305-A - Coordination of local planning and land use decision-making with the agricultural districts program.
§ 305-a. Coordination of local planning and land use decision-making with the agricultural districts program. 1. Policy of local governments. a. Local governments, when exercising their powers to enact and administer comprehensive plans and local laws, ordinances, rules or regulations, shall exercise these powers in such manner as may realize the policy and goals set forth in this article, and shall not unreasonably restrict or regulate farm operations within agricultural districts in contravention of the purposes of this article unless it can be shown that the public health or safety is threatened. b. The commissioner, upon his or her own initiative or upon the receipt of a complaint from a person within an agricultural district, may bring an action to enforce the provisions of this subdivision. 2. Agricultural data statement; submission, evaluation. Any application for a special use permit, site plan approval, use variance, or subdivision approval requiring municipal review and approval by a planning board, zoning board of appeals, town board, or village board of trustees pursuant to article sixteen of the town law or article seven of the village law, that would occur on property within an agricultural district containing a farm operation or on property with boundaries within five hundred feet of a farm operation located in an agricultural district, shall include an agricultural data statement. The planning board, zoning board of appeals, town board, or village board of trustees shall evaluate and consider the agricultural data statement in its review of the possible impacts of the proposed project upon the functioning of farm operations within such agricultural district. The information required by an agricultural data statement may be included as part of any other application form required by local law, ordinance or regulation. 3. Agricultural data statement; notice provision. Upon the receipt of such application by the planning board, zoning board of appeals, town board or village board of trustees, the clerk of such board shall mail written notice of such application to the owners of land as identified by the applicant in the agricultural data statement. Such notice shall include a description of the proposed project and its location, and may be sent in conjunction with any other notice required by state or local law, ordinance, rule or regulation for the said project. The cost of mailing said notice shall be borne by the applicant. 4. Agricultural data statement; content. An agricultural data statement shall include the following information: the name and address of the applicant; a description of the proposed project and its location; the name and address of any owner of land within the agricultural district, which land contains farm operations and is located within five hundred feet of the boundary of the property upon which the project is proposed; and a tax map or other map showing the site of the proposed project relative to the location of farm operations identified in the agricultural data statement.