Towns of Porter and Lewiston, Niagara County, NY
Statutory language: ECL 27-1105(3)(b) If, or when, the hazardous waste facility application is complete, the department shall, concurrent with notification to the applicant, send the application and written notice to the office of the governor requesting that a facility siting board be constituted consistent with this subdivision.
On or before fifteen calendar days after the receipt of such notification the governor shall constitute a facility siting board to be composed of the commissioners of transportation, environmental conservation, health, and commerce, the secretary of state and three ad hoc members appointed by the governor, two of whom must be residents of the county in which the facility is primarily proposed to be located.
The three ad hoc members shall be employees of the state for the purposes of section seventeen of the public officer's law.
Five of the eight persons on the board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any business of the board, and the decision of five members of the board shall constitute action of the board. In addition to the requirements of the public officers' law, no person shall be eligible to be an appointee of the governor to the board who holds another state or local office. The governor shall appoint the chairman of the board and the commissioner of environmental conservation shall make staff available to support the board in carrying out its responsibilities.
Public Contact
Administrative Law Judge Michael S. Caruso
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233
518-402-9003
[email protected]
Purpose
The members of the board will render a final decision based upon the record established through an adjudicatory proceeding on the application to site a new proposed hazardous waste landfill located in the Towns of Porter and Lewiston, Niagara County, NY. The board may attend all hearings, examine witnesses, issue rulings on motions for permission to appeal to the board, issue interim decisions on appeals and issue a final decision denying or granting the application upon such terms, conditions, limitations, or modifications thereof as the board may deem appropriate.
Board Membership
| Name | Organization | Designee | County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar, Chair | NYS Department of Environmental Conservation | Timothy Walsh, Chair-Designee | Monroe |
| Commissioner Hope Knight | NYS Department of Economic Development | Lynn Marinelli | Monroe |
| Acting Commissioner James V. McDonald | NYS Department of Health | Sara A. Koch, M.D., M.P.H | Erie |
| Secretary of State Robert J. Rodriguez | NYS Department of State | Matthew Maraglio | Greene |
| Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez | NYS Department of Transportation | Frank Cirillo | Erie |
| John F. Benoit | Ad hoc Member | Niagara | |
| Lee Simonson | Ad hoc Member | Niagara | |
| A. Scott Weber, Ph.D | Ad hoc Member | Erie | |
| Daniel P. O'Connell | Hearing Officer/Administrative Law Judge | ||
| Michael Caruso | Facility Siting Board Counsel |
A list of all Board members and commissioners from 2014 to May 2023 is below. After a final decision in CWM, the Board will dissolve.
| Agency | Agency Head | Agency Head Successor | Designee/Appointee | Designee Successor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NYSDEC | Martens (2011-2015) | Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar (2024-Present) Seggos (2015-2024) | Paul D'Amato (2014-2020) | Tim Walsh (2021-Present) |
| NYSDOH | Shah (2011-2014) | Zucker (2014-2021) Bassett (2021-2022) McDonald (2022-Present) | Matt Forcucci (2014-2017) | Sara Koch (2017-Present) |
| NYSDOT | Driscoll (2014-2019) | Dominguez (2019-Present) | Darrell Kaminski(2014-2016) | Frank Cirillo (2016-Present) |
| NYSDOS | Perales (2011-2016) | Rosado (2016-2021) Rodriguez (2021-Present) | Deidre Scozzafava (2014-2016) | Chris Bauer (2016-2022) Matt Maraglio (2022-Present) |
| ESD | Zemsky (2014-2019) | Gertler (2019-2022) Knight (2022-Present) | Lynn Marinelli (2014-Present) | |
| Governor | Lee Simonson (2014-Present) | |||
| Governor | Scott Weber (2014-Present) | |||
| Governor | John Benoit (2014-Present) |
Vacancies, Expired Terms, Terms Expiring Within One Year
Not Applicable
Process for Filling Vacancies
Not applicable
Member Compensation
ECL 27-1105(d) The three ad hoc board members are entitled to a per diem of $200 per day plus actual and necessary expenses incurred (e.g. - mileage, copying). One of the ad hoc board members waived payment of the per diem throughout the proceeding.
- 2022-2023 - $2,600
- 2023-2024 - unknown
- 2024-2025 - unknown
Meeting Minutes and Agendas
The board is a quasi-judicial deliberative body that will make a final determination in an adjudicatory proceeding. As such, the board's meetings are not subject to open meetings law (see Public Officers Law § 108) and are protected by attorney-client privilege. An organizational business meeting of the board was held on public notice at the Youngstown Free Library, 240 Lockport Street, Youngstown, NY on July 2, 2014. All other meetings (past, present and future) of the board are quasi-judicial deliberative discussions to determine appeals, motions, etc. and are not subject to the Open Meetings Law. As such, any notes, minutes, and agendas as well as time and place of meetings are protected from disclosure by attorney-client privilege, attorney work product or deliberative process privilege.
The Board's rulings and interim decisions to date are on the DEC website under CWM. Each decision or ruling reflects the Board membership and commissioners as they have changed over time.
