Pine Barrens Credit Program Overview:

• Fact sheet (1 page): pdf
• Detailed overview (24 pages, presentation format): pdf
• "PBCs 1-2-3:  How to Obtain Pine Barrens Credits for Your Project" (1 page, double sided flyer):  pdf
• Unofficial list of NY Environmental Conservation Law references to development rights and values, transfers and easements: pdf.
• Central Pine Barrens Plan section regarding the PBC Program: Chapter 6 of the Pine Barrens Plan Volume 1
• PBC Program Handbook, a question and answer guide to the PBC Program (39 pages): pdf
• Credit Program Summary as of 1/1/13 (1 page statistical chart): text, pdf
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/09 to 1/1/10 (1 page): pdf.
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/08 to 1/1/09 (1 page): pdf.
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/07 to 1/1/08 (1 page): pdf.
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/06 to 1/1/07 (1 page): pdf.
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/05 to 1/1/06 (1 page): pdf.
• Changes in the PBC Program Summary from 1/1/04 to 1/1/05 (1 page): pdf.
• Pine Barrens Credit Sales Summary Chart from 1996 through 2012: pdf.
• The Credit Program is not a land acquisition program!
• For land acquisition inquiries, see "Contacts for Potential Sellers of Core Preservation Area Property": text, pdf

• Application for an original Letter of Interpretation: pdf
• Application for renewal of a Letter of Interpretation: pdf
• Appeals summary statistics as of 1/1/13: pdf  (1 page; no individual appeal information)
• Appeals listing in detail as of 2/21/13: pdf  (3 page spreadsheet of all individual appeals; formatted for, and best printed on, 11x17 paper!!)
• Appeals written decisions as of 3/19/10: text  (contains links to copies of individual decisions)
• A list of current LOI holders is contained in the current Pine Barrens Credit Registry.
• There have been three litigation matters resolved regarding Credit allocations and appeals:
• 1998 through 1999: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcels in Manorville and Middle Island
• See 5/26/99 NYS Supreme Court decision in Toussie v. Commission
• 2007 through 2009: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcel in Westhampton.
• See 1/16/08 NYS Supreme Court decision in Tuccio v. Commission
• See 11/4/09 Second Judicial Department Appellate Division decision in Tuccio v. Commission
  
• 2008 through 2009: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcels in Manorville.
• See 4/8/09 NYS Supreme Court decision in Ringhoff v. Commission

Pine Barrens Credits are issued for a parcel simultaneous with the placement of a conservation easement on the property.

• Applications for Certificates:
• Application for a Pine Barrens Credit Certificate: pdf
• Standard conservation easement used in the PBC Program (last revised 5/21/08): pdf (Sample only - DO NOT USE! Applicants will receive an actual easement from the Commission at the appropriate point in their Credit application.)
• Commission policy on property titles and title insurance (last revised 7/20/2011): pdf
• Standing Clearinghouse offer to purchase Credits:  text, pdf
  
• Past Certificates (detailed reports):
• Certificates issued as of 2/21/13: pdf
• Certificates conveyed (including Credit sales and "per Credit" values) as of 2/21/13:
• Listed by Certificate Number:  pdf
• Listed by Conveyance Date:  pdf
• "What are the current or past sales of Pine Barrens Credits ?"
• The Clearinghouse tracks Credit "conveyances", which include actual sales, conveyances or transfers with no dollar value, exchanges and replacements of Certificates, and all transactions where one Certificate is "retired" and a new numbered Certificate(s) is issued.
• The "Credit certificates conveyed" reports (immediately above) show the "per Credit price" for each conveyance.
• To see the change in Credit sale prices through time, including all recent sales, select the "Credit Certificates Conveyed Listed by Conveyance Date" report and examine the changes in the "Per PBC" price column for each Town.  The most recent sales prices are shown at the end of each Town's portion of the report.
• For an overview, see Pine Barrens Credit Sales Summary Chart from 1996 through 2012: pdf.
• Redemptions of Credits and their Certificates:
• Credit certificates redeemed as of 2/21/13:  pdf
• Intermunicipal credit redemptions as of 1/1/13: pdf (excerpted from the overall "Credit certificates redeemed" report for ease of reference)
• Clearinghouse Board's 4/20/05 resolution on Intermunicipal Redemptions: pdf
• Parcels and easements:
• Parcels protected by Credit program easements as of 2/21/13:  pdf
• Standard conservation easement used in the PBC Program (last revised 5/21/08): pdf (Sample only - DO NOT USE! Applicants will receive an actual easement from the Commission at the appropriate point in their Credit application.)
• Note that easements are sometimes customized to a specific parcel. The sample "standard" easement is provided here for illustration only.
• Commission interpretations of Credit Program easements as of 3/23/06: decisions

