Section 29-E. New York state emergency assistance program

1. For purposes
  of this section the following terms shall have the following meanings:
    (a) "Infrastructure" shall mean and include publicly owned  storm  and
  sanitary  sewers, water supply systems, drainage systems, transportation
  systems, roads and bridges.
    (b) "Municipality" shall mean any county, city, village,  or  town  of
  the state.
    (c)   "Public  facilities"  shall  mean  and  include  publicly  owned
  buildings,  including  traditional   government   buildings,   such   as
  courthouses,    firehouses,   police   stations,   parks,   recreational
  facilities, and correctional facilities.
    (d) "Fund" shall mean the state's contingency reserve fund established
  by law.
    (e) "The state emergency management  office"  shall  mean  the  office
  within  the  office  of  military  and  naval  affairs  that assists the
  disaster preparedness commission in implementing the powers  and  duties
  of the disaster preparedness commission.
    2.  The  governor may, upon a finding that a municipality in the state
  has suffered substantial damage by  an  unanticipated  natural  disaster
  which   has  resulted  in  significant  economic  distress  within  such
  municipality, issue a declaration of significant  economic  distress  in
  accordance  with  the  provisions  herein.  In  determining whether such
  significant  economic  distress  exists,  the  governor  shall  consider
  whether the following criteria have been met:
    (a) the municipality suffered a substantial loss of assessed value;
    (b) substantial damage has occurred to municipal buildings, facilities
  and infrastructure;
    (c)  the  cost incurred by the municipality for clean-up operations is
  significant;
    (d) businesses within the municipality  have  experienced  significant
  economic loss due to the inability to conduct normal business due to the
  disaster;
    (e)  a  significant  increase  in unemployment claims filed by persons
  employed within the municipality has occurred; and
    (f) the county or the county within which the municipality is  located
  has   been  declared  eligible  by  the  United  States  small  business
  administration for physical disaster and economic injury disaster loans.
  In addition, the governor shall also  consider  the  extent  that  other
  financial  resources,  including  federal  assistance and insurance, are
  available to assist the municipality to  repair  damage  caused  by  the
  disaster.
    3.  (a)  Upon  the  issuance  of a declaration of significant economic
  distress due to  unanticipated  natural  disaster  by  the  governor,  a
  municipality  recognized  by  the  governor  as  being  affected by such
  disaster which occurred on or after  December  first,  nineteen  hundred
  ninety-two, may apply to the state emergency management office on a form
  prescribed   by   such   office,  for  reimbursement  from  the  state's
  contingency  reserve  fund  for  reimbursement  of   extraordinary   and
  unanticipated  costs  associated  with  the  reconstruction or repair of
  public buildings, facilities or infrastructure.
    (b) Where the municipality applying for assistance authorized pursuant
  to this section is a city, and such application  pertains  to  a  county
  wholly  contained  within  such  city,  such  city  may  submit separate
  applications for such assistance for each such county.
    (c)  Such  municipality  shall  be  granted  the  assistance  provided
  pursuant   to  this  section,  within  the  amounts  made  available  by
  appropriation from the fund, upon approval of such application, provided
  that such municipality agrees to have a local disaster preparedness plan

  pursuant to section twenty-three of this article in effect  by  December
  thirty-first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-three.  On  or  after  December
  thirty-first, nineteen hundred ninety-three, no  municipality  shall  be
  eligible  for  reimbursement  of  such  expenses  unless such plan is in
  effect.
    (d) Municipalities which have received  assistance  pursuant  to  this
  section  shall,  as  soon  thereafter  as  may  be possible, amend their
  respective local  disaster  preparedness  plans  to  include  corrective
  measures  that  must be taken in order to avoid, to the extent possible,
  similar emergencies in the future.
    (e) Municipalities applying for assistance pursuant  to  this  section
  shall accurately describe the emergency conditions which necessitate the
  expenditure of funds for which reimbursement is being sought pursuant to
  this section.
    (f)  In  providing  assistance  pursuant  to  this  section, the state
  emergency management office may  give  preference  to  applicants  which
  demonstrate  the  greatest  need  or which document that such assistance
  will be utilized to bring the applicant into compliance with federal  or
  state law.
    (g) In the event that amounts appropriated are insufficient to provide
  for  full  reimbursement  of  all  extraordinary and unanticipated costs
  incurred by such municipality approved  for  reimbursement  pursuant  to
  this  section,  the  state  emergency management office is authorized to
  provide a pro rata share of the appropriations, appropriated herein,  to
  such municipality.
    4. (a) The adjutant general as defined in article nine of this chapter
  with  the  advise  and  consent  of the disaster preparedness commission
  created pursuant to this article, shall have  the  power  to  make  such
  rules  and  regulations as may be necessary and proper to effectuate the
  purposes of this section.
    (b) The adjutant general shall by March fifteenth of each year  report
  to  the  governor  and  the  legislature  describing  the activities and
  operation of the program authorized by this section. Such  report  shall
  set   forth  the  number  of  reimbursement  applications  received  and
  approved; the identities of the counties,  cities,  towns  and  villages
  receiving  reimbursement  together  with  the  amount and purpose of the
  reimbursement.