§ 233-B — New York state freedom trail commission

§ 233-b. New York state freedom trail commission. 1. a. There is\nhereby established within the department the New York state freedom\ntrail commission. The commission shall consist of twelve members, to be\nappointed as follows: three members to be appointed by the governor,\nthree members to be appointed by the board of regents, two members to be\nappointed by the temporary president of the senate, one member to be\nappointed by the minority leader of the senate, two members to be\nappointed by the speaker of the assembly, and one member to be appointed\nby the minority leader of the assembly. Such members shall be\nrepresentative of academic or public historians, corporations,\nfoundations, historical societies, civic organizations, and religious\ndenominations. In addition, the following state officers, or their\ndesignees, shall serve as members of the commission: the commissioner of\neducation, the head of the state museum, the head of the state archives,\nthe head of the office of state history, the commissioner of economic\ndevelopment, the head of the state tourism advisory council and the\ncommissioner of parks, recreation and historic preservation.\n b. The commission shall begin functioning upon the appointment of a\nmajority of its members. The chair of the commission shall be chosen by\nthe members of the commission for a three year term. Commission members,\nother than ex officio members, shall serve for terms of five years and\nvacancies shall be appointed in the same manner as provided for original\nappointments.\n c. The department and the office of parks, recreation and historic\npreservation may provide the commission with such staff, equipment, and\nfacilities as it may need.\n 2. As part of its responsibilities the commission shall be charged\nwith reviewing and assisting in the implementation of a master plan in\nconjunction with federal authorities; sponsoring commemorations,\nlinkages, seminars and public forum; assisting, encouraging, and\npromoting the making of applications for inclusion on the national or\nstate registers of historic places by the parties eligible to do so and\nthe inclusion of such places therein; and developing partnerships and\nseeking private and public funds to carry out activities to protect,\npreserve, and promote the important legacy and lessons of the freedom\ntrail and the underground railroad in New York state.\n 3. The commission shall report annually to the governor, the\nlegislature, and the board of regents for a period of five years from\nthe date of establishment of the commission, but beginning no later than\nJanuary first, nineteen hundred ninety-nine.\n