1307 - Special powers of the authority.
§ 1307. Special powers of the authority. In order to effectuate the purposes of this title: 1. The authority may acquire, by purchase, gift, grant, transfer, contract or lease, or condemnation, any transportation facility, including port or related facilities wholly or partially within the Capital District transportation district or any part thereof, or the use thereof, and may enter into any joint service arrangements as hereinafter provided. Any such acquisition or joint service arrangement shall be authorized only by resolution of the authority approved by not less than a majority of the whole number of members of the authority then in office. 2. The authority may on such terms and conditions as the authority may determine necessary, convenient or desirable itself establish, construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair any such transportation facility, or may provide for such establishment, construction, effectuation, operation, maintenance, renovation, improvement, extension or repair by contract, lease, or other arrangement on such terms as the authority may deem necessary, convenient or desirable with any person, including but not limited to any common carrier or freight forwarder, the state, any state agency, the federal government, any other state or agency or instrumentality thereof, any public authority of this or any other state or any political subdivision or municipality of the state. In connection with the operation of any such transportation facility, the authority may establish, construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair or may provide by contract, lease or other arrangement for the establishment, construction, effectuation, operation, maintenance, renovation, improvement, extension or repair of any related services and activities it deems necessary, convenient or desirable, including but not limited to the transportation and storage of freight and the United States mail, feeder and connecting transportation, parking areas, transportation centers, port, stations and related facilities. 3. The authority may establish, levy and collect or cause to be established, levied and collected and, in the case of a joint service arrangement, join with others in the establishment, levy and collection of such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges and other fees as it may deem necessary, convenient or desirable for the use and operation of any transportation facility and related services operated by the authority or by a subsidiary corporation of the authority or under contract, lease or other arrangement, including joint service arrangements, with the authority. Any such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges or other fees for the transportation of passengers shall be established and changed only if approved by resolution of the authority adopted by not less than a majority of the whole number of members of the authority then in office and only after a public hearing, provided however, that fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges or other fees for the transportation of passengers on any transportation facility which are in effect at the time that the then owner of such transportation facility becomes a subsidiary corporation of the authority or at the time that operation of such transportation facility is commenced by the authority or is commenced under contract, lease or other arrangement including joint service arrangements, with the authority may be continued in effect without such a hearing. Such fares, tolls, rentals, rates, charges and other fees shall be established as may in the judgment of the authority be necessary to maintain the combined operations of the authority and its subsidiary corporations on a self-sustaining basis. The said operations shall be deemed to be on a self-sustaining basis as required by this title, when the authority is able to pay or cause to be paidfrom revenue or any other funds or property actually available to the authority and its subsidiary corporations (a) as the same shall become due, the principal of and interest on the bonds and notes and other obligations of the authority and of such subsidiary corporations, together with the maintenance of proper reserves therefor, (b) the cost and expense of keeping the properties and assets of the authority and its subsidiary corporations in good condition and repair, and (c) the capital and operating expenses of the authority and its subsidiary corporations. The authority may contract with the holders of bonds and notes with respect to the exercise of the powers authorized by this section. 4. The authority may establish and, in the case of joint service arrangements, join with others in the establishment of such schedules and standards of operations and such other rules and regulations including but not limited to rules and regulations governing the conduct and safety of the public as it may deem necessary, convenient or desirable for the use and operation of any transportation facility and related services operated by the authority or under contract, lease or other arrangement, including joint service arrangements, with the authority. Such rules and regulations governing the conduct and safety of the public shall be filed with the department of state in the manner provided by section one hundred two of the executive law. In the case of any conflict between any such rule or regulation of the authority governing the conduct or safety of the public and any local law, ordinance, rule or regulation, such rule or regulation of the authority shall prevail. Violation of any such rule or regulation of the authority governing the conduct or the safety of the public in or upon any facility of the authority shall constitute an offense and shall be punishable by fine not exceeding fifty dollars or imprisonment for not more than thirty days or both. 5. The authority may acquire, hold, own, lease, establish, construct, effectuate, operate, maintain, renovate, improve, extend or repair any of its facilities through, and cause any one or more of its powers, duties, functions or activities to be exercised or performed by, one or more wholly owned subsidiary corporations of the authority and may transfer to or from any such corporation any moneys, real property or other property for any of the purposes of this title. The directors or members of each such subsidiary corporation shall be the same persons holding the offices of members of the authority. Each such subsidiary corporation and any of its property, functions and activities shall have all of the privileges, immunities, tax exemptions and other exemptions of the authority and of the authority's property, functions and activities. Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to the restrictions and limitations to which the authority may be subject. Each such subsidiary corporation shall be subject to suit in accordance with section thirteen hundred sixteen of this title. The employees of any such subsidiary corporation, except those who are also employees of the authority, shall not be deemed employees of the authority. If the authority shall determine that one or more of its subsidiary corporations should be in the form of a public benefit corporation, it shall create each such public benefit corporation by executing and filing with the secretary of state a certificate of incorporation, which may be amended from time to time by filing, which shall set forth the name of such public benefit subsidiary corporation, its duration, the location of its principal office, and any or all of the purposes of acquiring, owning, leasing, establishing, constructing, effectuating, operating, maintaining, renovating, improving, extending or repairing one or more facilities of the authority. Each such public benefitsubsidiary corporation shall be a body politic and corporate and shall have all those powers vested in the authority by the provisions of this title which the authority shall determine to include in its certificate of incorporation except the power to contract indebtedness. Whenever any state, political subdivision, municipality, commission, agency, officer, department, board, division or person is authorized and empowered for any of the purposes of this title to cooperate and enter into agreements with the authority such state, political subdivision, municipality, commission, agency, officer, department, board, division or person shall have the same authorization and power for any of such purposes to cooperate and enter into agreements with a subsidiary corporation of the authority. 6. The authority, in its own name or in the name of the state, may apply for and receive and accept grants of property, money and services and other assistance offered or made available to it by any person, government or agency whatever, which it may use to meet capital or operating expenses and for any other use within the scope of its powers, and to negotiate for the same upon such terms and conditions as the authority may determine to be necessary, convenient or desirable. In no event, however, shall the authority submit to the state or federal government or any agency or instrumentality thereof an application for a state or federal project unless the application shall have been first approved by the commissioner as being part of or consistent with such statewide plan, regional plan or transportation development policy and planning concept. 7. The authority may do all things it deems necessary, convenient or desirable to manage, control and direct the maintenance and operation of transportation facilities, equipment or real property operated by or under contract, lease or other arrangement with the authority. Except as hereinafter specially provided, no municipality or political subdivision, including but not limited to a county, city, village, town or school or other district shall have jurisdiction over any facilities of the authority or any of its activities or operations. In the operation, maintenance and control of any facilities devoted to purposes other than direct transportation purposes, the authority shall be subject to all local laws, resolutions, ordinances, rules and regulations of a municipality or political subdivision. Each municipality or political subdivision, including but not limited to a county, city, village, town or district in which any facilities of the authority are located shall provide for such facilities police, fire and health protection services of the same character and to the same extent as those provided for residents of such municipality or political subdivision. The authority may agree with the state department of transportation for the execution by such department of any grade crossing elimination project or any grade crossing separation reconstruction project along any railroad facility operated by the authority or by one of its subsidiary corporations or under contract, lease or other arrangement with the authority. Any such project shall be executed as provided in the grade crossing elimination act and the railroad law, respectively, and the costs of any such project shall be borne as provided in such laws, except that the authority's share of such costs shall be borne by the state. 8. The authority may accept unconditional grants of money or property as subsidy payments for expansion of service into areas where such service would not be self-supporting. The authority may accept unconditional grants of money or property from any city, village, town or county not wholly contained within a city the whole or any part ofwhich shall be served or to be served by a transportation facility operated by the authority. Such grants of money or property would be for the purpose of assisting the authority in meeting its capital or operating expenses. The acceptance of any such grant shall not operate to make the authority an agency of the municipality making the grant. The provisions of this section are intended as enabling legislation only and shall not be interpreted as implying that absent their enactment an authority would lack the power to accept such grant or subsidy. 9. Notwithstanding any of the above provisions, no project may be undertaken by the authority unless such project is a part of or consistent with the master plan.