§ 2777. Statement of legislative findings and purpose. The legislature\nhereby finds and declares as follows:\n 1. The economic well-being of the state and the general welfare of its\npeople require adequate, safe, secure and efficient aviation and\ntransportation facilities at a reasonable cost to the people.\n 2. The strengthening and improvement of aviation facilities and\nrelated services is a matter of vital importance not only to the\nresidents of the capital district but to all the state's residents and\nis, therefore, a matter of state concern.\n 3. In order to insure a healthy economy for such area and to promote\nthe general welfare of its residents, it is necessary to expand and\nimprove the existing aviation facilities and services in Albany county\nin such a manner as to
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§ 2777. Statement of legislative findings and purpose. The legislature\nhereby finds and declares as follows:\n 1. The economic well-being of the state and the general welfare of its\npeople require adequate, safe, secure and efficient aviation and\ntransportation facilities at a reasonable cost to the people.\n 2. The strengthening and improvement of aviation facilities and\nrelated services is a matter of vital importance not only to the\nresidents of the capital district but to all the state's residents and\nis, therefore, a matter of state concern.\n 3. In order to insure a healthy economy for such area and to promote\nthe general welfare of its residents, it is necessary to expand and\nimprove the existing aviation facilities and services in Albany county\nin such a manner as to stimulate and promote increased local, state,\nnational and international air travel and commerce through the capital\ndistrict.\n 4. The health, welfare, safety and security of the state's residents\nand of those passengers using air transportation requires coordinated\noperation of aviation facilities and services in Albany county by a\npublic benefit airport authority.\n 5. The purposes of such authority shall be: (a) to promote safe,\nsecure, efficient and economical air transportation by preserving and\nenhancing airport capacity; (b) to acquire, construct, reconstruct,\ncontinue, develop, equip, expand, improve, maintain, finance and operate\naviation and other related facilities and services within Albany county;\n(c) to stimulate and promote economic development, trade and tourism;\n(d) to form an integral part of a safe and effective nationwide system\nof airports to meet the present and future needs of civil aeronautics\nand national defense and to assure inclusion of the authority's\nfacilities in state, national and international programs for air\ntransportation and for airport or airway capital improvement, all in\naccordance with the provisions of this title; and (e) to insure that\naviation facilities authorized pursuant to this title shall provide for\nthe protection and enhancement of the natural resources and the quality\nof the environment of the state and the capital district area.\n 6. Such purposes are in all respects public purposes for the benefit\nof the people of the state of New York and for which public funds may be\nexpended and both the county and the authority in carrying out their\nrespective powers and duties under this title shall be deemed to be\nacting in a governmental capacity. The acquisition, construction,\nreconstruction, development, expansion, improvement, equipping,\noperation and maintenance of any project financed or undertaken by the\nauthority or the county shall be deemed to be the performance of an\nessential governmental function by the authority or the county acting in\nits governmental capacity, whether such project shall be owned or\noperated by the authority or by any person or public corporation.\n 7. It is hereby found and declared that it has been and remains the\npolicy of the state of New York to promote equal opportunity in\nemployment for all persons, without discrimination on account of race,\ncreed, color, national origin, sex, age, disability or marital status,\nto promote equality of economic opportunity for minority group members\nand women, and business enterprises owned by them, and to eradicate the\neffects of private and governmental discrimination which has erected and\ncontinues to maintain barriers that unreasonably impair access by\nminority and women-owned business enterprises to state contract\nopportunities.\n Recent reviews and analyses of contracting in New York, including the\nstudy by the division of minority and women's business development of\nthe department of economic development entitled "Opportunity Denied! A\nStudy of Racial and Sexual Discrimination Related to Government\nContracting in New York State," confirm through direct evidence of\nracial and sexual discrimination in and by New York state sufficient to\njustify race and sex conscious remedies. For the purpose of furthering\nthe state's compelling interest in eradicating the effects of racial and\nsexual discrimination therefore, it is necessary and proper that article\nfifteen-A of the executive law, concerning participation by minority\ngroup members and women and business enterprises owned by them, shall\napply to the Albany county airport authority.\n