This piece by PROTECT’s Conservation Director and Counsel, Christopher Amato first appeared in the Adirondack Almanack

 

According to news reports and polling, Americans’ faith in our governmental institutions, particularly administrative agencies, is at an all-time low.  You don’t have to subscribe to conspiracy theories about the so-called “deep state”—a supposed cabal of government agency employees bent on implementing a secret agenda—to feel that federal and state agencies are unnecessarily secretive and bureaucratic, out of touch with the average person, and unresponsive to the public that pays their salaries and to whom they owe a duty to serve.

Given this apparently prevailing public sentiment, one would hope that New York State agencies would be making an extra effort to restore faith in government by reaching out to the public and demonstrating that they are listening and responsive. To her credit, one of the first things that Governor Kathy Hochul promised after taking office was that state agencies would be more open and transparent under her administration. To that end, the Governor required each agency to prepare and make public a “transparency plan” intended to identify the ways in which each agency would improve its openness and accountability to the public.

Unfortunately, the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) doesn’t seem to have received the message.  In the experience of Protect the Adirondacks (PROTECT), the APA consistently fails to respond to public inquiries, letters and comments, and seems determined to conceal its regulatory activities and decision-making from public scrutiny. For example:

• In the last two years, PROTECT sent three letters inquiring whether the APA, when reviewing major development projects, is requiring applicants to submit the greenhouse gas emissions analysis required by the Climate Leadership and Community Protect Act (CLCPA) and whether Agency staff is conducting such an analysis. APA has failed to respond to any of the three letters, and there is no indication that APA is complying with the CLCPA.

• In September 2024, PROTECT and eight other environmental advocacy organizations sent a group letter to the APA noting that amendments to the Freshwater Wetlands Act would be taking effect on January 1, 2025 and urging the APA to amend its wetland regulations to reflect the significant jurisdictional and other changes in the amendments. The letter also pointed out that the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) had already undertaken significant public outreach about needed updates to DEC’s wetland regulations and had proposed regulatory changes to incorporate the FWA amendments. APA, which is responsible for administering and enforcing the FWA in the Adirondack Park, has failed to respond to the letter and to date has not proposed any updates to its wetland regulations to implement the amendments that are now in effect.

• In 2022, the APA received more than three thousand public comments opposing the opening of a new mining operation in the White Lake residential community. Even though APA’s regulations require the Agency to consider “the degree of public interest in the project” when considering whether to hold a public hearing on a permit application, the APA ignored the significant outpouring of public opposition and issued the mine permit without a hearing.

• In 2023, the APA proposed to eliminate the public comment period at the beginning of its monthly public meeting and shorten the time within which public comments would be considered by the Agency. The APA withdrew the proposal only after receiving hundreds of letters in opposition and several scathing newspaper editorials lambasting the proposed changes.

• In 2024, PROTECT sent a letter to the APA reporting an ongoing unlawful wetland fill in the Town of Minerva and enclosing photographic evidence of the filling activity. PROTECT requested that the APA take immediate action to stop the unlawful filling activity. The APA never responded to the letter and has apparently taken no action regarding the illegal wetland fill.

• In 2024, PROTECT sent two letters to the APA (March 2024 and August 2024) setting forth evidence collected by DEC that WhistlePig Whiskey in the Town of Moriah has been violating the terms of its APA permit by allowing off-site emissions causing the creation of “whiskey fungus” on nearby homes, structures and personal property. The APA never responded to either letter and has apparently taken no action concerning the violations.

• The APA has refused to release a feasibility study it commissioned with taxpayer dollars concerning the proposed relocation of its headquarters (to be paid for by taxpayers) to Saranac Lake, a move that is concerning to many members of the public.

• The APA recently released proposed amendments to the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan that would open Forest Preserve lands classified as Wilderness, Primitive and Canoe to use of motor vehicles, including cars, trucks and ATVs, by persons with disabilities. The proposed amendments are significant and far-reaching in scope, mark a significant departure from the longstanding prohibition of public motor vehicle use in these areas, and are inconsistent with the exemption from motorized access requirements for federal wilderness areas in the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). Yet, despite the dramatic and highly controversial nature of these changes, the APA made no effort to consult with Adirondack environmental groups—or, apparently, anyone from the public—prior to proposing the amendments. The APA has also been dismissive of concerns raised by advocacy groups that the proposed amendments are inconsistent with the ADA and violate the Forever Wild clause of the New York State Constitution and the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan.

 

These are just a few examples of the APA’s reluctance to engage with the public it is supposed to be serving.  Despite being a public agency, the APA appears to believe it has no obligation to respond or listen to the public on numerous issues of profound importance.

The APA’s “Government Transparency Initiative Plan,” prepared pursuant to Governor Hochul’s directive was adopted in October 2021 and updated in 2024. The APA’s plan focuses on improving digital access to Agency materials, providing more timely responses to Freedom of Information Law requests, and encouraging greater participation by APA staff in community events and town meetings. While these goals are laudable, what is missing from the Agency’s plan are simple, common sense ways to increase the APA’s transparency and responsiveness, such as commitments to provide timely responses to inquiries and letters from the public; to give serious consideration to, and discuss, during the monthly APA Board meetings public comments the Agency receives on pending applications and on APA proposed actions; and to engage with stakeholders prior to announcing drastic policy changes such as those in the APA’s proposed amendments to the State Land Master Plan. The APA could vastly improve its relations with the public by amending its transparency plan to include these three simple steps—and by honoring those commitments to engage with the public in a more meaningful and productive way.