2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 5 - Powers, Limitations and Liabilities › 72-A - Acquisition and Development of Forest Lands.

§  72-a.  Acquisition  and  development of forest lands. The governing
  board of a county, town  or  village  may  severally  acquire  for  such
  county,  town  or village, by purchase, gift, lease or condemnation, and
  hold as the property of such municipality, tracts of land having forests
  or tree growth thereon, or suitable for the growth  of  trees,  and  may
  appropriate therefor the necessary moneys of the county, town or village
  for  which  the  lands  are  acquired.  Such  lands  shall  be under the
  management and control of such board and shall be developed and used for
  the planting and rearing  of  trees  thereon  and  for  the  cultivation
  thereof  according  to  the  principles  of scientific forestry, for the
  benefit and advantage of the county, town or village. The  determination
  of  any such board to acquire lands under the provisions of this section
  shall be by resolution; but the question of the final adoption  of  such
  resolution  shall  be  taken  up  by  the board only after public notice
  thereof has been published at least once in each week for two successive
  weeks, as follows: If it be a resolution of a board of supervisors,  the
  publication  shall  be  made in the newspapers in which the session laws
  and concurrent resolutions are required to be published,  provided  that
  if publication cannot be made in both such newspapers as herein required
  because  of  infrequency of publication of one of them, such notice need
  be published in only one such newspaper; if it be a resolution of a town
  board or of a board of trustees of a village, the publication  shall  be
  made  in  a newspaper published in the town or village respectively. The
  first publication of such notice shall be at least fourteen days  before
  the  question of final adoption of the resolution may be taken up by the
  board. Any period of seven successive days shall constitute a week under
  this section. The board shall give a hearing to all persons appearing in
  support of or in opposition  to  such  proposed  resolution.  If  it  be
  determined  to  purchase such lands the moneys necessary therefor may be
  provided as follows: If the acquisition be by a  county,  the  board  of
  supervisors  may cause such moneys to be raised, in whole or in part, by
  taxation and levied and collected as other county taxes or  such  moneys
  may  be  raised, in whole or in part, pursuant to the local finance law;
  if the acquisition be by a town, the  moneys  necessary  therefor  shall
  constitute a town charge and be raised, in whole or in part, by taxation
  as other town charges or such moneys may be raised, in whole or in part,
  pursuant  to  the local finance law; if the acquisition be by a village,
  the moneys therefor may be raised, in whole or in part, by taxation,  as
  other  village  taxes or such moneys may be raised, in whole or in part,
  pursuant to the local finance law.   All revenues  and  emoluments  from
  lands  so  acquired  shall belong to the municipality and be paid to its
  chief fiscal officer for  the  purposes  of  such  municipality  and  in
  reduction  of  taxation  therein.  Such forest lands shall be subject to
  such rules and regulations as such governing board of  the  municipality
  shall  prescribe;  but  the  principal  object  to  be  conserved in the
  maintenance of such lands shall be the sale of forest products in aid of
  the public revenues and the  protection  of  the  water  supply  of  the
  municipality.  Such  lands or portions thereof may be sold and conveyed,
  or leased, if a resolution therefor be adopted by the  affirmative  vote
  of  two-thirds  of  all the members of such governing board; but no such
  resolution directing an absolute conveyance shall  be  effectual  unless
  adopted  after  a  public  hearing, held upon notice given in the manner
  required in the case of a resolution to acquire such lands.   A deed  of
  conveyance  or  lease of such lands, when authorized as aforesaid, shall
  be executed by the county treasurer of the  county,  supervisor  of  the
  town  or  president  of  the village by which the conveyance or lease is
  made. Moneys may be appropriated for the care and  maintenance  of  such
  lands  and  the development and use for forests thereon annually, by the

  county, town or village, respectively, and the amount thereof raised  by
  taxation in the same manner that other expenditures of such county, town
  or village are provided for by law.