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S 10417 NY

Relates to restrictions on certain flight operations at municipal facilities; relates to the use of certain heliports

NY · session 2025-2026 · Senate · bill

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Introduced May 15, 2026

Latest action (May 15, 2026) REFERRED TO JUDICIARY

Summary

This New York bill prohibits municipal corporations from permitting helicopter air transportation used for sightseeing tours or photography and videography production activities over New York City on publicly owned land. The bill amends the Hudson River Park Act to restrict heliport use to "permitted transportation use," which includes heavy-lift operations, emergency response, public health and safety operations, and news-related flights. The bill prohibits any operator conducting prohibited flight operations from accessing heliports in Hudson River Park. Existing heliport uses under leases or permits in effect before the law's effective date may continue only according to the terms of those instruments. The law is effective 30 days after enactment.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Official abstract

Prohibits municipal corporations from permitting the use of publicly owned land for helicopter air transportation operated for the primary purpose of conducting sightseeing tours over New York city or conducting photography, videography, or similar production activities over New York city; relates to the use of certain heliports in the city of New York.

Sponsor (1)

Action history (1)

  1. May 15, 2026 REFERRED TO JUDICIARY · upper

Text versions (2)

The published texts of this bill as it moves through the legislature. Each links to the official document on the state legislature site. Data from OpenStates.

  • S10417 · HTML
  • S10417 · PDF

Full text

Full text imported from assembly.state.ny.us

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New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie

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Bill No.: Summary Actions Committee&nbspVotes Floor&nbspVotes Memo Text LFIN Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript S10417 Summary: BILL NO S10417 &nbsp SAME AS SAME AS A06311

&nbsp SPONSOR GONZALEZ &nbsp COSPNSR &nbsp MLTSPNSR &nbsp Add §98-c, Gen Muni L; amd §§3 & 7, Chap 592 of 1998 &nbsp Prohibits municipal corporations from permitting the use of publicly owned land for helicopter air transportation operated for the primary purpose of conducting sightseeing tours over New York city or conducting photography, videography, or similar production activities over New York city; relates to the use of certain heliports in the city of New York.

Go to top S10417 Text:

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

10417

IN SENATE

May 15, 2026 ___________

Introduced by Sen. GONZALEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary

AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to restrictions on certain flight operations at municipal facilities; and to amend chapter 592 of the laws of 1998, constituting the Hudson river park act, in relation to the use of certain heliports in the city of New York

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new 2 section 98-c to read as follows: 3 § 98-c. Restriction on certain flight operations at municipal facili- 4 ties. No municipal corporation shall permit the use of publicly owned 5 land for helicopter air transportation operated for the primary purpose 6 of conducting sightseeing tours over New York city or conducting photog- 7 raphy, videography, or similar production activities over New York city. 8 § 2. Paragraph (v) of subdivision (g) of section 3 of chapter 592 of 9 the laws of 1998, constituting the Hudson river park act, as amended by 10 chapter 211 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows: 11 (v) a non-tourism/non-recreation heliport for [ commercial and emergen- 12 cy ] permitted transportation use; 13 § 3. Subdivision (j) of section 3 of chapter 592 of the laws of 1998, 14 constituting the Hudson river park act, as amended by chapter 211 of the 15 laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows: 16 (j) "Prohibited use" means any of the following uses: 17 (i) residential; 18 (ii) manufacturing, except in furtherance of and incidental to park 19 uses, provided that small scale creation of artisan foods or other craft 20 products shall not be considered manufacturing; 21 (iii) warehousing; 22 (iv) hotel; 23 (v) incompatible governmental uses; 24 (vi) casino and riverboat gambling, and the docking of vessels to be 25 used substantially for gambling or for transportation to such a vessel;

