Re: [CPEO-BIF] New York State's Brownfields program "Ripe for Reform"

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Erie County brownfields efforts seen as successful
Environmental group calls N.Y. program ‘broken’ overall


By Jonathan D. Epstein
Buffalo News (NY)
March 19, 2015 -


A new report by a statewide environmental group calls Erie County one  
of the few “pockets of success” for the state’s Brownfield Cleanup  
Program, even as it criticized the overall program as a “broken  
system” that has left taxpayers “footing the bill” for projects in  
wealthier markets that would get done, anyway.

The report by Environmental Advocates of New York comes as state  
lawmakers and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo have presented dueling visions for  
the program, which will expire at the end of the year unless it is  
extended. Cuomo, the State Senate and the Assembly would all extend  
the program, but their proposed changes differ  sharply and must be  
reconciled before any legislation can proceed.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.buffalonews.com/business/real-estate/erie-county- 
brownfields-efforts-seen-as-successful-20150319



On Mar 19, 2015, at 6:27 PM, Larry Schnapf wrote:

> There are a number of misstatements and errors in this report. It also
> focuses on sites that were accepted into the BCP prior to the 2008
> amendments which have for the most part corrected the issues raised  
> in the
> report. The NYC Brownfield Partnership will be releasing a report  
> prepared
> by Bary Hirsh of NYU that will more accurately report on the  
> brownfield tax
> credits (BTCs).
>
> L
>
> Lawrence Schnapf
>
> 55 East 87th Street #8B
> New York, New York 10128
> 212-876-3189 (p)
> 917-576-3667(c)
> Larry@SchnapfLaw.com
> www.SchnapfLaw.com
> AV Preeminent Rating from Martindale-Hubbell
> Listed in 2010-14 New York Super Lawyers-Metro Edition
> Listed in 2011-14 Super Lawyers-Business Edition
> Listed in The International Who's Who of Environmental Lawyers 2008-14
> Chambers USA 2009-10 Client Guide of America's Leading Lawyers for  
> Business.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Brownfields [mailto:brownfields-bounces@lists.cpeo.org] On  
> Behalf Of
> Lenny Siegel
> Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2015 9:05 PM
> To: Brownfields Internet Forum
> Subject: [CPEO-BIF] New York State's Brownfields program "Ripe for  
> Reform"
>
> News Release
> Environmental Advocates of New York
> March 19, 2015
>
>
> 170 Brownfield Cleanups Cost Taxpayers $1.4 Billion Broken system  
> ripe for
> reform in SFY2015-16 budget
>
> Albany - New York's Brownfield Cleanup Program is a broken system  
> that has
> cost taxpayers $1.4 billion to clean up just 170 sites - an average  
> payout
> of $8.2 million per site. Structural deficiencies within state law  
> has left
> thousands of toxic brownfields off tax rolls, while taxpayers are  
> instead
> footing a huge bill for projects that would have occurred  
> regardless of the
> program's existence. These costs are expected to balloon, as the  
> state is
> liable for payouts totaling an additional $3.3 billion for projects
> currently in the system.
>
> "Brownfields cleanup is crucial, particularly in a state with so many
> polluted sites holding back our communities," said Peter Iwanowicz,
> executive director. "But the current program is out of control. It  
> costs
> taxpayers too much and cleans up too little. While there are certainly
> pockets of success - like Erie County - these trends do not carry  
> statewide.
> Taxpayers are footing the bill for an extraordinarily costly and  
> broken
> system that is in desperate need of reform."
>
> For instance, since 2010, credits paid out for 17 development  
> projects in
> Erie County totaled $15,562,827, for an average cost of $915,460.
> Comparatively, six Manhattan projects during that same period cost  
> taxpayers
> $186,618,573 for an average cost of $31,103,096.
>
> .
>
> For the entire release and a link to the full report, see
> http://www.eany.org/our-work/press-release/170-brownfield-cleanups- 
> cost-taxp
> ayers-14-billion
>
> --
>
> Lenny Siegel
> Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight a  
> project of
> the Pacific Studies Center 278-A Hope Street Mountain View, CA 94041
> Voice: 650-961-8918 or 650-969-1545
> Fax: 650-961-8918
> LSiegel@cpeo.org
> http://www.cpeo.org
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Brownfields mailing list
> Brownfields@lists.cpeo.org
> http://lists.cpeo.org/listinfo.cgi/brownfields-cpeo.org

--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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