a
31 deed, instrument or other document in violation of this section is
32 liable for a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars.
33 3. Civil penalties collected pursuant to this section shall be depos-
34 ited into the general fund.
35 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
36 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
37 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
38 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
39 completed on or before such effective date.
