§ 1078. Powers. The powers and duties of the authority shall be as\nfollows:\n 1. To sue and be sued.\n 2. To have a seal and alter the same.\n 3. To acquire, in the name of the authority, lease, hold and dispose\nof property or any interest therein for its corporate purposes,\nincluding the power to purchase prospective or tentative awards in\nconnection with the exercise of the power of condemnation hereinafter\ngranted.\n 4. (a) To purchase, in the name of the authority, any water supply\nsystem, water distribution system, including plants, works,\ninstrumentalities or parts thereof and appurtenances thereto, lands,\neasements, rights in land and water rights, rights-of-way, contract\nrights, franchises, approaches, connections, dams, reservoirs, water\nmains and pipe lines, pumping stations and equipment, or any other\nproperty incidental to and included in such system or part thereof, and\nany improvements, extensions and betterments, situated wholly within the\ncounty for the purpose of supplying water for domestic, commercial and\npublic purposes at retail to individual consumers within the county of\nSuffolk or at wholesale in the manner provided by subdivision seven of\nthis section as a means of so acquiring for such purposes, and subject\nto the approval of the public service commission, the authority may\npurchase all of the stock of any existing privately owned water\ncorporation or company, and thereafter, within a reasonable time, such\nwater corporation or company shall be dissolved.\n (b) To condemn in the name of the authority, except where located in\nanother county, any water supply system, water distribution system,\nincluding plants, works, instrumentalities, or parts thereof and\nappurtenances thereto, lands, easements, rights in land and water\nrights, rights-of-way, contract rights, franchises, approaches,\nconnections, dams, reservoirs, water mains and pipe lines, pumping\nstations and equipment, or any other property incidental to and included\nin such system or part thereof, and any improvements, extensions and\nbetterments for the purpose of supplying water for domestic, commercial\nand public purposes at retail to individual consumers within the county\nof Suffolk or at wholesale in the manner provided by subdivision seven\nof this section. The authority shall exercise the power of condemnation\nhereby granted in the manner provided either by the condemnation law or\nby the Suffolk county improvement act. In the exercise of such power of\ncondemnation, the property being condemned shall be deemed, when so\ndetermined by the authority, to be for a public use superior to the\npublic use in the hands of any other person, association, or\ncorporation, provided, however, that the authority shall have no power\nto condemn property the legal title to which is vested in a municipality\nunless such municipality shall consent thereto.\n (c) To construct, develop and operate any water supply system, water\ndistribution system, including plants, works, instrumentalities, or\nparts thereof, and appurtenances thereto, dams, reservoirs, water mains,\npipe lines, pumping stations and equipment, or any other property\nincidental to or included in such system or part thereof within the\ncounty of Suffolk, and to acquire, by condemnation in the manner\nprovided by this title, or by purchase, lands, easements, rights in land\nand water rights and rights-of-way in connection therewith within such\ncounty; and to own and operate, maintain, repair, improve, reconstruct,\nenlarge and extend, subject to the provisions of this title, any of its\nproperties acquired or constructed under this title, all of which,\ntogether with the acquisition of such properties are hereby declared to\nbe public purposes.\n (d) To acquire, hold, use, lease, sell, transfer and dispose of any\nproperty, real, personal or mixed, or interest therein, for its\ncorporate purposes.\n 5. To purchase water in bulk from any person, private corporation or\nmunicipality when necessary or convenient for the operation of such\nwater supply and distribution system. To sell water in bulk to any\nnot-for-profit corporation, public corporation, private corporation or\nperson at its regular retail rates.\n 6. To fix, alter, charge and collect rates and other charges for the\nuse of water by the inhabitants of the county or other consumers\nthereof, at reasonable rates to be determined by the authority for the\npurpose of providing for the payment of the expenses of the authority,\nthe construction, improvement, repair, maintenance and operation of the\nwater supply and distribution system of the authority, the payment of\nthe principal of and interest on the obligations of the authority, and\nto fulfill the terms and provisions of any agreements made with the\npurchasers or holders of any such obligations.\n 7. To sell water by volume to any or all municipalities or privately\nowned public water supply and distribution systems in such county. The\nfact that any municipality has procured or is about to procure an\nindependent source of water supply shall not prevent such municipality\nfrom purchasing water from the authority. Subject to the approval of the\nboard of supervisors of Suffolk county to sell any water not needed in\nsuch county to any municipality or privately owned public water supply\nand distribution system outside of the county in which created. Not only\nmay the authority sell any surplus water it may have developed, but it\nmay, with the consent of such board of supervisors, develop and provide\na sufficient amount of water so as to supply water outside of the county\nto any municipality or privately owned public water supply and\ndistribution system.\n 8. To make contracts and execute all instruments necessary or\nconvenient.\n 9. To make by-laws for the management and regulation of its affairs\nand the regulation of and the charges made for water sold.\n 10. To appoint officers, agents and employees.\n 11. To enter upon any lands, waters and premises for the purpose of\nmaking surveys, soundings, drillings and examinations.\n 12. To enter into cooperative agreements with other water authorities,\nmunicipalities, or utility companies, for the interconnection of\nfacilities, the exchange or inter-change of services and commodities or\nfor any other lawful purposes necessary or desirable to effect the\npurposes of this title, provided, however, that any such agreement with\na municipality located in a county, other than Suffolk county, shall be\nsubject to the approval of the board of supervisors of such county, if\nany.\n 12-a. To enter into a contract or contracts with the board of\nsupervisors of Suffolk county for the acquisition, construction and\ndevelopment of a water supply and distribution system, or any part or\nparts thereof, on behalf of a county water district, and to contract for\nthe operation and management of such county water district, all as\nprovided in article five-a of the county law and article five-b of the\ngeneral municipal law. Such water authority shall be deemed the agent of\nSuffolk county under any such contract. If such contract shall authorize\nthe water authority to purchase supplies or equipment or to construct\npublic works, such authority shall be subject to all provisions of law\nto which Suffolk county would be subject in relation to advertising and\nawarding any such contracts for supplies, equipment or public works.\n 13. To do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers\nexpressly given or necessarily implied in this title.\n In exercising the powers granted by this title, the authority shall\nnot sell water in any area which is served by a water system owned or\noperated by a municipality unless the governing board of such\nmunicipality shall adopt a resolution requesting the authority to sell\nwater in such area.\n Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority may not\napprove by resolution or otherwise make a final determination regarding\na construction project for any new structure which exceeds thirty feet\nin height unless it holds a public hearing in the municipality where the\nconstruction will take place not less than fifteen days after notice has\nbeen given as hereinafter provided. Notice of such public hearing shall\nbe published once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of\ngeneral circulation in the area affected by the proposed construction\nproject.\n