Proposed changes
New York is currently the only state that does not accept title insurance for government land purchases. The state attorney general’s office requires a perfect title for acquisitions and conservation easements, even if the land’s ownership history dates back centuries.
That requirement has slowed transactions and created costly legal hurdles for land trusts and municipalities. On Feb. 20, Hochul’s administration included title insurance provisions in its budget amendments.
The amendment states that “the attorney general may accept a title policy from any title company licensed by the state of New York that names the people of the State of New York as insured for the acquisition of real property.”
The policy change would allow title insurance in state conservation land purchases, easing restrictions that have complicated deals for more than a century.
Costly delays
The issue has been particularly costly for the small Adirondack Mountains town of North Hudson, New York, which has spent approximately $50,000 trying to resolve a title dispute at the Frontier Town Campground and Day Use Area.
The 120-year-old title issue has delayed work on a 300-acre conservation easement tied to the property, the Adirondack Explorer reported.
Environmental groups and land trusts told the local news outlet that these title requirements have also slowed their ability to transfer land to the state, affecting 100,000-plus acres valued at more than $150 million.
“We’re really happy to see that,” Julia Goren, interim executive director of the Adirondack Mountain Club (AMC), told the Adirondack Explorer about the proposed amendment.
Her organization has firsthand experience navigating the state’s title insurance policies.
In 2021, AMC secured a $500,000 Environmental Protection Fund grant to help purchase the Cascade Welcome Center in North Elba, New York. Years later, it has yet to receive the funds due to title review delays, according to the Adirondack Explorer.
Although the proposed title insurance amendment isn’t likely to apply retroactively to AMC’s case, advocates for the move hope it will prevent similar delays for other land trusts in the future.
Gaining momentum
The push to reform New York’s title insurance policy gained attention in January when Hochul’s State of the State agenda acknowledged the need to “streamline” land acquisitions, including the use of title insurance. But the provision was missing from the governor’s initial executive budget proposal later that month.
During a February budget hearing, lawmakers questioned Sean Mahar, interim commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), about the omission. He said the DEC was discussing the issue with the attorney general’s office and that the policy change could be included in budget bill amendments, the Adirondack Explorer reported.
New York’s final state budget is due April 1.
