Bill Text: NY A00047 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Requires utility companies maintain a toll free number for consumers to call to report service outages which shall be made available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-5)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-03-25 - amend by restoring to original print 47 [A00047 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A00047-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          47--B

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 4, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of A. SAYEGH, DICKENS, SEAWRIGHT, DeSTEFANO, THIELE,
          SANTABARBARA, TAGUE, DURSO, SHIMSKY, GLICK, OTIS -- Multi-Sponsored by
          -- M. of A.  MILLER -- read once and  referred  to  the  Committee  on
          Corporations,  Authorities  and  Commissions  -- committee discharged,
          bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended  and  recommitted  to  said
          committee  -- reported and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
          -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered  reprinted  as  amended
          and recommitted to said committee

        AN  ACT  to amend the public service law, the public authorities law and
          the general business law, in relation to requiring  utility  companies
          maintain a toll free number for reporting service outages

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The public service law is amended by adding a  new  section
     2  119-d to read as follows:
     3    §  119-d.  Toll  free  number for service outages.   1. Any gas corpo-
     4  ration, electric corporation, gas and electric corporation, water corpo-
     5  ration, steam corporation or a municipality rendering equivalent utility
     6  services is required to establish, provide  and  maintain  a  toll  free
     7  phone number for consumers of such utility to call for reporting service
     8  outages. Such toll free number shall:
     9    a. be attended twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week;
    10    b.  have  the  capacity  to  adequately  address a surge in phone call
    11  volume during an emergency situation or extreme weather conditions;
    12    c. be posted clearly and conspicuously on the homepage of the  utility
    13  company's website; and
    14    d.  be  posted  clearly  and  conspicuously  on the first page of each
    15  consumer's billing statement.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01694-03-3
        A. 47--B                            2

     1    2. Any municipality shall have the opportunity to petition the commis-
     2  sion for an exemption from the requirements  of  this  section  if  such
     3  municipality can show that such requirements are unduly burdensome.
     4    § 2. Title 1-A of article 5 of the public authorities law, as added by
     5  chapter  517  of  the  laws  of 1986, is amended by adding a new section
     6  1020-nn to read as follows:
     7    § 1020-nn. Toll free number for service outages. The service  provider
     8  shall  be  required to establish, provide and maintain a toll free phone
     9  number for consumers of service provided by the service provider to call
    10  for reporting service outages. Such toll free number shall:
    11    (a) be attended twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week;
    12    (b) have the capacity to adequately address  a  surge  in  phone  call
    13  volume during an emergency situation or extreme weather conditions;
    14    (c) be posted clearly and conspicuously on the homepage of the author-
    15  ity's website; and
    16    (d)  be  posted  clearly  and  conspicuously on the first page of each
    17  consumer's billing statement.
    18    § 3.  The general business law is amended  by  adding  a  new  section
    19  399-yyyy to read as follows:
    20    § 399-yyyy. Toll free number for cable television and internet service
    21  outages.  Any  cable  television  or internet service provider rendering
    22  equivalent utility services is required to establish, provide and  main-
    23  tain  a toll free phone number for consumers of such utility to call for
    24  reporting service outages. Such toll free number shall:
    25    (a) be attended twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week;
    26    (b) have the capacity to adequately address  a  surge  in  phone  call
    27  volume during an emergency situation or extreme weather conditions;
    28    (c)  be  posted clearly and conspicuously on the homepage of the cable
    29  television or internet service provider's website; and
    30    (d) be posted clearly and conspicuously on  the  first  page  of  each
    31  consumer's billing statement.
    32    §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
    33  have become a law.