Directs state aid to be payable to any municipal corporation or special district that contains land in the counties of Cayuga, Seneca and Wayne comprising the northern Montezuma wildlife management area.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A2201
SPONSOR: Manktelow TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public lands law, in relation to the payment of
state aid on account of state lands in the counties of Cayuga, Seneca
and Wayne comprising the northern Montezuma wildlife management area
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to provide for the payment of State aid to
State lands under the jurisdiction of the DEC located in the counties of
Cayuga, Seneca and Wayne comprising the Northern Montezuma Wildlife
Management Area.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one would provide for the payment of State aid on State lands
under the jurisdiction of the DEC located in the counties of Cayuga,
Seneca and Wayne comprising the Northern Montezuma wildlife Management
Area. The amount of State aid would be determined by applying the annual
tax relief rate(s) for each taxing district in which the property is
located to the assessed value of the lands as entered on the 2003 town
assessment rolls, adjusted for any change in the level of assessment.
Payments would be made on lands now owned by the State and also on lands
that are acquired in the future.
Section 2 would make the bill effective immediately and provide that the
first payment of State aid would be based upon assessment rolls
completed in the year 2014.
JUSTIFICATION:
The lands that would be the subject of State aid payments are clearly of
a statewide benefit. The Northern Montezuma wildlife Management Area
(NMWMA) is an important part of the very unique Montezuma Wetlands
Complex and is included in one of only six State Bird Conservation
Areas. The, entire Complex totals 16,779 acres of• land and is managed
through the cooperative effort of DEC, the United States Fish and wild-
life Service and private individuals and organizations. DEC manages
approximately 6,450 acres.
The NMWMA, along with the remainder of the complex, provides critical
habitat for resident and migratory water birds, songbirds, raptors and
other wildlife including many rare and protected species such as the
endangered peregrine falcon, black tern and short-eared owl, the threat-
ened bald eagle, pied-billed grebe, least bittern and northern harrier,
and the American bittern, osprey and cerulean warbler which are of
special concern. The area also is one of the most significant stopover
and foraging locations for shorebirds in upstate New York, regularly
hosting 1,000 or more of such individuals from over 25 species. More-
over, the area also supports breeding colonies of great blue herons and
black-crowned night herons, and hosts one of the largest fall swallow
concentrations in the state.
In addition to providing habitat to scores of wildlife, the area
provides recreation, education and interpretive opportunities to an.
estimated 150,000 visitors annually, including 10,000 children on school
trips with the completion of the recently announced Crusoe center, these
opportunities will be significantly expanded in the future.
Despite the many statewide benefits provided by the area, the impact of
the current status of the lands as exempt from real property taxation
falls solely on the owners of taxable real property within the munici-
palities. This bill would remedy this situation by providing state aid
payments based on the lands now owned by the state, such as those
mentioned above, as well as, on future acquisitions under the jurisdic-
tion of DEC:
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2020-22: Held for consideration in Real Property Taxation;
2023-24: referred to real property taxation
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