• Pine Barrens Credit Clearinghouse Board of Advisors members: text
• Meeting Schedule
• Meeting Minutes
• One of the Clearinghouse's responsibilities is the management and utilization of the funds for purchasing Credits.
• The initial source of these funds was an $5 million interest free loan from 1995 to 2005 from the NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation's Natural Resource Damages Program (see link below under "Other Agencies").  The Clearinghouse now maintains a permanent standing fund for the program.
• These funds are invested with the Suffolk County Treasurer's Office.
• Commission 10/25/95 resolution on the investment of funds with the Suffolk County Treasurer and adoption of investment guidelines: minutes.
• Commission 11/21/95 resolution authorizing deposit of funds with Suffolk County Treasurer: pdf
  
• These funds are used to purchase Credits from private owners, and are replenished when purchased Credits are resold.
• See the latest report on the Clearinghouse funds: pdf.

• Current 2013 Monthly Registry (Potential Sellers and Purchasers of Credits, plus Letters of Interpretation currently in effect ): pdf
• To be notified by e-mail when the latest PBC Registry has been posted here, e-mail your request to the Clearinghouse staff here.

• Redemptions of Credits and their Certificates:
• Credit certificates redeemed as of 2/21/13:  pdf
• Intermunicipal credit redemptions as of 1/1/13: pdf (excerpted from the overall "Credit certificates redeemed" report for ease of reference)
• Clearinghouse Board's 4/20/05 resolution on Intermunicipal Redemptions: pdf
• Development projects which utilize Credits are still subject to other agencies' reviews.  See this link for the Central Pine Barrens Development Projects Main Page, which has a set of links to some of these agencies' web sites.
• The Pine Barrens Credit Program is based partly upon the Suffolk County Department of Health Services (SCDHS) Sanitary Code, particularly Article 6 and its implementing standards. See the links in the following section for further information about the SCDHS.

• The NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation's Natural Resource Damages Unit provided initial funding for the Clearinghouse's work.
• Clearinghouse funds are managed by the Suffolk County Treasurer's Office, with policy and instructions from the Clearinghouse.
• Questions about the Suffolk County property tax system are generally referred to the Suffolk County Treasurer's Office.
• The Treasurer's web site contains a "Suffolk County Taxpayer Information" brochure in pdf format, which contains an overview of the system as well as contact information for both the County and the Towns.
• The Pine Barrens Credit Program is based partly upon the Suffolk County Department of Health Services (SCDHS) Sanitary Code, particularly Article 6 and its implementing standards. See these links for further information about the SCDHS and its work:
• Dept. of Health Services (DHS)  (Hauppauge)
• DHS - Division of Environmental Quality
• DHS - Division of Environmental Quality - Sanitary Code Article 6
• DHS - Division of Environmental Quality - Sanitary Code Article 6 - Transfer of Development Rights Standards
• DHS - Division of Environmental Quality - Standards for Approval of Plans and Construction for Sewage Disposal Systems for Other Than Single-Family Residences
• The Town of Southampton Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) Clearinghouse & Bank is separate from the PBC Program!
• See the Southampton Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) Clearinghouse & Bank web site.

