N.Y. Public Authorities Law § 2041-d: Powers of the authority

§ 2041-d. Powers of the authority. The authority shall have the power:

1. To sue and be sued.

2. To have a seal and alter the same.

3. To acquire in the name of the authority, hold, sell, lease,

mortgage or otherwise dispose of property, real, personal or mixed, or

any interest therein, without limitation, for its corporate purposes.

4. To condemn, in the name of the authority pursuant to the eminent

domain procedure law, any real property within the area of operation and

required by the authority to carry out the powers granted by this title.

5. To collect, receive, extract, transport, process, dispose of, sell,

store, convey, recycle, and deal with, in any lawful manner and way,

solid waste and any products or by-products thereof now or hereafter

developed or discovered, including any energy generated by the operation

of any solid waste management resource recovery facility. Any such

disposal or sale may be effected on such terms and in such manner as the

authority may deem proper.

6. To plan, develop, purchase and construct projects and to pay the

cost thereof and to have the right to contract in relation thereto with

municipalities or persons within or without the area of operation and to

own and operate, maintain, repair, improve, reconstruct, renovate,

rehabilitate, replace, enlarge, increase and extend, subject to the

provisions of this title, any of its projects acquired or constructed

under this title, and to enter into contracts for any and all such

purposes and for the management and operation of a project, and to sell,

lease, mortgage or otherwise dispose of any project or part thereof to

the state, any person, public corporation, or municipality, subject to

such conditions and limitations as the authority may determine to be in

the public interest.

7. To assist in the planning, development and construction of and the

financing of the cost of any project to be located in the area of

operation whether or not such project is to be owned or operated by the

authority, which assistance may include loans to any person or

municipality.

8. To collect or receive from the United States, the state, any

participating county, any other municipality, public corporation,

corporation or person, solid waste for the purpose of treatment or

disposal thereof, with the right of the authority to sell and dispose of

any products or by-products, including energy, of such process of

treatment or disposal, as the authority may deem proper.

9. To contract with any participating county, other municipalities,

state agencies, public corporations, corporations or persons within or

without the area of operation, for the purpose of collecting, receiving,

treating and disposing of solid waste, including, without limitation, to

contract with participating counties, other municipalities, state

agencies, public corporations or persons for the delivery of all solid

waste generated within a stated area to a specific facility.

10. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs

and, subject to agreements with bondholders, for the regulation of the

use of any project or other property of the authority, which by-laws and

all amendments thereto, duly certified by the secretary of the

authority, shall be filed in the office of the authority and in the

office of the clerk of the legislative body of each participating

county, and to provide for the enforcement of such by-laws by legal or

equitable actions or proceedings which are or may be provided or

authorized by law. In addition, the legislative bodies shall have power

to prescribe that violations of specific by-laws of the authority,

including, without limitation, any failure to comply with any by-law

requiring the payment of any fee or other charge by any person in

connection with the delivery of solid waste to any facility or any other

use of any facility by such person, shall constitute offenses or

infractions and provide for the punishment of violations thereof.

11. With the consent of the chairman of the legislative body of a

participating county or the legislative body of any municipality, to use

the officers or employees of such participating county or any

municipality within a participating county and to pay a proper portion

of the compensation or costs for the services for such officers or

employees. Provided, however, that a full time officer, member or

employee shall not be compensated in the aggregate in an amount in

excess of such officer's, member's or employee's full time compensation

without the express approval of the county legislature.

12. To make contracts and to execute all necessary or convenient

instruments, including evidences of indebtedness, negotiable or

non-negotiable.

13. To enter on any lands, waterways or premises within the area of

operation for the purpose of making surveys, soundings, and

examinations, any liability for which shall not exceed actual damages.

14. To borrow money and to issue bonds for any of its corporate

purposes, to secure the same with its revenues or other funds, to fund

or refund the same, and to provide for the rights of the holders

thereof.

