New York Laws
Article 18-B - New York State Empire Zones
959 - Responsibilities of the Commissioner.

(b) Receive and review applications for designation of areas as empire
zones;
(c) Analyze and make recommendations to the empire zones designation
board for designation of areas as empire zones, provided, however, that
all such areas recommended by the commissioner shall meet the
requirements of this article;
(d) Review new applications to replace any previously designated
empire zone the designation of which has been terminated or withdrawn
and file notice of the designation or redesignation of an empire zone or
of the revision or termination of such designation with the applicant,
the department of taxation and finance, the secretary of state, with the
county, city, town or village clerk of each county, city, town, or
village, respectively, in which the empire zone is located, with the
school district governing body in which the empire zone is located, with
the commissioner of taxation and finance and with other state and local
entities; provided, however, that such notice shall specify the date
such action was taken and shall contain a description sufficient to
identify the empire zone, including the names of the abutting streets,
roads, highways, bodies of water, or other identifying physical
features;
(e) Request, and shall receive from any department, division, board,
bureau, commission, agency or public authority of the state such
assistance as may be necessary to establish a procedure whereby
applications submitted by business entities, community-based
organizations, not-for-profit organizations, human service agencies,
labor unions and municipal agencies located within an empire zone
requesting financial and other assistance provided by state programs,
including, but not limited to, capital development, human resource
development, business assistance, job training and job placement shall,
consistent with federal law, be given priority over applications
submitted by entities not located in empire zones;
(f) Establish a priority for the allocation of authority to issue
private activity bonds for the benefit of municipalities and business
enterprises located or to be located within empire zones;
(g) Coordinate, with the local empire zone administrative board and
state agencies and authorities, the provision of business development
programs and services for each empire zone in order to stimulate the
creation and development of new small businesses, including new small
minority-owned and women-owned business enterprises, and may request and
shall receive from any department, division, board, bureau, commission,
agency or public authority of the state such assistance as may be
necessary;
(h) Coordinate with the comptroller and the commissioner of taxation
and finance a linked deposit program. The comptroller and the
commissioner of taxation and finance are hereby authorized and empowered
to enter into agreements with financial institutions located in or
serving the empire zones, to provide for the deposit of funds
administered jointly by them in such institutions, at reduced rates of
return to the state, in return for commitments by such institutions to
businesses of loans of comparable amounts, at reduced interest rates,
for business development projects in the zones that will create or
preserve jobs;
(i) Assist each local empire zone board in preparing a small business
assistance plan as required by section nine hundred sixty-three of this
article and coordinate with the local empire zone administrative board
and state agencies and authorities the development of small business
procurement, export and marketing programs for businesses within the
empire zones;
(j) Promulgate regulations, in consultation with the commissioner of
labor, for program evaluation and coordinate implementation of an
evaluation system, which is capable of compiling and analyzing accurate
and consistent information necessary for an assessment of whether
statutory objectives and criteria are being met;
(k) Review performance objectives and progress in meeting objectives
with zone boards and zone administrative entities as part of the annual
administrative contract process;
(l) Assist zone boards and zone administrative entities to effect and
implement job training and social services agreements and programs
provided for in paragraphs (v), (vi) and (vii) of subdivision (a) of
section nine hundred sixty-three of this article and request and receive
from any agency or authority of the state such assistance as may be
necessary to improve the delivery and coordination of human resource
development programs to the zones;
(m) Assist zones in increasing their child care capacity and in
planning special care activities, including the provision of technical
assistance by the department in planning for the provision of child care
services in the zones;
(n) Coordinate with the department of labor, the state education
department, the job training partnership council and agencies of the
state the inclusion in annual and biennial plans of such entities
strategies for increasing and improving human resource development
services on a priority basis, consistent with federal statutory and
regulatory requirements, to residents of the zones and employees of zone
businesses, including, but not limited to, the governor's plan for
coordination and special services of the job training partnership
council, the jobs plan and Wagner-Peyser annual plan for services of the
department of labor, and the career education state plan of the state
education department;
(o) Arrange with the job training partnership council the provision of
the workforce investment act funds for use within the zones with the
cooperation of the service delivery areas in the governor's plan for
coordination and special services;
(p) Subject to the availability of funds, arrange for the allocation
and reservation of funds from the infrastructure improvement programs of
state agencies and authorities to assist the zones to make public
improvements necessary for community, commercial, industrial and tourism
development projects in support of zone revitalization;
(q) Systematically enlist other state agencies and authorities to
participate in zone programs and projects and in cooperative planning of
interagency zone activities in support of zone revitalization efforts;
(r) Recommend for economic development loan and grant programs of the
department of economic development, urban development corporation, job
development authority, and science and technology foundation special
terms and conditions for viable zone projects and programs;
(s) Award preference to be given to applications submitted by or on
behalf of zones for entrepreneurial assistance programs under article
nine of the omnibus economic development act of nineteen hundred
eighty-seven to support the creation of new entrepreneurial development
and entrepreneurial support centers;
(t) Coordinate with the urban development corporation the creation of
a special category of assistance for zones within the regional economic
development partnership program, which will make available economic
development assistance grants for zone programs and activities,
including, but not limited to, planning, service coordination, and local
institutional capacity building for human resource development necessary
for economic revitalization; planning and development of small business
incubators; job placement and preparedness programs for zones residents;
education and training programs for zone businesses; child care programs
and projects supportive of business development; technical assistance
for minority and women-owned business development; training for zone
officials; business and tourism development and marketing programs; and

