N.Y. Public Authorities Law § 1332: Special powers of the authority

§ 1332. Special powers of the authority. In order to effectuate the

purposes of this title: 1. The authority may acquire, by purchase, gift,

grant, transfer, contract or lease, or condemnation, any transportation

facility, including port or related facilities wholly or partially

within the transportation district or any part thereof, or the use

thereof, and may enter into any joint service arrangements as

hereinafter provided. Any such acquisition or joint service arrangement

shall be authorized only by resolution of the authority approved by not

less than a majority of the whole number of members of the authority

then in office.

2. The authority may on such terms and conditions as the authority may

determine necessary, convenient or desirable itself establish,

construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or

repair any such transportation facility, or may provide for such

establishment, construction, effectuation, operation, maintenance,

renovation, improvement, extension or repair by contract, lease, or

other arrangement on such terms as the authority may deem necessary,

convenient or desirable with any person, including but not limited to

any common carrier or freight forwarder, the state, any state agency,

the federal government, any other state or agency or instrumentality

thereof, any public authority of this or any other state or any

political subdivision or municipality of the state. In connection with

the operation of any such transportation facility, the authority may

establish, construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve,

extend or repair or may provide by contract, lease or other arrangement

for the establishment, construction, effectuation, operation,

maintenance, renovation, improvement, extension or repair of any related

services and activities it deems necessary, convenient or desirable,

including but not limited to the transportation and storage of freight

and the United States mail, feeder and connecting transportation,

parking areas, transportation centers, port, stations and related

facilities.

3. The authority may establish, levy and collect or cause to be

established, levied and collected and, in the case of a joint service

arrangement, join with others in the establishment, levy and collection

of such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges and other fees as it may

deem necessary, convenient or desirable for the use and operation of any

transportation facility and related services operated by the authority

or by a subsidiary corporation of the authority or under contract, lease

or other arrangement, including joint service arrangements, with the

authority. Any such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges or other fees

for the transportation of passengers shall be established and changed

only if approved by resolution of the authority adopted by not less than

a majority of the whole number of members of the authority then in

office and only after a public hearing, provided however, that fares,

tolls, rentals, rates, charges or other fees for the transportation of

passengers on any transportation facility which are in effect at the

time that the then owner of such transportation facility becomes a

subsidiary corporation of the authority or at the time that operation of

such transportation facility is commenced by the authority or is

commenced under contract, lease or other arrangement including joint

service arrangements, with the authority may be continued in effect

without such a hearing. Such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges and

other fees shall be established as may in the judgment of the authority

be necessary to maintain the combined operations of the authority and

its subsidiary corporations on a self-sustaining basis. The said

operations shall be deemed to be on a self-sustaining basis as required

by this title, when the authority is able to pay or cause to be paid

from revenue and any other funds or property actually available to the

authority and its subsidiary corporations (a) as the same shall become

due, the principal of and interest on the bonds and notes and other

obligations of the authority and of such subsidiary corporations,

together with the maintenance of proper reserves therefor, (b) the cost

and expense of keeping the properties and assets of the authority and

its subsidiary corporations in good condition and repair, and (c) the

capital and operating expenses of the authority and its subsidiary

corporations. The authority may contract with the holders of bonds and

notes with respect to the exercise of the powers authorized by this

section.

4. The authority may establish and, in the case of joint service

arrangements, join with others in the establishment of such schedules

and standards of operations and such other rules and regulations

including but not limited to rules and regulations governing the conduct

and safety of the public as it may deem necessary, convenient or

desirable for the use and operation of any transportation facility and

related services operated by the authority or under contract, lease or

other arrangement, including joint service arrangements, with the

authority. Such rules and regulations governing the conduct and safety

of the public shall be filed with the department of state in the manner

provided by section one hundred two of the executive law. In the case of

any conflict between any such rule or regulation of the authority

governing the conduct or safety of the public and any local law,

ordinance, rule or regulation, such rule or regulation of the authority

shall prevail. Violation of any such rule or regulation of the authority

governing the conduct or the safety of the public in or upon any

facility of the authority shall constitute an offense and shall be

punishable by fine not exceeding fifty dollars or imprisonment for not

more than thirty days or both.

