Hancock, New York

TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON BUILDING, ASSEMBLY AND INSTALLATION OF COMMERCIALLY – OPERATED WIND ENERGY FACILITIES

Be it enacted by the Town Board of the Town of Hancock as follows:

Section 1. PURPOSE. It is the purpose of this law:

1) To fulfill the Town’s constitutional, statutory and legal obligations to protect the public health, welfare and safety of the citizens of the Town of Hancock, and

2) To protect the value use and enjoyment of property in the Town, and

3) To allow the Town Board sufficient time to thoroughly study the issues involved in siting commercially – operated wind energy facilities, and

4) To develop appropriate regulations to protect the health, welfare and safety of the citizens of Hancock.

Section 2. AUTHORITY. The Town Board of the Town of Hancock enacts this Local Law under the authority granted by:

A. Article IX of the New York State Constitutions, 2 (c) (6) and (10).

B. New York Statue of Local Governments, 10 (1) and (7).

C. New York Municipal Home Rule Law 10 (1) (i) and (ii) and 10 (a) (6), (11), (12) and (14).

D. New York Town Law 130 (1) (Building Code), (3) (Electrical Code), (Fire Prevention), (7) (Use of Streets and Highways), (7-a) (Location of Driveways), (11) (Peace, good order and safety ), (15) (Promotion of public welfare), (15-a) (Excavated Lands), (16) (Unsafe buildings), (19) (Trespass), and (25) (Building lines).

E. New York Town Law 64 (17-a) (Protection of aesthetic interests), (23) (General Powers).

Section 3. IMPOSTION OF MORATORIUM AND DURATION.

A. For a period of twelve (12) months from the filing of the local law, no new commercially-operated wind energy facilities (as defined below) may be built or installed within the Town of Hancock. This moratorium does not apply to the siting and placement of wind measurement (meteorological) towers. This moratorium also does not apply to the siting and placement of small wind energy systems designed for home and far use on the same parcel and that are primarily used to reduce consumption of utility power at that location.

B. A wind energy facility is defined as all the equipment needed to convert the kinetic energy in the wind into usable form, including all related infrastructure, turbines, nacelles, electrical lines and substations, access roads and accessory structures. This definition does not include infrastructure related to the siteing and placement of wind measurement (meteorological) towers. This definition also does not include infrastructure related to the siting and placement of small wind energy systems.

Section 4. ENFORCEMENT.

A. In the event of a violation or attempted violation of this local law, the Town may seek a court order preventing such violation or an order requiring removal and/or disassembly of any wind energy facility in violation of this local law.

B. In the event the Town is successful in its proceedings against an offender, then the Town shall be entitled to recover from such offender the costs of the enforcement proceeding including attorney’s fees, costs and disbursements.

Section 5. VALIDITY.

If any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this law is held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, then said holding shall in no way affect the validity of the remaining portions of this law.

Section 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

This law shall take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State and terminate twelve (12) months from the date of filing.

I further certify that the local law annexed hereto, designated as local law No. 1 of 2006 of the Town of Hancock was duly passed by the Town Board on April 4, 2006, in accordance with the applicable provisions of law.

I further certify that I have compared the preceding local law with the original on file in this office and that the same is a correct transcript there from and of the whole of such original local law, and was finally adopted in the manner indicated in paragraph 1, above.

Melody R Oliver Dated: April 5, 2006
Town Clerk

State of New York
County of Delaware

I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the foregoing local law contains the correct text and that all proper proceedings have been had or taken for the enactment of the local law annexed hereto.

Leonard E Sienko Jr.
Town Attorney
Town of Hancock Dated: April 5, 2006

Filed with the Department of State on April 10, 2006