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD03903-01-5

S. 10417 2

1 (vii) any facility for motorized aircraft, including a heliport except 2 a heliport which is defined as a park/commercial use , provided the use 3 of any heliport in the park by any operator, individual, business enti- 4 ty, organization or association, or any member, parent, subsidiary or 5 affiliate thereof, that conducts or arranges prohibited flight oper- 6 ations, whether or not originating from a heliport in the park, shall be 7 prohibited ; 8 (viii) commercial office, except office space that is incidental to a 9 permitted use, and further provided that such prohibition shall not 10 apply to piers 57 and 76; and 11 (ix) other uses determined by the trust to be incompatible with the 12 purposes of this act. 13 § 4. Section 3 of chapter 592 of the laws of 1998, constituting the 14 Hudson river park act, is amended by adding two new subdivisions (o) and 15 (p) to read as follows: 16 (o) "Permitted transportation use" means air transportation other than 17 prohibited flight operations: 18 (i) for purposes of heavy-lift operations in support of construction 19 and infrastructure maintenance; 20 (ii) for purposes of public health and safety, including law enforce- 21 ment, emergency response, disaster response, and the provision of 22 medical services; 23 (iii) for the benefit of the general public, including flights carried 24 out for research or official purposes by a news organization; or 25 (iv) operated in accordance with United States department of transpor- 26 tation and federal aviation administration rules and regulations and on 27 routes approved by the federal aviation administration. 28 (p) "Prohibited flight operations" means helicopter air transportation 29 operated for the primary purpose of conducting sightseeing tours over 30 New York city or conducting photography, videography or similar 31 production activities over New York city. 32 § 5. Paragraph (v) of subdivision (m) of section 3 of chapter 592 of 33 the laws of 1998, constituting the Hudson river park act, as amended by 34 chapter 211 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows: 35 (v) the development, operation and maintenance of a non-tourism/non- 36 recreational heliport for permitted transportation use located between 37 [ west ] West 29th and [ west ] West 32nd streets provided (A) that there 38 shall be no structures other than the helicopter take-off or landing 39 pads built on floating structures; and (B) such floating structures 40 shall be no higher than a pier deck at low tide; and 41 § 6. The opening paragraph of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (i) of 42 subdivision 9 of section 7 of chapter 592 of the laws of 1998, consti- 43 tuting the Hudson river park act, as amended by chapter 211 of the laws 44 of 2024, is amended to read as follows: 45 a one story heliport terminal building, fuel tank structure and five 46 accessory parking spaces used in connection with a water dependent non- 47 tourism/non-recreational heliport for permitted transportation use to be 48 located on a floating structure or fixed barge in the Hudson River 49 located between [ west ] West 29th and [ west ] West 32nd streets (referred 50 to in this paragraph as "the site") provided that the landing and take- 51 off area located east of the bulkhead may continue to operate until the 52 landing and takeoff area west of the bulkhead is completed and opera- 53 tional. If the trust initiates a request for proposals relating to a 54 heliport, the trust shall meet the following requirements: 55 § 7. Subdivision 13 of section 7 of chapter 592 of the laws of 1998, 56 constituting the Hudson river park act, is amended to read as follows:

S. 10417 3

1 13. At all times, the trust shall take all reasonable and necessary 2 steps to prevent and eliminate prohibited uses in the park, subject to 3 the exceptions contained in this act , including, without limitation, 4 prohibiting any operator, individual, business entity, organization or 5 association, or any member, parent, subsidiary or affiliate thereof, who 6 conducts or arranges prohibited flight operations, whether or not origi- 7 nating from a heliport in the park, from accessing any heliport in the 8 park . 9 § 8. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 10 have become a law; provided that uses permitted under any lease, permit, 11 license, or other instrument in effect upon the effective date of this 12 act that would be prohibited upon the enactment of this act may continue 13 only pursuant to the terms of the instrument and only for the term ther- 14 eof or pursuant to any extension according to the terms thereof if, but 15 only if, the option to extend is exercised solely by and is a contractu- 16 al right of the lessee, permittee, licensee or other contractual user.

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