• 2008 through 2009: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcels in Manorville.
• See 4/8/09 NYS Supreme Court decision in Ringhoff v. Commission
• 2008: Nassau County Boy Scouts' 403 acre Camp Wauwepex is protected through the Pine Barrens Credit Program
• See 1/27/09 Commission press release
• 2007 through 2008: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcel in Westhampton.
• See 1/16/08 NYS Supreme Court decision in Tuccio v. Commission
• 2005: Protection of 300 acres in dwarf pine barrens includes Pine Barrens Credits as one component, and achievement of 1,000 acre mark overall.
• See Governor's 4/22/05 Earth Day Press Release re the 309 acre WJF Realty parcel acquisition in the Southampton Town Westhampton core area, 100 acres of which have a permanent PBC conservation easement on them held by the Commission.
• These 100 acres have since been selected to host the Dwarf Pine Plains Interpretive Trail through the Protected Lands Council, and the Commission has reviewed and approved the trail route to be in conformance with the easement.
• See the 12/21/05 Commission minutes excerpt and resolution for that approval, which includes an aerial view.
• See the Protected Lands Council Field Projects page for details on the trail project.
• 2003: Credit Purchase Offer by a private party for Southampton Town's Westhampton Beach and Remsenburg School District Properties
• A mailing dated January 22, 2003 was made to private landowners in these two school districts for the purchase of up to 40 Pine Barrens Credits at $30,000 per Credit.  The mailing consisted of a cover letter and a transmittal form for responding.  Recipients had until February 28, 2003 to respond.
• Cover letter: text, pdf
• Transmittal form:  text, pdf
• 2001: Offer by Clearinghouse to purchase Brookhaven Pine Barrens Credits. This was a two phase initiative:
• Phase 1: Current holders of Credits (i.e., those with actual Credit Certificates) and Letter of Interpretation (LOI) holders. Phase 1 ended on 7/30/01.  There were two forms involved in the Phase 1 offer:
• A July 13, 2001 cover letter detailing the new offer:  text, pdf
• A Transmittal Form for responses to this offer:  text, pdf.
• Phase 2: Other owners of Brookhaven Town core area properties. Phase 2 ended on 9/6/01.  There were two forms involved in the Phase 2 offer:
• An August 14, 2001 cover letter detailing the new offer:  text, pdf
• A Letter of Interpretation application form for responding to this: text, pdf.
• 2000: American Planning Association's (APA) National Audio Conference on "Transfers of Development Rights"
• This conference included the Pine Barrens Credit Program.
• 2000: The Commission and the Clearinghouse Honored the Public Service of Mr. Jack Hanley (deceased) as a Clearinghouse Board Member
• See the March 29, 2000 Press Release: pdf
• 1999: Credit Sale Auction by Clearinghouse:
• Press Release: text, pdf
• Detailed Results: text, pdf
• 1998 through 1999: Litigation over Credit allocation to parcels in Manorville and Middle Island
• See 5/26/99 NYS Supreme Court decision in Toussie v. Commission
• 1998: In May, the Regional Plan Association (New York, NY) and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (Cambridge, MA) jointly sponsored a conference entitled "Transfer of Development Rights for Balanced Development".
• This conference included the Pine Barrens Credit Program. See the conference summary at this link (pdf; 52 pages).
• 1997: First Purchase of Credits by Clearinghouse, first parcels protected in Riverhead and Southampton, and achievement of 100 acres protected by the program:
• See County Executive's 1/13/97 Press Release re the Olin Warner Credit Purchase for 47.9 Acres in the Riverhead Core area.
• This was also the first Riverhead parcel to be protected, and the Certificate was issued on 1/8/97.
• On 10/08/97, a ceremony commemorating the protection of the 100th acre by the PBC Program was held. Presentations included a plaque to Jagel Family Associates. See Commission minutes.
• The first Southampton parcel to be protected was owned by Morris Abramson, and the Certificate was issued on 11/26/96.
• 1996: Completion of Econonmic Study of Development Rights Values.
• Under contract with the Commission, Dr. James Nicholas conducted an economic study of the value of development within the three pine barrens towns: pdf.
• 1996: First parcel protected by the PBC Program.
• This first parcel was in Brookhaven Town, owned by Nicholas Aliano, and the Certificate was issued on 5/15/96.
• 1995: Clearinghouse receives Northville Industries Restoration and Replacement Settlement funds from NYS DEC.
• See the Commission's 08/9/95 resolution authorizing the signing of the contract: pdf.
• 1995: The Suffolk County Health Department undertook changes to the County Health Code relating to TDR in the Pine Barrens.
• 03/15/95, the Commission endorsed the proposed SC Health Code Article 6 changes relating to development rights transfers within the Central Pine Barrens.
• See the Commission resolution here: pdf.

• E-mail the Clearinghouse staff here.