N.Y. Environmental Conservation Law § 11-0501: Fish and wildlife management practices cooperative program

§ 11-0501. Fish and wildlife management practices cooperative program.

1. Purpose.

The cooperative program provided in this section is authorized for the

purpose of obtaining on the privately owned or leased lands and waters

of the state practices of fish and wildlife management which will

preserve and develop the fish and wildlife resources of the state and

improve access to them for recreational purposes by the people of the

state.

2. Definitions.

a. "Fish and wildlife management" means management of either fish or

wildlife, or both.

b. "Region" means a fish and wildlife management region established as

provided in subdivision 3.

c. "Regional board" means a board constituted as provided in

subdivision 4. "State board" means the board constituted as provided in

subdivision 5.

d. "Cooperator" means a person with whom an agreement is made as

provided in subdivision 9.

e. "Regional supervisor for natural resources" means the employee of

the department bearing that title in each region.

f. "Department", "commissioner", "fish" and "wildlife" have the

meanings stated in section 11-0103.

3. Fish and wildlife management regions.

The commissioner shall establish not to exceed fifteen fish and

wildlife management regions of one or more counties each, which shall

include all counties of the state not wholly included within a city.

4. Regional fish and wildlife management boards.

a. A regional fish and wildlife management board shall be appointed in

each of the regions established under subdivision 3 of this section.

Such regional board shall consist of three members from each county

within the region which has appointed its members. In each county, one

member shall be a member of or represent the board of supervisors or

county legislative body, one member shall represent the landowners of

the county and one member shall represent the sportsmen of the county.

Such members from each county shall be appointed by the chairman of the

board of supervisors of such county with the approval of the board of

supervisors, except that in a county having a county president, a county

executive or other chief executive officer, the chief executive officer

shall appoint the members representing such county with the approval of

the board of supervisors of such county. In a county having an elected

legislative body the presiding officer shall appoint the members

representing such county with the approval of the legislative body. If

there is no presiding officer then the members representing such county

shall be appointed by the legislative body as a whole. If a member of

the board of supervisors or legislative body is not available to

actively participate on the fish and wildlife management board, a

representative shall be selected who is an elected county official or

who is employed by the county government in a position having

administrative or managerial authority. A landowner representative must

actually reside upon rural lands within the county and actually be

engaged in the operation of such lands for production of agricultural

commodities or forest products. If a landowner representative with such

qualifications is not available to actively participate on the fish and

wildlife management board, a representative may be appointed who has

been for at least five of the past ten years, before commencing his

first term in any series of consecutive terms, engaged in such operation

of rural lands, and who resides within the county he represents. If no

landowner representative with either of these qualifications is

available to actively participate on the fish and wildlife management

board a representative may be appointed who is a resource manager

engaged in such operations on rural lands, and designated by the

corporate owner of those lands to represent the landowner's agricultural

or silvicultural interests. In the case of certain counties designated

by the full state board with a scarcity of rural lands operated for

production of agricultural commodities or forest products, the landowner

representative shall own such rural lands in New York state, whether or

not those properties lie within the county wherein he resides and

represents. A sportsman representative must be a resident of the county.

The said chief executive officer, presiding officer or legislative body

shall receive and consider for appointment as the landowner

representative, the recommendations made by the county farm bureau and

Pomona grange, and for appointment as the sportsmen's representative,

the recommendations made by the county units of organized sportsmen's

groups, as well as considering the advantages of new representatives.

The term of office of regional board members shall be two calendar

years. A member shall be eligible for reappointment to successive terms

of office where otherwise qualified. The term of the sportsmen's

representative and the board of supervisors or county legislative body

representative shall expire at the end of the odd numbered years; the

term of the landowner representative shall expire at the end of the even

numbered years. An alternate board of supervisors or county legislative

body representative, sportsmen's representative and landowner

representative may also be appointed, who shall be available to serve in

the event of the temporary inability of the member sportsmen's

representative or member landowner representative or board of

supervisors or county legislative body representative to so function. A

vacancy in membership of a regional board shall be filled in the same

manner as the original appointment for the balance of the unexpired term

during which the vacancy occurs; if a supervisor member or county

legislative body member shall cease to be a supervisor or member of the

legislative body before the expiration of his term as a member of the

regional board, a successor shall be appointed for the unexpired balance

of the term as a member of the regional board. The chairman of the Board

of Directors of each soil and water conservation district and the

chairman of each regional forest practice board within the fish and

wildlife management region, or his or their representatives, shall be

advisory members without vote.

b. Each regional board shall elect annually from its members a

chairman, a vice chairman and a representative to the state board and

may elect a secretary. The regional supervisor for natural resources may

serve as secretary of the board if the board so requests, but in any

event such supervisor's services shall always be available to the board.

5. State fish and wildlife management board.

a. There shall be a state fish and wildlife management board which

shall consist of three representatives, one each representing

landowners, sportsmen, and county legislative bodies, from each of the

existing regional boards, and, as advisory members of the board without

vote, the following persons during their term of office as such, or

their representatives: the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation,

the Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets, the Commissioner of

Transportation, the Commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Historic

Preservation, the dean of the New York State College of Agriculture and

Life Sciences, the president of the State University of New York College

of Environmental Science and Forestry, the chairman of the State Soil

and Water Conservation Committee, the chairman of the State Forest

Practice Board, the president of the New York Farm Bureau, the Master of

the New York State Grange, the president of the New York State

Conservation Council, and the president of the New York State Division

of Izaak Walton League.

b. Each member other than the advisory members shall be elected by and

from the membership of the respective regional boards for a term of one

year from the day of his election, unless within such period he shall

cease to be a member of the regional board which elected him, in which

event he shall cease to be a member of the state board on the day he

ceases to be a member of such regional board. Any vacancy in the state

board other than in the office of an advisory member shall be filled for

the balance of the unexpired term so vacated by election from its

membership by the regional board in which such vacancy occurred.

c. The members of the state board shall elect one of their voting

members to serve as chairman, and another as vice chairman, to serve in

the absence or inability to serve of the chairman. An officer of the

department designated by the commissioner may act as secretary for the

board if the board so elect; otherwise a secretary shall be elected from

the membership.

d. The state board shall meet at the call of the chairman or secretary

when and where necessary within the state.