5. The authority may acquire, hold, own, lease, establish, construct,

effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair any

of its facilities through, and cause any one or more of its powers,

duties, functions or activities to be exercised or performed by, one or

more wholly owned subsidiary corporations of the authority and may

transfer to or from any such corporation any moneys, real property or

other property for any of the purposes of this title. The directors or

members of each such subsidiary corporation shall be the same persons

holding the offices of members of the authority. Each such subsidiary

corporation and any of its property, functions and activities shall have

all of the privileges, immunities, tax exemptions and other exemptions

of the authority and of the authority's property, functions and

activities. Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to the

restrictions and limitations to which the authority may be subject.

Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to suit in accordance

with section thirteen hundred forty-one of this title. The employees of

any such subsidiary corporation, except those who are also employees of

the authority, shall not be deemed employees of the authority.

If the authority shall determine that one or more of its subsidiary

corporations should be in the form of a public benefit corporation, it

shall create each such public benefit corporation by executing and

filing with the secretary of state a certificate of incorporation, which

may be amended from time to time by filing, which shall set forth the

name of such public benefit subsidiary corporation, its duration, the

location of its principal office, and any or all of the purposes of

acquiring, owning, leasing, establishing, constructing, effectuating,

operating, maintaining, renovating, improving, extending or repairing

one or more facilities of the authority. Each such public benefit

subsidiary corporation shall be a body politic and corporate and shall

have all those powers vested in the authority by the provisions of this

title which the authority shall determine to include in its certificate

of incorporation except the power to contract indebtedness.

Whenever any state, political subdivision, municipality, commission,

agency, officer, department, board, division or person is authorized and

empowered for any of the purposes of this title to cooperate and enter

into agreements with the authority such state, political subdivision,

municipality, commission, agency, officer, department, board, division

or person shall have the same authorization and power for any of such

purposes to cooperate and enter into agreements with a subsidiary

corporation of the authority.

6. The authority, in its own name or in the name of the state, may

apply for and receive and accept grants of property, money, services and

other assistance offered or made available to it by any person,

government or agency whatever, which it may use to meet capital or

operating expenses and for any other use within the scope of its powers,

and to negotiate for the same upon such terms and conditions as the

authority may determine to be necessary, convenient or desirable. In no

event, however, shall the authority submit to the United States or to

the state of New York, or any agency or instrumentality of them, an

application for a federal or state project unless the application shall

have been first approved by the commissioner as being part of or

consistent with such statewide plan, regional plan or transportation

development policy and planning concept.

7. The authority may do all things it deems necessary, convenient or

desirable to manage, control and direct the maintenance and operation of

transportation facilities, equipment or real property operated by or

under contract, lease or other arrangement with the authority. Except as

hereinafter specially provided, no municipality or political

subdivision, including but not limited to a county, city, village, town

or school or other district shall have jurisdiction over any facilities

of the authority or any of its activities or operations. In the

operation, maintenance and control of any facilities devoted to purposes

other than direct transportation purposes, the authority shall be

subject to all local laws, resolutions, ordinances, rules and

regulations of a municipality or political subdivision. Each

municipality or political subdivision, including but not limited to a

county, city, village, town or district in which any facilities of the

authority are located shall provide for such facilities police, fire and

health protection services of the same character and to the same extent

as those provided for residents of such municipality or political

subdivision.

The authority may agree with the state department of transportation

for the execution by such department of any grade crossing elimination

project or any grade crossing separation reconstruction project along

any railroad facility operated by the authority or by one of its

subsidiary corporations or under contract, lease or other arrangement

with the authority. Any such project shall be executed as provided in

the grade crossing elimination act and the railroad law, respectively,

and the costs of any such project shall be borne as provided in such

laws.

8. The authority may accept unconditional grants of money or property

as subsidy payments for expansion of service into areas where such

service would not be self-supporting. The authority may accept

unconditional grants of money or property from any city, village, town

or county not wholly contained within a city the whole or any part of

which shall be served or to be served by a transportation facility

operated by the authority. Such grants of money or property would be for

the purpose of assisting the authority in meeting its capital or

operating expenses. The acceptance of any such grant shall not operate

to make the authority an agency of the municipality making the grant.

The provisions of this section are intended as enabling legislation only

and shall not be interpreted as implying that absent their enactment an

authority would lack the power to accept such grant or subsidy.

9. Notwithstanding any of the above provisions, no project may be

undertaken by the authority unless such project is a part of or

consistent with the action plan.