other innovative programs and activities in support of economic and
community development within the zones;
(u) Assist in the development of a plan, in coordination with the
health and financial services departments, to assist zones in obtaining
affordable employee health insurance for small business enterprises
located within the zone;
(v) Approve applications for qualification of a business enterprise as
the owner of a qualified investment project or as the owner of a
significant capital investment project, as defined in subdivisions (s)
and (t), respectively, of section nine hundred fifty-seven of this
article. As a condition for approval of such application, the
commissioner is authorized to specify certain requirements to be
satisfied as a condition for approval of such application as the
commissioner deems necessary to ensure that the project will make a
substantial contribution to the economic development of this state. An
application for qualification of a business enterprise as the owner of a
qualified investment must be submitted by December thirty-first, two
thousand nine. An application for qualification of a business as the
owner of a significant capital investment project as defined in
subdivision (t) of section nine hundred fifty-seven of this article,
which application is submitted by an entity previously qualified by the
commissioner as the owner of a qualified investment project or an entity
which is a related person, as that term is defined in section
465(b)(3)(c) of the internal revenue code, to an entity previously
qualified by the commissioner as the owner of a qualified investment
project, must be submitted by June thirtieth, two thousand eleven. No
applications submitted after these dates may be approved; and
(w) Conduct a review during calendar year two thousand nine of all
business enterprises to determine whether the business enterprises
should be decertified pursuant to subparagraphs five and six of
paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this section and the regulations
promulgated under this article. After such review, the commissioner
shall issue an empire zone retention certificate to each firm that the
commissioner determines is not subject to decertification under
subparagraphs five and six of paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this
section. The decertification referred to in subparagraph six of
paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this section shall be based upon an
analysis of data contained in at least three business annual reports
filed by the business enterprise. If any business enterprise fails the
analysis described in the immediately preceding sentence, or if the
commissioner makes the finding described in subparagraph five of
paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this section, the commissioner shall
revoke the certification of such business enterprise pursuant to
paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this section and as specified
herein; provided, however, the commissioner may consider, after
consultation with the director of the budget, and in his or her sole
discretion, other economic, social and environmental factors when
evaluating the costs and benefits of a project to the state and whether
continued certification is warranted based on such factors. The
commissioner shall provide written notification to such business
enterprise of his or her determination to revoke the certification,
including the reasons therefor. Such notification shall state that the
business enterprise may appeal the determination by sending a written
notice to the empire zone designation board of such appeal no later than
fifteen business days from the date of the commissioner's revocation
notification. Provided that the business enterprise appeals the
commissioner's determination within fifteen business days of the
commissioner's revocation notification, the business enterprise may

present a written submission to the empire zone designation board no
later than sixty days following the date the commissioner's revocation
notification was sent to the business enterprise explaining why its
certification should be continued. The empire zone designation board
shall consider the explanation provided by the business enterprise, but
shall only reverse the determination to revoke the business enterprise's
certification if the empire zone designation board unanimously finds
that there was sufficient evidence presented by the business enterprise
demonstrating that the commissioner's finding, with respect to
subparagraph six of paragraph (v) of subdivision (a) of this section,
was in error, or that, with respect to subparagraph five of paragraph
(v) of subdivision (a) of this section, any extraordinary circumstances
occurred which would justify the continued certification of the business
enterprise.