June 30, 2008: Special Edition

Welcome to Environmental Advocates of New York’s online newsletter from the State Capital, your source for environmental news. We’ll update you every other week with tidbits and observations carefully gleaned from the halls of the Capitol.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

With all the talk in the papers of this year being much ado about nothing, Environmental Advocates of New York is ready to go on record and say that the environment fared pretty well.

Although none of the environmental community’s three priority Super Bills made it to the floor of the New York State Senate for a vote after all handily passed the Assembly earlier this year, and congestion pricing legislation got stuck in committee, many important environmental agreements were reached.  

Here are the highlights and the lowlights and other changes and reforms made to New York State law this year.

The Good
Brownfields  
Arguably the most significant accomplishment of the year involved reforms to tax credits associated with the Brownfield Cleanup Program. We brought attention to this problem in our Wa$ted Green: How State Spending & Lost Revenue Shortchange New Yorkers & the Environment report.

On their final day in Albany, the Governor and lawmakers reached a deal to limit the outlay of state cash for certain sites where redevelopment is likely to occur, while at the same time provides bigger tax incentives for cleaner cleanups. In addition, a modest tax incentive was created for projects in communities consistent with Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) plans and some new good provisions were added to get a better handle on what this program really costs.

Net Metering
On the energy front, bills to expand New York’s net metering policies passed both houses. Net metering is the practice that credits consumers for the clean energy they generate themselves. The new laws will encourage consumers, both large and small, to install renewable energy systems and offset their utility bills.

The new policy expands net metering for three types of clean energy systems: solar, wind and farm waste. Residential customers will now be able to install solar systems of up to 25 kilowatts in size. Commercial and industrial customers will be able to install solar systems of up to 2 megawatts, or the customer's peak load, whichever is less. Non-residential customers to net meter wind energy systems of up to 2 megawatts, or the customer’s peak load, whichever is less.

Great Lakes Compact
Earlier in the year, lawmakers agreed to ratify New York’s participation in a multi-state agreement on the management of Great Lakes water. This new law, already signed by Governor Paterson, protects Great Lakes water levels and requires the state to establish water conservation measures. The new law also prohibits transfers of Great Lakes water outside of the Basin and protects New York’s right to set stronger water management practices.

State Green Building Construction Act
This measure requires that the construction of new state buildings and major renovations of existing state buildings meet energy consumption and resource standards established in consultation with the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority.

The measures below are not among this year’s priorities, but are solid initiatives passed by both houses.

Green Building Grants
As part of an overall strategy to combat climate change by encouraging energy conservation, the Governor and state lawmakers are providing incentives to encourage residential builders to build green.

The Bad
Once again, the environmental community’s priority Super Bills received little love from the Senate after passing the Assembly by wide margins.

Bigger Better Bottle Bill
Despite last-minute talk of compromise that would limit the extension of the nickel deposit to water bottles, the Bigger Better Bottle Bill failed to get traction in the Senate. This bill would expand the definition of "beverage" in the State Returnable Container Act (the bottle bill) to include non-carbonated drinks other than milk and liquor, and direct unclaimed deposits to the Environmental Protection Fund.

Wetlands
Despite renewed attention from advocates, the wetlands proposal died an ignominious death. This bill would amend the state’s Environmental Conservation Law to provide the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) with regulatory authority over  freshwater wetlands of one acre or more, regardless of whether that wetland has been mapped by the agency.

Global Warming Pollution Cap
This one got real close. The proposed legislation passed the State Assembly in April, and would have limited greenhouse gas emissions from all sources by 80 percent by 2050.

On the Senate side, the cap nearly made it out of the all-powerful Rules Committee. Senators Thomas Morahan, Frank Padavan, Antoine Thompson, Liz Krueger and others brought a great deal of attention to this bill in the waning days of session. The bill would have set a cap similar to other states, including California, Connecticut, New Jersey and Minnesota.

Stay tuned. There’s widespread interest in the Senate chamber on this bill—32 Senators signed on to as sponsors on climate caps—and this bill may be revisited before the end of the year. We should also note that the Senate’s brand-new Majority Leader Dean Skelos can be counted among the bill’s sponsors.

The Ugly
Phew. Thanks in part to our efforts, a few really bad ideas ended up going nowhere.

Gas Tax Holiday
In an effort to relieve the pressure of high gas prices on their constituents, lawmakers of every stripe proposed a gas tax “holiday” for the summer of 2008. While popular with voters, a tax suspension is deeply flawed from both an environmental and an economic policy perspective. The bill would have amended New York State Tax Law to suspend certain taxes on gasoline and die­sel fuel from May 23, to September 13, 2008.  Luckily this idea never gained any ground in the State Assembly and was squashed by Speaker Silver.

The Big Picture
Environmental Advocates of New York took positions on 71 bills during the course of the 2008 Legislative Session. We issued 64 memos in support of environmental legislation and 7 in opposition to bad bills.  Fourteen good measures should be going to the Governor for his signature, or in some cases have already been signed.

And we’d like to close on a high note. While the “official” New York State Legislative Session may be over for now, lawmakers may be returning to Albany sometime soon.

What happens then is anyone’s guess.

Brownfields Victory

Environmental Advocates of New York applauded the announcement by Governor David Paterson and legislative leaders to reform New York’s troubled Brownfield Cleanup Program earlier this week.  

The legislation will increase tax incentives for site cleanup to up to half of cleanup costs and limit tax credits for site redevelopment. The law also provides a series of incentives to developers to clean-up sites to higher standards, as well as additional tax incentives for redevelopments that are consistent with the Brownfield Opportunity Area program.

Click here for more information.

Click here to read the Watertown Daily News story about the brownfield victory and here to read story in the Star Gazette.

Bills on the Move

Every week during the Legislative Session, Environmental Advocates of New York looks at the measures that will impact the environment for good or ill. Here are this week's Bills on the Move.

One tree for Landlord Disclosure. This bill requires that prior to the execution of a rental or lease agreement a landlord must notify prospective tenants of the results of tests for known contamination upon request. Landlords would also be required to notify current tenants of the results of such tests.

Two trees for Brownfield Tax Credit Reform. The proposed legislation addresses several shortcomings associated with New York State’s Brownfield Cleanup Program. The bill provides bigger tax incentives for better cleanups, as well as additional tax incentives for redevelopments that are consistent with the Brownfield Opportunity Area program. The bill also limits tax credits for non-manufacturing projects to $35 million or three times the cost of site cleanup, whichever is less; tax credits for projects on manufacturing sites will be capped at $45 million, or six times the cost of site cleanup, whichever is less, thereby limiting the state’s financial exposure.


Click here to see all the bills we evaluated during the 2008 NYS Legislative Session.