N.Y. Nav. Law § 131
If the property so saved shall be perishable, so as to render the sale thereof expedient, the officer, in whose custody the same shall be, shall apply to the county court of the county, or the city court of the city, where such property may be, by a verified petition stating the facts, for an order authorizing such sale; if the court shall be satisfied that a sale of the property would be most beneficial to the parties interested, it shall make the order so applied for, and the officer having custody of the property shall sell the same at public auction, at the time and in the manner specified in the order, and the proceeds of such sale, deducting the expenses allowed by the courts, shall be paid to the treasurer of the county in which the property shall have been found.
N.Y. Nav. Law § 131