NY Hwy L § 10-C (2021)
2021 New York Laws HAY - Highway Article 2 - Commissioner of Transportation 10-C - Consolidated Local Highway Assistance Payments.

§   10-c.   Consolidated   local   highway   assistance  payments.  1. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter or any  other  law, and subject to an appropriation made therefor and in accordance with the provisions   of   this  section  and  with  the  rules  and  regulations promulgated by the commissioner in connection therewith,  on  and  after the  first  day  of  April,  nineteen hundred eighty-two, a consolidated local highway assistance program is hereby established for  the  purpose of making payments toward the construction, operation and/or maintenance of  highways, bridges and highway-railroad crossings that are not on the state highway system. For purposes of this section, such  program  shall apply  to  any  county,  city,  town  or  village highway, bridge and/or highway-railroad crossing within the state that  is  not  on  the  state highway   system  and  not  under  the  maintenance  and/or  operational jurisdiction  of  the  state.  The  commissioner  shall  promulgate  all necessary  rules  and  regulations  to  carry out the program so that an equitable distribution of  aid  shall  be  made  for  the  construction, operation  and/or  maintenance  of  any  county,  city, town and village highways, bridges and highway-railroad crossings.   2. On or before the twenty-fifth day of  April,  June,  September  and November of each state fiscal year commencing with the state fiscal year beginning  on  April  first, nineteen hundred eighty-four there shall be distributed and paid to counties, cities, towns and villages  an  amount equal  to  the  moneys  appropriated  for  the  purposes of this section divided by the number of payment dates in that state fiscal  year.  Such amounts  shall  be distributed and paid pursuant to subdivision three of this section.   3. Amounts shall  be  distributed  for  local  highways,  bridges  and highway-railroad  crossings  in accordance with the following three step process:  (a) First, 41.40 percent of moneys so appropriated  or  authorized  by the  legislature  for  distribution  pursuant to this subdivision in any fiscal year shall be distributed to New York city and  to  the  counties outside  of  New York city, fifty percent on the basis of their relative shares of motor vehicle registration and fifty percent on the  basis  of the  relative  shares  of center line highway mileage, except interstate and state highways, under the maintenance jurisdiction of  the  city  of New York and the several counties.  (b) Second, the balance of the moneys so appropriated or authorized by the  legislature  for  distribution  pursuant to this subdivision in any fiscal year shall be distributed among four jurisdictional systems based on relative vehicle miles of travel as follows:    JURISDICTIONAL                                             PERCENT OF   SYSTEM                                         VEHICLE MILES OF TRAVEL   Cities                                                        42.7   Counties                                                      18.5   Villages                                                      10.7   Towns                                                         28.1                                                                -----     Total                                                      100.0    Within each jurisdictional  system,  the  distribution  made  to  each municipality  shall  be  based  on the ratio of the number of lane miles under  the  maintenance  jurisdiction,  except  interstate   and   state highways,  of  each  municipality  that  is  devoted  to the movement of traffic, excluding lanes devoted to the  parking  of  vehicles,  to  the total  number  of  such  lane  miles under the operational jurisdiction,  except interstate and state highways, of all municipalities in the state within each jurisdictional system.  (c)  Third, the amounts distributed to each municipality in accordance with paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision  shall  be  adjusted  so that  such  amounts will not be less than the "funding level" as defined in subdivision five of this section for each such municipality. In order to achieve the objectives of this paragraph, to the extent necessary the amounts in excess of the  funding  levels  to  be  distributed  to  each municipality  under  paragraphs  (a)  and (b) hereof shall be reduced in equal proportion.   4. (a) For each fiscal year  commencing  on  and  after  April  first, nineteen  hundred  eighty-two and prior to April first, nineteen hundred eighty-seven,  amounts  shall  be  distributed  pursuant  to  an  annual appropriation  from  the local assistance account of the general fund of thirty-four  million  dollars  in   accordance   with   the   percentums established in subdivision five of section two hundred thirty-two of the transportation law.  (b)  For  each fiscal year set out in the schedule hereinbelow amounts shall be distributed pursuant to an annual appropriation from the  local assistance  account  of  the  general  fund in an amount set out in such schedule for the corresponding  state  fiscal  year.  Each  fiscal  year distribution   shall   be  made  in  accordance  with  the  per  centums established in subdivision five of section two hundred thirty-two of the transportation law:      State Fiscal Year                                  Appropriation         1987-88                                         $65,000,000         1988-89                                         $70,000,000         1989-90                                         $75,000,000         1990-91                                         $80,000,000         1991-92                                         $85,000,000         1992-93                                         $87,000,000  (c) Sub-allocations within each percentum shall be made in  accordance with the allocations established by the commissioner pursuant to chapter three hundred sixty-nine of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy-nine.  (d) The amounts distributed pursuant to this subdivision shall be paid in four equal payments on or before the twenty-fifth day of April, June, September and November.  (e)  Funds  allocated  for local street or highway projects under this subdivision shall be used to undertake work on a project either with the municipality's  own  forces  or  by  contract,  provided  however,  that whenever  the  estimate  for  the construction contract work exceeds one hundred thousand  dollars  but  does  not  exceed  three  hundred  fifty thousand   dollars   such   work  must  be  performed  either  with  the municipality's own forces or by  contract  let  by  competitive  bid  in accordance  with  the  provisions  of  section  one hundred three of the general municipal law and provided further, however, that  whenever  the estimate  for the construction contract work exceeds three hundred fifty thousand dollars  such  work  must  be  performed  by  contract  let  by competitive bid in accordance with the provisions of section one hundred three of the general municipal law.   5.  