6. Regional and state board members; expenses.

Regional and state board members, including advisory members, shall

receive no salary, but their necessary traveling expenses when attending

meetings of the regional or state boards shall be paid from moneys

appropriated to the department for travel and shall be paid on vouchers

certified by the chairman of the appropriate regional board or state

board upon the audit of the comptroller in the manner provided by law.

7. Duties of regional boards.

a. Each regional board shall formulate a statement of fish and

wildlife management practices appropriate for its region and submit it

for approval to the state board and the commissioner. After such a

statement of practices has been approved by the state board and the

commissioner, the regional board shall formally adopt such statement of

practices and encourage landowners, lessees and sportsmen within the

region to adopt and carry out the practices approved.

b. A copy of each resolution so adopting a statement of practices

shall be filed in the principal office of the department.

c. Any practices formulated in specific terms shall, unless otherwise

expressly limited by the words "without variation", "without

alternative", or the like, be interpreted as permitting such variations

or alternatives as shall be accepted by the regional board as satisfying

the purpose of the practices. But no such variation or alternatives

shall be deemed to be a compliance with the practices for purposes of

subdivisions 9 and 10 unless the approval of the regional board is

recorded in writing.

8. Duties of the state board.

a. The state board shall pass upon and approve or disapprove the fish

and wildlife management practices formulated by the regional boards. The

state board may, with the advice of the commissioner, and upon

recommendations from the regional boards, formulate recommended uniform

fish and wildlife management practices for similar ecological types

within the various ecological regions of the state. Such uniform

practices may thereafter be incorporated expressly or by reference in

the statement of practices formulated by regional boards, but shall not

be operative as practices of any region unless so incorporated.

b. The state board shall also have the following duties and powers:

(1) to recommend to the regional boards such policies and procedures

for the carrying out of fish and wildlife management practices as it

deems appropriate;

(2) to keep the several regional boards informed of the activities and

experience of all other regional boards in the state and to facilitate

an interchange of advice and experience between such regional boards and

cooperation between them, and to provide advice and assistance in

coordinating the programs of the several regional boards.

c. The state board may submit to the commissioner, recommendations

with respect to matters delegated by statute to the department in any

case where a statute or regulation of the department may affect the

carrying out of fish and wildlife management practices under this

section.

9. Cooperation agreements.

a. The commissioner shall have power, through his representative, to

enter into an agreement in writing with an owner or lessee of rural

lands or waters lying within a fish and wildlife management region or an

interest in such lands or waters, or with two or more such owners or

lessees who agree jointly and severally, for furnishing of services and

benefits as provided in subdivision 10, in exchange for and subject to

the condition that such owner or lessee, or owners or lessees, adopt and

carry out for a specified period of time, upon such premises or

specified parts thereof, one or more of the fish and wildlife management

practices adopted by the regional board.

b. The commissioner shall provide standard forms for such cooperation

agreements.

c. The agreement shall state the period during which it shall be in

force and may provide for renewal. It may also provide for termination

before the expiration of such period, and for the conditions upon which

and the manner in which any privilege of termination may be exercised.

d. Without limitation by paragraph c or by any term of the agreement

pursuant to paragraph c the failure of a cooperator, or of any one of

two or more cooperators who agree jointly and severally, to perform his

agreement shall relieve the commissioner and the state from the

obligation to furnish the services and benefits provided for in

subdivision 10.

10. State assistance.

a. Upon the establishment of such region, the commissioner may, and

upon organization of the regional board, the commissioner shall provide

personnel from the department to assist the boards and the cooperators

within the region.

b. The commissioner shall furnish to cooperators:

(1) technical services;

(2) trees and shrubs from any of the nurseries operated by the

department without charge at the nursery, to the extent and subject to

the conditions specified in the agreement with the cooperator;

(3) a subscription, without cost, to the New York State

Conservationist magazine.

c. The commissioner may also furnish to cooperators such further

technical assistance, labor and materials, as may be required in

compliance with practices approved by the region and authorized by order

of the commissioner.

d. The commissioner may also furnish to premises covered by an

agreement and to fish and wildlife upon such premises such protection by

way of posting, patrol by environmental conservation officers or forest

rangers, inspection or checking stations, fire patrols or other

appropriate means, within the limitation of appropriations and of the

manpower available as may be advisable in his judgment to protect fish

and wildlife resources, provide for public safety and encourage the

opening of private lands and waters to public hunting and fishing; but

neither this subdivision nor any provision of any agreement pursuant to

this section shall be deemed to constitute an undertaking by the state

or the department on its behalf to furnish such posting, patrol or

protection and neither such agreement nor any provision of the Fish and

Wildlife Law shall be deemed to create a ground of liability of the

state for damage to person or property caused by the failure or neglect

of the state or its agents, officers or employees to furnish such

posting, patrol or protection.

e. The agreement with the cooperator may provide for use by him for

purposes compatible with its function in wildlife management, of any

structure or facility created or maintained on his premises with funds

of the department, or for furnishing to him the incidental products of

any activity conducted on his premises for purposes of wildlife

management.