NYS En-Zone Boundaries - Downloadable GIS Files
Downloadable files of mapped boundaries for New York State Environmental Zones (En-Zones) have been developed by the NYS Department of Labor (as required by TAX § 21(b)(6)), and made available by the DEC's Division of Environmental Remediation.
These files have been updated and the new 2022 files should be used for all applications starting January 1, 2023. These files can be used by NYS Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) applicants, environmental professionals and the public to identify and map designated En-Zones areas.
If at least 50 percent of the area of a BCP site is located in a designated En-Zone, it is eligible for additional BCP tax credits. In order to be designated as an En-Zone, the census tract must have a poverty rate of 20 percent and unemployment rate at least 1.25 times the statewide unemployment rate. A site can also qualify if it has a poverty rate at least double the rate for the county in which the tract is located.
En-Zone Boundary Files in Google Earth
The data set of EnZone boundaries can be viewed in Google Earth. To use Google Earth, users must first download the software from Google (see link in right column under Links Leaving DEC's Website). Then, simply click on enzone2022.kmz (KMZ) (10 MB) to open or save. Type A En-Zones are shown in green, Type B are shown in blue, and Type AB are shown in pink.
Opening a KMZ file in Google Earth Online:
- Download the KMZ file to your computer
- Go to Google Earth (link leaves DEC website)
- Click the Menu button at the top left and select Projects
- Click Open then Import KML file from computer
- Navigate to and open the KMZ file on your computer
En-Zone Boundary Files for ESRI ArcGIS
The data set of EnZone boundaries is also provided in shapefile, or ".SHP" format. This file must be opened and used with ESRI ArcGIS (see the "Links Leaving DEC" on the right for information on downloading a free ESRI ArcGIS mapping program.)
To open the file, save EnZones.zip (ZIP) (8.5 MB) to a directory on your computer's hard drive. This contains several files that will work together within the ESRI ArcGIS program to display the data. Unzip/extract enzone.zip and add the shapefile to your ArcGIS project.
Information About The En-Zone Boundaries Data Set
Summary
The NYS Department of Labor's State Data Center designates Environmental Zones ("En-Zones") in which BCP tax credits are enhanced. The most recent five-year American Community Survey (in this case the 2016-2020 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates) is used to designate tracts that meet the En-Zone requirements of either census tracts with a poverty rate of at least 20 percent and an unemployment rate of at least 125 percent of the New York State unemployment rate, or a poverty rate of at least double the rate for the county in which the tract is located.
Data Set Description
Data Field | Description |
---|---|
FIPS | Census Tract FIPS Code. |
County_FIP | County FIPS code for where the census tract falls in. |
Geography | Census tract name |
County | County name for where the census tract is located in. |
UnempRate | (Alias- Tract Unemployment Rate) Unemployment rate for the census tract.* |
NYS_UR | (Alias- NYS Unemployment Rate) 125% of the NYS unemployment rate. |
Pov_Rate | (Alias- Tract Poverty Rate) Poverty rate for the census tract.* |
CountyPR | (Alias- County Poverty Rate) The poverty rate for the county for where the census tract is located. |
CountyRate | The poverty rate for the county for where the census tract is located in. |
Criteria_A | Indicator for census tract having a "Poverty Rate of at least 20% and Unemployment Rate of at least 125% the Statewide Unemployment Rate." 'Y' indicates that the census tract meets this criteria. |
Criteria_B | Indicator for census tract having a "Poverty Rate of at least 2 times the Poverty Rate for the County." 'Y' indicates that the census tract meets this criteria. |
Both_AB | Indicator that the census tract meets both Criteria A and B. 'Y' indicates that the census tract meets this criteria. |
EnZone Type | Type of En-Zone for that census tract (A, B, AB, or None). |
*Note that if either the poverty rate or unemployment rate is reported as '-1', that is an indication that either no sample observations were available, or too few sample observations were available to compute an estimate.
Access and Use Limitations
- NYS DEC and NYS Department of Labor ask to be credited in derived products.
- Secondary Distribution of the data is not allowed.
- Any documentation provided is an integral part of the data set. Failure to use the documentation in conjunction with the digital data constitutes misuse of the data.
- Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, errors may be reflected in the data supplied. The user must be aware of data conditions and bear responsibility for the appropriate use of the information with respect to possible errors, original map scale, collection methodology, currency of data, and other conditions.
Datum
All locations are in the UTM, NAD 83, Zone 18N datum.
Contact
NYSDEC
Division of Environmental Remediation
625 Broadway, 11th Floor
Albany, NY 12233-7020
[email protected]
Division of Environmental Remediation
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233