15. Subject to any limitations imposed by any contract pursuant to

subdivision one of section two thousand forty-one-t of this title, to

fix and collect rates, rentals, fees and other charges for the use of

the facilities of, or services rendered by, or any commodities furnished

by, the authority and to contract with any participating county, other

municipality or person in respect thereto, so as to provide revenues

sufficient at all times to pay, as the same shall become due, the

principal and interest on the bonds of the authority, together with the

maintenance of proper reserves therefor, in addition to paying, as the

same shall become due, the expenses of operating and maintaining the

properties of the authority, together with proper reserves for debt

service, depreciation, maintenance and contingencies and all other

obligations and indebtedness of the authority, provided, however, that

the authority shall not have the power, within any city, to collect

rentals, charges, rates or fees from the owners of real estate, or the

occupants of real estate (other than the occupants of premises owned or

controlled by the authority, or by the state or any civil division

thereof), for services or facilities furnished or supplied in connection

with such real estate, if such services or facilities are of a character

or nature that, as of the effective date of this title, are or formerly

were furnished or supplied by the city, unless the electors of the city

shall approve the granting to the authority of such powers by a majority

vote at a general or special election in the city.

16. To accept gifts, grants, loans or contributions from the United

States, the state or any authority or instrumentality of either of them,

or any municipality or from any person, by bequest or otherwise, and to

expend the proceeds for any corporate purposes of the authority.

17. To enter into agreements, in its discretion, to pay annual sums in

lieu of taxes to any municipality, political subdivision or taxing

district of the state in respect to any real property which is owned by

the authority and located in such municipality, political subdivision or

taxing district.

18. To establish standards and criteria which shall be used to

determine if real property shall be utilized in conjunction with any

solid waste management program provided, however, that in no instance

shall such standards and criteria provide for the placement of sanitary

landfills, leachate treatment facilities, secure land burial facilities,

landspreading facilities, surface impoundments and waste oil storage

facilities over a primary public water supply aquifer or principal

aquifer. Once such standards and criteria are established, no real

property shall be acquired except in accordance with such standards and

criteria. Such standards and criteria shall be established after a

public hearing in each participating county upon such proposed standards

and criteria, which public hearing shall be on at least ten days notice

in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in the counties of

Montgomery, Otsego and Schoharie. Such notice shall also be sent by

regular mail to the clerk of each municipality in such three counties,

including the clerk of each county.

19. To make payments to, and settle claims asserted by owners of

property in proximity to and adversely affected by, landfill facilities

of the authority in order to compensate such owners in whole or in part

for diminution of the value of their property, if any, directly

resulting from the siting of the authority landfill facility or the

activities undertaken therein. The amount and manner of such payments

shall be determined by resolution of the authority, and shall be based

on real estate market studies and/or appraisals undertaken at the

direction of the authority, in such form and substance satisfactory to

the authority. The authority may establish rules and regulations setting

forth the specifications pursuant to which real estate market studies

and/or appraisals shall be conducted and such other rules and

regulations as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this

subdivision. Such rules and regulations shall include a requirement that

all property owners requesting payments in accordance therewith must

file a claim with the authority by a date specified by the authority.

Any payments made pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision shall

be considered a cost of the authorities in the computation of rates,

fees, and charges in accordance with subdivision fifteen of this

section.

20. In addition to the power granted by subdivision seventeen of this

section, to make payments to and settle claims asserted by

municipalities either adversely affected by landfill facilities of the

authority, or, in which landfill facilities of the authority are located

to compensate such municipalities for additional municipal service

support, monitoring and similar activities occasioned by the siting,

construction, and operation of said landfill. The amount and manner of

such payments shall be determined by resolution of the authority in its

discretion and shall be utilized by the recipient municipality in

conformance with the purposes heretofore set forth. Any payments made

pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision shall be considered a

cost of the authority and may be included in the computation of rates,

fees and charges in accordance with this section.

21. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers

expressly given in this title.