§ 11-0501 — Fish and wildlife management practices cooperative program

§ 11-0501. Fish and wildlife management practices cooperative program.\n 1. Purpose.\n The cooperative program provided in this section is authorized for the\npurpose of obtaining on the privately owned or leased lands and waters\nof the state practices of fish and wildlife management which will\npreserve and develop the fish and wildlife resources of the state and\nimprove access to them for recreational purposes by the people of the\nstate.\n 2. Definitions.\n a. "Fish and wildlife management" means management of either fish or\nwildlife, or both.\n b. "Region" means a fish and wildlife management region established as\nprovided in subdivision 3.\n c. "Regional board" means a board constituted as provided in\nsubdivision 4. "State board" means the board constituted as provided in\nsubdivision 5.\n d. "Cooperator" means a person with whom an agreement is made as\nprovided in subdivision 9.\n e. "Regional supervisor for natural resources" means the employee of\nthe department bearing that title in each region.\n f. "Department", "commissioner", "fish" and "wildlife" have the\nmeanings stated in section 11-0103.\n 3. Fish and wildlife management regions.\n The commissioner shall establish not to exceed fifteen fish and\nwildlife management regions of one or more counties each, which shall\ninclude all counties of the state not wholly included within a city.\n 4. Regional fish and wildlife management boards.\n a. A regional fish and wildlife management board shall be appointed in\neach of the regions established under subdivision 3 of this section.\nSuch regional board shall consist of three members from each county\nwithin the region which has appointed its members. In each county, one\nmember shall be a member of or represent the board of supervisors or\ncounty legislative body, one member shall represent the landowners of\nthe county and one member shall represent the sportsmen of the county.\nSuch members from each county shall be appointed by the chairman of the\nboard of supervisors of such county with the approval of the board of\nsupervisors, except that in a county having a county president, a county\nexecutive or other chief executive officer, the chief executive officer\nshall appoint the members representing such county with the approval of\nthe board of supervisors of such county. In a county having an elected\nlegislative body the presiding officer shall appoint the members\nrepresenting such county with the approval of the legislative body. If\nthere is no presiding officer then the members representing such county\nshall be appointed by the legislative body as a whole. If a member of\nthe board of supervisors or legislative body is not available to\nactively participate on the fish and wildlife management board, a\nrepresentative shall be selected who is an elected county official or\nwho is employed by the county government in a position having\nadministrative or managerial authority. A landowner representative must\nactually reside upon rural lands within the county and actually be\nengaged in the operation of such lands for production of agricultural\ncommodities or forest products. If a landowner representative with such\nqualifications is not available to actively participate on the fish and\nwildlife management board, a representative may be appointed who has\nbeen for at least five of the past ten years, before commencing his\nfirst term in any series of consecutive terms, engaged in such operation\nof rural lands, and who resides within the county he represents. If no\nlandowner representative with either of these qualifications is\navailable to actively participate on the fish and wildlife management\nboard a representative may be appointed who is a resource manager\nengaged in such operations on rural lands, and designated by the\ncorporate owner of those lands to represent the landowner's agricultural\nor silvicultural interests. In the case of certain counties designated\nby the full state board with a scarcity of rural lands operated for\nproduction of agricultural commodities or forest products, the landowner\nrepresentative shall own such rural lands in New York state, whether or\nnot those properties lie within the county wherein he resides and\nrepresents. A sportsman representative must be a resident of the county.\nThe said chief executive officer, presiding officer or legislative body\nshall receive and consider for appointment as the landowner\nrepresentative, the recommendations made by the county farm bureau and\nPomona grange, and for appointment as the sportsmen's representative,\nthe recommendations made by the county units of organized sportsmen's\ngroups, as well as considering the advantages of new representatives.\nThe term of office of regional board members shall be two calendar\nyears. A member shall be eligible for reappointment to successive terms\nof office where otherwise qualified. The term of the sportsmen's\nrepresentative and the board of supervisors or county legislative body\nrepresentative shall expire at the end of the odd numbered years; the\nterm of the landowner representative shall expire at the end of the even\nnumbered years. An alternate board of supervisors or county legislative\nbody representative, sportsmen's representative and landowner\nrepresentative may also be appointed, who shall be available to serve in\nthe event of the temporary inability of the member sportsmen's\nrepresentative or member landowner representative or board of\nsupervisors or county legislative body representative to so function. A\nvacancy in membership of a regional board shall be filled in the same\nmanner as the original appointment for the balance of the unexpired term\nduring which the vacancy occurs; if a supervisor member or county\nlegislative body member shall cease to be a supervisor or member of the\nlegislative body before the expiration of his term as a member of the\nregional board, a successor shall be appointed for the unexpired balance\nof the term as a member of the regional board. The chairman of the Board\nof Directors of each soil and water conservation district and the\nchairman of each regional forest practice board within the fish and\nwildlife management region, or his or their representatives, shall be\nadvisory members without vote.\n b. Each regional board shall elect annually from its members a\nchairman, a vice chairman and a representative to the state board and\nmay elect a secretary. The regional supervisor for natural resources may\nserve as secretary of the board if the board so requests, but in any\nevent such supervisor's services shall always be available to the board.\n 5. State fish and wildlife management board.\n a. There shall be a state fish and wildlife management board which\nshall consist of three representatives, one each representing\nlandowners, sportsmen, and county legislative bodies, from each of the\nexisting regional boards, and, as advisory members of the board without\nvote, the following persons during their term of office as such, or\ntheir representatives: the Commissioner of Environmental Conservation,\nthe Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets, the Commissioner of\nTransportation, the Commissioner of Parks, Recreation and Historic\nPreservation, the dean of the New York State College of Agriculture and\nLife Sciences, the president of the State University of New York College\nof Environmental Science and Forestry, the chairman of the State Soil\nand Water Conservation Committee, the chairman of the State Forest\nPractice Board, the president of the New York Farm Bureau, the Master of\nthe New York State Grange, the president of the New York State\nConservation Council, and the president of the New York State Division\nof Izaak Walton League.\n b. Each member other than the advisory members shall be elected by and\nfrom the membership of the respective regional boards for a term of one\nyear from the day of his election, unless within such period he shall\ncease to be a member of the regional board which elected him, in which\nevent he shall cease to be a member of the state board on the day he\nceases to be a member of such regional board. Any vacancy in the state\nboard other than in the office of an advisory member shall be filled for\nthe balance of the unexpired term so vacated by election from its\nmembership by the regional board in which such vacancy occurred.\n c. The members of the state board shall elect one of their voting\nmembers to serve as chairman, and another as vice chairman, to serve in\nthe absence or inability to serve of the chairman. An officer of the\ndepartment designated by the commissioner may act as secretary for the\nboard if the board so elect; otherwise a secretary shall be elected from\nthe membership.\n d. The state board shall meet at the call of the chairman or secretary\nwhen and where necessary within the state.\n 6. Regional and state board members; expenses.\n Regional and state board members, including advisory members, shall\nreceive no salary, but their necessary traveling expenses when attending\nmeetings of the regional or state boards shall be paid from moneys\nappropriated to the department for travel and shall be paid on vouchers\ncertified by the chairman of the appropriate regional board or state\nboard upon the audit of the comptroller in the manner provided by law.\n 7. Duties of regional boards.\n a. Each regional board shall formulate a statement of fish and\nwildlife management practices appropriate for its region and submit it\nfor approval to the state board and the commissioner. After such a\nstatement of practices has been approved by the state board and the\ncommissioner, the regional board shall formally adopt such statement of\npractices and encourage landowners, lessees and sportsmen within the\nregion to adopt and carry out the practices approved.\n b. A copy of each resolution so adopting a statement of practices\nshall be filed in the principal office of the department.\n c. Any practices formulated in specific terms shall, unless otherwise\nexpressly limited by the words "without variation", "without\nalternative", or the like, be interpreted as permitting such variations\nor alternatives as shall be accepted by the regional board as satisfying\nthe purpose of the practices. But no such variation or alternatives\nshall be deemed to be a compliance with the practices for purposes of\nsubdivisions 9 and 10 unless the approval of the regional board is\nrecorded in writing.\n 8. Duties of the state board.\n a. The state board shall pass upon and approve or disapprove the fish\nand wildlife management practices formulated by the regional boards. The\nstate board may, with the advice of the commissioner, and upon\nrecommendations from the regional boards, formulate recommended uniform\nfish and wildlife management practices for similar ecological types\nwithin the various ecological regions of the state. Such uniform\npractices may thereafter be incorporated expressly or by reference in\nthe statement of practices formulated by regional boards, but shall not\nbe operative as practices of any region unless so incorporated.\n b. The state board shall also have the following duties and powers:\n (1) to recommend to the regional boards such policies and procedures\nfor the carrying out of fish and wildlife management practices as it\ndeems appropriate;\n (2) to keep the several regional boards informed of the activities and\nexperience of all other regional boards in the state and to facilitate\nan interchange of advice and experience between such regional boards and\ncooperation between them, and to provide advice and assistance in\ncoordinating the programs of the several regional boards.\n c. The state board may submit to the commissioner, recommendations\nwith respect to matters delegated by statute to the department in any\ncase where a statute or regulation of the department may affect the\ncarrying out of fish and wildlife management practices under this\nsection.\n 9. Cooperation agreements.\n a. The commissioner shall have power, through his representative, to\nenter into an agreement in writing with an owner or lessee of rural\nlands or waters lying within a fish and wildlife management region or an\ninterest in such lands or waters, or with two or more such owners or\nlessees who agree jointly and severally, for furnishing of services and\nbenefits as provided in subdivision 10, in exchange for and subject to\nthe condition that such owner or lessee, or owners or lessees, adopt and\ncarry out for a specified period of time, upon such premises or\nspecified parts thereof, one or more of the fish and wildlife management\npractices adopted by the regional board.\n b. The commissioner shall provide standard forms for such cooperation\nagreements.\n c. The agreement shall state the period during which it shall be in\nforce and may provide for renewal. It may also provide for termination\nbefore the expiration of such period, and for the conditions upon which\nand the manner in which any privilege of termination may be exercised.\n d. Without limitation by paragraph c or by any term of the agreement\npursuant to paragraph c the failure of a cooperator, or of any one of\ntwo or more cooperators who agree jointly and severally, to perform his\nagreement shall relieve the commissioner and the state from the\nobligation to furnish the services and benefits provided for in\nsubdivision 10.\n 10. State assistance.\n a. Upon the establishment of such region, the commissioner may, and\nupon organization of the regional board, the commissioner shall provide\npersonnel from the department to assist the boards and the cooperators\nwithin the region.\n b. The commissioner shall furnish to cooperators:\n (1) technical services;\n (2) trees and shrubs from any of the nurseries operated by the\ndepartment without charge at the nursery, to the extent and subject to\nthe conditions specified in the agreement with the cooperator;\n (3) a subscription, without cost, to the New York State\nConservationist magazine.\n c. The commissioner may also furnish to cooperators such further\ntechnical assistance, labor and materials, as may be required in\ncompliance with practices approved by the region and authorized by order\nof the commissioner.\n d. The commissioner may also furnish to premises covered by an\nagreement and to fish and wildlife upon such premises such protection by\nway of posting, patrol by environmental conservation officers or forest\nrangers, inspection or checking stations, fire patrols or other\nappropriate means, within the limitation of appropriations and of the\nmanpower available as may be advisable in his judgment to protect fish\nand wildlife resources, provide for public safety and encourage the\nopening of private lands and waters to public hunting and fishing; but\nneither this subdivision nor any provision of any agreement pursuant to\nthis section shall be deemed to constitute an undertaking by the state\nor the department on its behalf to furnish such posting, patrol or\nprotection and neither such agreement nor any provision of the Fish and\nWildlife Law shall be deemed to create a ground of liability of the\nstate for damage to person or property caused by the failure or neglect\nof the state or its agents, officers or employees to furnish such\nposting, patrol or protection.\n e. The agreement with the cooperator may provide for use by him for\npurposes compatible with its function in wildlife management, of any\nstructure or facility created or maintained on his premises with funds\nof the department, or for furnishing to him the incidental products of\nany activity conducted on his premises for purposes of wildlife\nmanagement.\n