§ 21-0917. The Great Lakes Basin advisory council.\n 1. As used in this section:\n a. "Great Lakes Basin" means the watershed of the Great Lakes and the\nSt. Lawrence River, upstream from Trois Rivieres, Quebec, consisting in\nNew York State of the Lake Erie, Niagara River, Lake Ontario minor\ntributaries, Genesee River, Seneca-Oneida Oswego River, Black River, St.\nLawrence River, and Lake Champlain drainage basins.\n b. "Great Lakes region" means the geographic region composed of the\nstates of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio and\nWisconsin, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the provinces of\nOntario and Quebec, Canada.\n 2. There is hereby established within the department the Great Lakes\nBasin advisory council (hereinafter referred to as the "council")\n
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§ 21-0917. The Great Lakes Basin advisory council.\n 1. As used in this section:\n a. "Great Lakes Basin" means the watershed of the Great Lakes and the\nSt. Lawrence River, upstream from Trois Rivieres, Quebec, consisting in\nNew York State of the Lake Erie, Niagara River, Lake Ontario minor\ntributaries, Genesee River, Seneca-Oneida Oswego River, Black River, St.\nLawrence River, and Lake Champlain drainage basins.\n b. "Great Lakes region" means the geographic region composed of the\nstates of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio and\nWisconsin, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the provinces of\nOntario and Quebec, Canada.\n 2. There is hereby established within the department the Great Lakes\nBasin advisory council (hereinafter referred to as the "council")\nconsisting of nineteen members to advise the governor and the\ncommissioner on matters relating to the state's role in regional,\nfederal, and international activities aimed at the protection of the\nquality and quantity of water in the Great Lakes, domestic, municipal,\nindustrial and agricultural water supplies, navigation, hydroelectric\npower and energy production, recreation, fish and wildlife habitat, and\na balanced ecosystem which are all vital to the future environmental,\nsocial, and economic health of New York State and the other states and\nprovinces comprising the Great Lakes region.\n a. The council shall:\n (i) advise the commissioner and the governor on the implementation and\nany modifications to any comprehensive long-term Great Lakes management\nplan developed by the department;\n (ii) advise the state's members on the board of directors of the Great\nLakes protection fund;\n (iii) annually identify specific research or program needs for funding\nfrom the New York Great Lakes protection fund, after consultation with\nthe Great Lakes protection fund, other Great Lakes states and other\nconcerned parties. Such annual program, with as much detail on the scope\nand expectations of each project as is practical, shall be submitted to\nthe commissioner, who shall select specific projects from the program,\nrecommended by the council and shall submit such projects to the\ndepartment for implementation; and\n (iv) evaluate and report to the governor and the legislature on the\nprojects funded by the New York Great Lakes protection fund.\n b. The governor shall appoint nine members with one representing an\ninstitution that performs research on the issues and the problems of the\nGreat Lakes, one representing a labor union whose members derive their\nlivelihood from the Great Lakes, three representing environmental or\nconservation organizations with interests in the Great Lakes Basin, two\nrepresenting business organizations whose commercial interest lies in\nactivities in or around Lake Ontario, Lake Erie and/or the St. Lawrence\nRiver, one representing a municipality adjacent to Lake Erie, Lake\nOntario or the St. Lawrence River, and one representing a county having\na population of two hundred and fifty thousand people or less adjacent\nto Lake Erie, Lake Ontario or the St. Lawrence River. The temporary\npresident of the Senate and the speaker of the Assembly shall each\nappoint two members who have a demonstrated knowledge in Great Lakes\nissues. The commissioner, the commissioners of the departments of state,\nhealth, transportation, economic development and the chairman of the\npower authority of the state of New York or their designated\nrepresentative shall be ex-officio members. The appointed members of the\ncouncil shall serve terms of three years; provided, however, that of the\nmembers first appointed by the governor, three shall be appointed for a\nterm of three years, three shall be appointed for a term of two years\nand three shall be appointed for a term of one year. An appointment to\nfill a vacancy shall be made for the remainder of the affected term in\nthe same manner as the original appointment was made. Such appointment\nshall be made within sixty days of the date the position becomes vacant.\nMembers shall serve until their successor has been appointed. The\ngovernor shall designate the chairperson.\n 3. The advisory council shall meet at a minimum of two times annually.\n 4. Advisory council members shall receive no compensation for their\nservices, but shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary\nexpenses incurred during the performance of their duties.\n 5. The council shall submit a report prior to January first beginning\nin nineteen hundred ninety and annually thereafter to the governor, the\nspeaker of the Assembly, the temporary president of the Senate and the\nchairmen of the Senate and Assembly committees on environmental\nconservation. Such report should include an evaluation of the problems\nand conditions of the Great Lakes and recommendations for departmental\nor legislative solutions.\n