A bill co-sponsored by state Assemblyman Ed Ra (R-Franklin Square) and state Assemblywoman Michele Titus (D-Queens) to direct the Port Authority to conduct a study on aircraft noise passed its first legislative hurdle on Tuesday, gaining the approval of the Assembly Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee.
Ra said the bill heads to the Ways and Means Committee before it can be considered by the state Assembly during the current legislative session.
The same measure was passed by the state Senate two weeks ago, with state senators Kemp Hannon (R-Garden City) and Jack Martins (R-Mineola) co-sponsoring the bill.
The bill would require the Port Authority to conduct a noise and land-use compatibility study according to federal regulations. The study would seek to determine acceptable levels of airport noise in relation to areas of different land use.
“In recent years, there has been a massive increase in air traffic over Long Island, which has caused a rise in noise pollution for our residents,” Ra said. “By having the Port Authority conduct a study on aircraft noise, we can elevate the discussion of this issue and ensure noise concerns are given proper weight when determining the use of certain runways and flight paths.”
The bill directs the Port Authority to “recommend operational and land use measures to improve the compatibility of air terminals with surrounding land use areas.” It also sets a deadline for the Port Authority to produce a report available to the public with details of its findings by June 1, 2014.
The bill also directs the Port Authority to conduct biennial public hearings on aircraft noise issues in Nassau County, Queens and Brooklyn in New York and in Union and Essex counties in New Jersey.
Members of the Town Village Aircraft Safety and Noise Abatement Committee, a committee representing Nassau County municipalities affected by noise from aircraft landing and taking off from JFK International Airport, have been lobbying both the Port Authority and the Federal Aviation Authority for relief from excessive aircraft noise affecting residential neighborhoods.
“Jet aircraft noise affects more than just the communities immediately surrounding our airports. It is also a nuisance to those directly under the flight paths, which are sometimes changed without warning or public input,” Martins said. “This bill protects our families impacted by airplane noise by requiring the Port Authority to conduct studies and hold public hearings and then take steps to fix the problem.”
Ra, who wrote the bill last year and introduced it with Martins and Hannon, said he thinks it will pass if it reaches the Assembly floor in the remaining two weeks of the current legislative session.
“If we can get it up to the floor for a vote, I think it will pass. I’m not really concerned,” he said.
The “biggest obstacle,” Ra said, is the Ways and Means Committee. He said the study would be supported with some federal funding, which he said could allay concerns about its cost.
“If we can clear that hurdle, hopefully we can do that with enough time to have it on the floor for a full vote,” Ra said.
He said the bill has the support from Queens Assembly representatives.
“The Queens delegation members, which are all majority members, are all on board with it,” he said.
Ra said Titus, Ra’s co-sponsor on the bill, had drafted her own bill with state Sen. Tony Avella, another Queens Democrat.
But when the bill co-sponsored by Martins and Hannon passed the state Senate, Ra said, “We got together behind the bill.”