For  amounts  to be distributed pursuant to this section above the funding  level,  as  defined  in  this  subdivision,  received  by   any municipality,  such municipality shall use at least seventy-five percent of such apportioned  moneys  for  the  construction,  reconstruction  or improvement   of   local   highways,   bridges  and/or  highway-railroad crossings, including right of way acquisition, preliminary  engineering,  and  construction  supervision and inspection, where the service life of the project is at least ten years. Such moneys  made  available  may  be used  to  match  other  state  and federal funds made available for such projects   under   federal-aid   highway  acts.  The  remainder  of  the apportionment, may  be  used  for  any  highway  purposes,  except  debt service,  including but not limited to, the acquisition of materials and equipment devoted  to  operation  and  maintenance  of  local  highways, bridges  and/or  highway-railroad crossings and the payment of any costs directly attributable to operation and maintenance  of  local  highways, bridges  and/or  highway-railroad  crossings.  At  the discretion of the commissioner, the requirement  specified  in  this  subdivision  may  be waived  for  assistance  payments  in amounts of less than five thousand dollars. For purposes of this section "funding  level"  shall  mean  the average  amounts,  calculated  for  each municipality, received over two years ending March thirty-first, nineteen hundred  eighty-two  from  the provisions  of  the  town  highway improvement program, the distribution made by former section one hundred twelve of this chapter,  as  repealed by  section  twenty-one  of  the  transportation  systems assistance and financing act of 1981 of amounts collected  from  taxes  on  motor  fuel imposed   by   sections   two   hundred   eighty-four  and  two  hundred eighty-four-a of the tax  law  and  on  Diesel  motor  fuel  imposed  by sections  two  hundred  eighty-two-a and two hundred eighty-two-b of the tax law, and from motor vehicle fees collected from  residents  pursuant to  the  vehicle  and  traffic  law, and the distribution made by former section two hundred seventy-nine of this chapter, as repealed by section twenty-one of the transportation systems assistance and financing act of 1981.   6. On the first day of the third month following the end of its fiscal year ending in nineteen hundred eighty-three and each succeeding  fiscal year, each municipality which has received five thousand dollars or more in  total funds paid pursuant to subdivision two or four of this section during the preceding fiscal year  shall  certify  to  the  commissioner, pursuant  to  rules  and  regulations promulgated by the commissioner in relation thereto, that the expenditure  by  such  municipality  in  such fiscal  year  of  nonstate  funds  raised  by  the  municipality for the operation and maintenance (exclusive of  capital  construction)  of  its highways,  bridges  and/or  highway-railroad  crossings  was not reduced below the level of the average of  the  previous  two  years.  Provided, however,  that  in  calculating  the  expenditures  and  revenues of the municipality to determine the local maintenance of effort for the fiscal year being certified and the expenditure level of  the  average  of  the previous  two years, municipalities shall not be required to include the amount of revenues and expenditures for operation and maintenance of its highways, bridges, and/or highway-railroad crossings necessitated by any unforeseen event for which the municipality was  officially  declared  a disaster  area.  Where  a  reduction  in  such  spending  or non-use has occurred, the distributions above the funding level to such municipality in the then-current state fiscal year shall  be  reduced  by  an  amount equivalent  to  the  amount of such reduction or non-use, except that no reduction to the funding level shall be taken for an  amount  caused  by any  unforeseen event for which the municipality was officially declared a disaster area. Municipalities  not  required  to  certify  under  this section  may  continue  such non-certifying status, with the approval of the commissioner, if the apportionment to such municipality is increased to more than five thousand dollars but less than seven thousand  dollars in  any  local  fiscal  year.  For  the  purposes  of  this  section,  a municipality shall mean a county, city, town or village or two  or  more such jurisdictions acting jointly.    7.  For  any  city, town, or village which consolidates or merges with another municipality, the resulting successor government shall file with the  office  of  the  state  comptroller  a  certificate  of  any   such consolidation,  merger  and  any  accompanying dissolution. In the event that  the  amount which would otherwise be apportioned to the individual governments exceeds  the  amount  which  is  payable  to  the  successor government  pursuant  to  this  section, such successor government shall receive no less in consolidated local highway  apportionments  than  the predecessor  governments  would  have  received in the aggregate had the merger or consolidation not occurred.   8. (a) For each fiscal  year  set  out  in  the  schedule  hereinbelow amounts  shall  be distributed pursuant to annual appropriation from the local assistance account of the general fund in an  amount  set  out  in such schedule for the corresponding state fiscal year:      State Fiscal Year                                  Appropriation         1993-94                                         $72,652,000         1994-95                                         $72,652,000         1995-96                                         $72,652,000         1996-97                                         $72,652,000  (b)  For  each fiscal year set out in the schedule hereinbelow amounts shall be distributed pursuant to annual appropriation from the dedicated highway and bridge trust fund or by authorization by the legislature for capital projects  in  an  amount  set  out  in  such  schedule  for  the corresponding state fiscal year:      State Fiscal Year                                  Appropriation         1993-94                                         $170,000,000         1994-95                                         $175,000,000         1995-96                                         $180,000,000         1996-97                                         $185,000,000  (c) The moneys appropriated or authorized in each fiscal year pursuant to  the schedules in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision shall be distributed in accordance with the procedures contained in  subdivisions three  and  four  of  this  section.  The  total of funds distributed in accordance with the procedures in  subdivision  three  of  this  section shall  equal one hundred forty-five million dollars in each fiscal year. The balance of  funds  shall  be  distributed  in  accordance  with  the procedures  in  subdivision  four  of  this  section.  For  purposes  of calculating distributions in accordance with subdivision three  of  this section,  the  "funding  level"  shall  be  proportioned between amounts distributed pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision.