File #: Int 1399-2019    Version: * Name: Creation of a department of sustainability and climate change and repealing section 20 of chapter 1 of the New York city charter.
Type: Introduction Status: Filed (End of Session)
Committee: Committee on Environmental Protection
On agenda: 2/13/2019
Enactment date: Law number:
Title: A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code, in relation to creation of a department of sustainability and climate change and repealing section 20 of chapter 1 of the New York city charter.
Sponsors: Helen K. Rosenthal, Mark Levine, Margaret S. Chin, Ben Kallos, Diana I. Ayala, Ydanis A. Rodriguez, Adrienne E. Adams, Justin L. Brannan, Robert E. Cornegy, Jr., Farah N. Louis, Barry S. Grodenchik, Stephen T. Levin, Alicka Ampry-Samuel
Council Member Sponsors: 13
Summary: This proposed legislation would repeal the existing office of sustainability and replace it with a new Department of Sustainability and Climate Change. A Commissioner would head the new department. The Commissioner would be responsible for all matters relating to resiliency of critical infrastructure, the built environment, coastal protection and coastal communities and climate change. The commissioner would also be responsible for all matters pertaining to recovery and resiliency and sustainability. The commissioner would have the power to develop and coordinate the implementation of policies, programs and actions to meet the long-term needs of the city, to develop measurable sustainability indicators and to take actions to increase public awareness and education regarding sustainability and climate change. The proposed legislation also creates a sustainability advisory board with representatives from the environmental, environmental justice, planning, architecture, engineering, oceanography, coastal protection, construction, critical infrastructure, labor, business and academic sectors. The legislation requires reporting on existing or revised sustainability indicators and population projections. The Commissioner will be required to develop and coordinate the implementation of a comprehensive, long-term sustainability plan for the city for a period of at least 30 years. The plan is required to set milestones, interim and long-term goals, to be updated every four years and to include annual reports on the city’s progress in improving the sustainability indicators. Finally, the legislation creates interagency green team to pilot and facilitate the use of innovative technologies, design and construction techniques, materials or products that may have significant environmental and sustainability benefits and to assist innovative projects in addressing local regulatory requirements.
Attachments: 1. Summary of Int. No. 1399, 2. Int. No. 1399, 3. February 13, 2019 - Stated Meeting Agenda with Links to Files, 4. Hearing Transcript - Stated Meeting 2-13-19, 5. Minutes of the Stated Meeting - February 13, 2019, 6. Committee Report 6/12/19, 7. Hearing Testimony 6/12/19, 8. Hearing Transcript 6/12/19
Date Ver.Prime SponsorAction ByActionResultAction DetailsMeeting DetailsMultimedia
12/31/2021*Helen K. Rosenthal City Council Filed (End of Session)  Action details Meeting details Not available
6/12/2019*Helen K. Rosenthal Committee on Environmental Protection Hearing Held by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
6/12/2019*Helen K. Rosenthal Committee on Environmental Protection Laid Over by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
2/13/2019*Helen K. Rosenthal City Council Referred to Comm by Council  Action details Meeting details Not available
2/13/2019*Helen K. Rosenthal City Council Introduced by Council  Action details Meeting details Not available

Int. No. 1399

 

By Council Members Rosenthal, Levine, Chin, Kallos, Ayala, Rodriguez, Adams, Brannan, Cornegy, Louis, Grodenchik, Levin and Ampry-Samuel

 

A Local Law to amend the New York city charter and the administrative code, in relation to creation of a department of sustainability and climate change and repealing section 20 of chapter 1 of the New York city charter.

 

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

 

Section 1. Chapter 1 of the New York city charter section 20 is hereby REPEALED and a new chapter 76 to read as follows:

Chapter 76

DEPARTMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

§ 3150. Department; commissioner.

§ 3151. Definitions.

§ 3152. Powers and duties.

§ 3153. Sustainability advisory board.

§ 3150.  Department; commissioner.  There shall be a department of sustainability and climate change the head of which shall be the commissioner of sustainability and climate change. The commissioner may appoint deputies, including a deputy commissioner of external affairs within available appropriations. 

§ 3151. Powers and duties.  a.  The commissioner shall be responsible for matters relating to  resiliency of critical infrastructure, the   built  environment,  coastal protection and coastal communities and climate change.  The commissioner shall also be responsible for all matters pertaining to recovery and resiliency and sustainability.

b. The commissioner shall also have the power to:

                     1. Develop and coordinate the implementation of policies, programs and actions to  meet the long-term needs of the city, with respect to its infrastructure,  environment, climate change   and   overall sustainability citywide, including but not limited to the categories of housing, open space, brownfields, transportation, water quality and infrastructure, air quality, energy; resiliency of critical infrastructure, the built environment, coastal protection and coastal communities; and regarding city agencies, businesses,  institutions and the public;

2. Develop measurable sustainability indicators, reviewed annually, which shall be used to assess the city's progress in achieving sustainability and improving resiliency citywide; and

3. Take actions to increase public awareness and education regarding sustainability and climate change.

§ 3152. Sustainability Advisory Board.  There shall be a sustainability advisory board.  The sustainability advisory board members shall include, at a minimum, representatives from  environmental, environmental justice, planning, architecture, engineering, oceanography, coastal protection, construction, critical infrastructure, labor, business and academic sectors which shall be appointed by the mayor. The advisory board shall also include the speaker of the city council or their designee and the chairperson of the council’s committee on environmental protection or their designee.

§2.  The administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new title 33 to read as follows:

                                                                                    TITLE 33

DEPARTMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

§ 33-101 Definitions.

§ 33-102 Sustainability indicators.

§ 33-103 Population projections.

§ 33-104 Long term sustainability plan.

§ 33-105 Sustainability advisory board.

§ 33-106 Interagency green team.

 

§ 33-101 Definitions.  As used in this chapter, the following terms have the following meaning:

Commissioner.  The term “commissioner" means the commissioner of sustainability and climate change.

Department.  The term “department” means the department of sustainability and climate change.

§ 33-102 Sustainability indicators.  No later than December 31, 2019 and biannually thereafter, the commissioner shall identify a set of indicators to assess and track the overall sustainability and resiliency of the city with respect to the categories established  pursuant  to  section 3151 of the New York city charter. Such sustainability indicators shall include, but not be limited to, progress in reducing all greenhouse gases as measured by the greenhouse gas inventory, progress in the implementation of resiliency measures to address sea level rise, steps to protect disadvantaged and vulnerable populations from extreme hot or cold days, progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions resulting from buildings, progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions generated by city operations, prevention of biodiversity loss, increasing the number and quality of trees in the city urban forest, waste diverted from landfills, increases in renewable energy generation, air quality improvements and such other indicators as the commissioner shall identify. The commissioner shall prepare and make public a biannual report on the city's performance with respect to tracking such sustainability indicators, which report may be prepared and presented in conjunction with the mayor's management report. 

                     a. The report shall include but not be limited to: 1.  The city's progress in  achieving  sustainability  citywide,  which  shall  be  based  in  part  on  the  sustainability indicators developed pursuant to this chapter and in part on the city response to the most recent report of the New York city panel on climate change; and

    2. Any new or revised indicators that the commissioner has identified or used to assess the city's progress in achieving  sustainability citywide, including when an indicator has been or will be revised or deleted, the reason for such revision or deletion.

§ 33-103 Population projections. No  later  than  April  22,  2020,  and  every 2 years thereafter, the department of city planning shall release or approve and make public a   population projection for the city that covers a period of at least 20  years, with intermediate projections at no less than 10 year intervals. Such projections shall include geographic and demographic indicators.

§ 33-104 Long term sustainability plan. a. The commissioner shall develop and coordinate the implementation of a  comprehensive, long-term sustainability plan for the city. The long-term sustainability plan shall include incorporation of the projections of the New York city panel on climate change for a period of at least 30 years. Such plan shall include and not be limited to an analysis of long-term planning and sustainability indicators identified in section 33-102 and shall set interim goals associated with each indicator established and may include any additional categories established by the commissioner. The city will seek to implement or undertake to achieve each interim goal by no later than April 22, 2030 and long-term goals that the city will seek to implement or undertake to achieve each goal by no later than April 22, 2050.

                     b. No later than April 15, 2020, and no later than every 4 years thereafter, the commissioner shall  develop  and  submit  to  the  mayor  and  the  speaker of the city council an updated long-term sustainability plan, setting forth goals achieved associated with  each  category  established pursuant to this chapter and goals achieved pursuant to any additional categories established by the commissioner.

                     c. Such updated plan shall take into account most recent reports of the New York city panel on climate change and the population projections, including geographic and demographic indicators required  pursuant  to  section 33-104 of this section. An updated plan shall include implementation milestones for each  policy,  program  and action  contained  in  such  plan. 

                     d. An updated plan shall report on the status of the milestones contained in the immediately preceding updated plan.  Where any categories, goals, policies, programs or actions have been revised, added or deleted from an updated plan, or where any milestone has been revised or deleted from an updated plan, the plan shall include the reason for such addition, revision or deletion.  The commissioner shall seek public input regarding any updated plan before finalizing and submitting such plan pursuant to subdivision b of this section.

                     e. Review and reporting. No later  than  April  22,  2020,  and no later than every April 22 thereafter, the commissioner shall prepare and submit to the mayor and  the  speaker  of the  council  a  report  on  the  city's performance with respect to the identified sustainability indicators and long-term  planning  and sustainability  efforts. The report shall include, at a minimum:

    1.  The city's  progress  made  to  implement  or  undertake  policies, programs  and  actions  included  in  the sustainability plan or updated  sustainability plan required by subdivision e of this section, since the submission of the most recent plan or updated plan or report required by this paragraph; and

    2. Any revisions to policies, programs or actions in the previous long-term sustainability plan, including the reason for such revision.

§ 33-106 Sustainability Advisory Board. The advisory board shall meet, at a minimum, twice per year and shall provide advice and recommendations to the commissioner regarding the provisions of this chapter.

§ 33-107 Interagency Green team.  There is hereby established within the department an interagency green team to facilitate  the use of innovative technologies, design and construction techniques, materials or products that may have significant environmental and sustainability benefits and to assist innovative projects in addressing local regulatory requirements. The interagency green team shall encourage pilots of innovative technologies on city buildings and in other locations in the city.

§ 2. This local law takes effect 120 days after it becomes law.

 

LS #5910  SS

01/11/19