Last month, in a last-ditch effort to find cheap public land for renewable developers to meet the goals of 2019’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), State Senator Rachel May of Syracuse passed a bill called S4408. It’s titled “Relates to agreements related to renewable energy development rights on reforestation areas.
The bill passed the Senate on February 26, 2026 by a vote of 42 to 15. It is now in the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee, with three co-sponsors.
If enacted, it would open more than 600,000 acres of New York State reforestation lands, which are public forests managed by the Department of Environmental Conservation across dozens of counties, to renewable energy developers.
These forests were acquired by the State of New York over decades, purchased with public money for timber production, watershed protection, wildlife habitat, and recreation. S4408 would allow the DEC to enter into energy agreements on these lands without approval from county or town governments.
During the Senate floor debate, sponsor Rachel May explained the bill’s purpose plainly: state reforestation lands are being targeted precisely because local communities have organized to keep energy infrastructure off their farmland and out of their viewsheds.
The map below shows every reforestation parcel in New York State that would be subject to S4408, color-coded by how your State Senator voted. Select your county from the list to see which forests are at stake and contact your representatives.
The bill is now in the NYS Assembly Standing Committee on Environmental Conservation, which is chaired by Deborah J. Glick.