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Tug Hill Commission
Functions
The New York State Tug Hill Commission was created in 1972 to help the 41 towns and 21 villages of the region protect the area's natural resources and provide for appropriate economic development through local action. Article 37 establishes the commission as a non-regulatory state agency that provides technical assistance to the 62 towns and villages and to community organizations of the Tug Hill region. Commission programs are geared toward the conservation and productive use of the natural resources of the region, and toward strengthening the long-term economy, employment, cultural, and social resources and the general well-being of the rural communities.
The Commission provides technical assistance to local governments, economic development organizations, and other local groups in the areas of land use planning, natural resource management, watershed protection, main street revitalization, shared government services, municipal infrastructure development, park development, historic preservation, community economic development, and local government operations. The commission also provides educational resources for local officials on the form of workshops and issue papers on a variety of topics. The commission utilizes a model "circuit rider" program and helps local governments cut costs and save public funds through use of its computerized (GIS) mapping system and by fostering intermunicipal cooperation.
The commission is overseen by a board of unpaid volunteers, all residents of the region. They are appointed three each by the governor, speaker of the State Assembly, and majority leader of the State Senate. Two board members come from each of the four counties that overlap the region, with a ninth member serving "at large." Commission members set policy, budget, and program priorities, and oversee staff through the executive director.
History
The New York State Tug Hill Commission was created as a Legislative Commission in 1972 (Chapter 972) and charged with studying the region and recommending means of protecting its environment and strengthening its economy for the long term. Known as the Temporary State Commission on Tug Hill, the commission served its first twenty-five years under various "sunset" provisions of each amendment to Chapter 972. In 1976, after rounds of public meetings throughout the region, the commission recommended a program of technical assistance to communities to help them, singly and together, protect the environment and strengthen the economy through local action.
In 1998, the sunset provision was removed and the commission was established as an Executive Branch Commission under Article 37 of the Executive Law. The commission has a tangential relationship with the Department of State and continues to operate as an independent commission serving the Tug Hill region and its communities. Article 37 of the Executive Law defines the Tug Hill region as a 2,100 square mile, 1 million acre, 62 municipality region "lying between Lake Ontario, the Black River and Oneida Lake." The region includes forest, farmland, and waters, important to the state, as well as rural villages and hamlets, deserving of technical assistance due to its small population and relative poverty.
Additional statutes that effect the Tug Hill Commission include Tug Hill conservation easement legislation (section 583 of the Real Property Tax Law) which amends the Real Property Law to ensure payment of taxes on all conservation easements purchased under Article 49 of the Environmental Conservation Law; the Tug Hill Reserve Act (Chapter 846 of the Laws of 1992) which enables local governments and councils of governments to identify "Special Areas" vital to protecting natural resources and character landscapes and also limits government immunity from certain actions affecting such designated areas; and an amendment to the Public Service Law (Chapter 72 of the Laws of 2004) designating the Tug Hill Commission with "Party Status" for the siting of major transmission facilities under Article 7 of the Public Service Law. The Commission's policy governing its party status is that it adopts a position of neutrality in its role under any Article VII proceeding, uses its position as a "party" to stay informed of any proceeding regarding a major transmission facility in the region, and uses its designation and receipt of information to ensure effected municipalities are informed during any siting process
Legal Citations
L. 1972, Ch. 972; Executive Law Article 37; L. 1998, Ch. 440.
