New York Senate Bill S00854

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/8/25
• Refer: 1/8/25
• Refer: 1/7/26

Caption

Establishes the eleven member home flooding prevention and mitigation task force to study the impact of coastal and inland waterway flooding on residential homes.

Summary

This bill establishes the Home Flooding Prevention and Mitigation Task Force within the Department of State. The task force would have 11 members, including state officials, legislative appointees, and representatives from the homebuilding and flood insurance industries. Its members would serve without compensation, meet at least six times, may hold public hearings, and may consult with outside experts and organizations as needed. The task force’s charge is to study the effects of coastal and inland waterway flooding on residential homes in New York. Its review would include annual damage costs, the number of homes affected, the number of homes in FEMA-designated flood plains, the effect of flooding on insurance rates, needed changes to construction materials and building codes, land-use practices that contribute to flooding, and mitigation techniques for municipalities. The task force must be appointed within 60 days of the act’s effective date and submit a report with findings and recommendations by December 31, 2026. The act would take effect immediately and expire on January 1, 2027.

Impact

The bill does not directly change substantive flood, insurance, zoning, or building code law. Instead, it creates a temporary advisory body within state government to gather data, evaluate policy options, and recommend future legislative or administrative actions related to residential flooding. Its practical impact would be to inform potential changes affecting state agencies, municipalities, homebuilders, insurers, and homeowners in flood-prone areas, especially where coastal and inland flooding intersects with land use, construction standards, and insurance costs.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and available context, the measure appears to be framed as a study-and-recommendation bill rather than a regulatory mandate, which generally tends to draw neutral to favorable reception because it is exploratory and time-limited. There is no recorded committee transcript or vote history provided, so there is no evidence of formal opposition or support in the available materials. The inclusion of state officials, legislative leaders, and industry representatives suggests an effort to build a broad, collaborative consensus around the issue.

Contention

The main potential points of contention are likely to be the scope of the study and the composition of the task force. Including representatives from the homebuilders and flood insurance industries could raise concerns from some stakeholders about industry influence, while others may view those appointments as necessary for practical expertise. Another possible area of debate is whether a temporary task force is sufficient to address urgent flooding problems, or whether the state should instead enact immediate policy changes to building codes, land use, insurance regulation, or municipal mitigation requirements.