Bill Text: NY A01331 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires certain watercraft, aircrafts, and trains to use clean energy, including ensuring such vehicles are zero-emissions; requires NYSERDA to study zero-emission commercial vehicles, the use of renewable energy in publicly funded airports, and the use of sustainable aviation fuel; requires NYSERDA to administer a grant program to flying schools and clubs that install charging infrastructure.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-09 - referred to environmental conservation [A01331 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A01331-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1331

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     January 9, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. SIMON, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, EPSTEIN, TAYLOR, COLTON,
          DAVILA, BURDICK, KELLES, LEVENBERG -- read once and  referred  to  the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation

        AN  ACT to amend the energy law, the environmental conservation law, the
          public authorities law, and the general municipal law, in relation  to
          requiring  certain  watercraft,  aircraft, and trains to be zero-emis-
          sions; and to amend the public authorities law, in relation to requir-
          ing NYSERDA to conduct certain studies and requiring certain  monetary
          incentives for clean energy vehicles

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

     1    Section 1. The energy law is amended by adding a new  section  5-108-b
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  5-108-b.  Purchase of zero-emission ferries. The commissioner shall
     4  promulgate rules and regulations which shall require  that  all  ferries
     5  purchased by or for the state or any agency or public authority thereof,
     6  or any private nonprofit organization in any fiscal year which commences
     7  on  or  after  April  first, two thousand thirty-two, produce zero-emis-
     8  sions.  Privately licensed ferries that receive funding from  the  state
     9  or any agency or public authority thereof, where such funds are provided
    10  to  subsidize  a  particular  route,  shall,  in  any  fiscal year which
    11  commences on or after April first,  two  thousand  thirty-two,  purchase
    12  zero-emission ferries to service that particular route.
    13    §  2.  The  environmental  conservation law is amended by adding a new
    14  section 19-0306-c to read as follows:
    15  § 19-0306-c. Public vessel emissions regulations.
    16    1. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations which shall
    17  require that all public vessels operating in the navigable waters of the
    18  state shall produce zero or near zero-emissions by two  thousand  forty-
    19  two.  Public vessels may only utilize fossil fuel-based engines as range
    20  extenders.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02781-01-5
        A. 1331                             2

     1    2. The provisions of this section shall not apply to commercial  fish-
     2  ing  boats,  ocean-going  ships  or  public  vessels  transporting goods
     3  through the Great Lakes.
     4    3.  For  purposes  of this section, the following terms shall have the
     5  following meanings:
     6    (a) "public vessel" shall have the same meaning as in paragraph (a) of
     7  subdivision six of section two of the navigation law;
     8    (b) "navigable waters of the state" shall have the same meaning as  in
     9  subdivision four of section two of the navigation law;
    10    (c)  "fossil fuel" shall mean coal, petroleum products and fuel gases;
    11  and
    12    (d) "range extender" shall mean a fuel-based auxiliary power unit that
    13  extends the range of an electric vessel by providing power to  an  elec-
    14  tric generator that charges the vessel's battery.
    15    §  3.  The  public  authorities law is amended by adding a new section
    16  1885 to read as follows:
    17    § 1885. Study on zero-emission commercial vessels.  1.  The  New  York
    18  state energy research and development authority is hereby authorized and
    19  directed to conduct a comprehensive study to analyze the need for charg-
    20  ing  stations along the Hudson river and the New York state canal system
    21  to accommodate zero-emission commercial vessels.
    22    2. Such study shall examine, at a minimum:
    23    (a) the current electric vessel infrastructure,  including  an  evalu-
    24  ation  of  revenue  allocation options to assist in an expansion of such
    25  infrastructure;
    26    (b) the volume of commercial barge operations, including  an  estimate
    27  of  the  number of charging stations necessary to supply such operations
    28  upon a  transition  of  commercial  barge  operations  to  zero-emission
    29  vessels;
    30    (c) any safety implications concerning the development of the electric
    31  vessel infrastructure; and
    32    (d)  any  negative  impacts  that  may result from the installation of
    33  charging stations.
    34    3. The authority shall report its findings and any recommendations  to
    35  the  governor,  the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of
    36  the assembly no later than five years after the effective date  of  this
    37  section.
    38    §  4.  Subdivision  1  of section 352 of the general municipal law, as
    39  amended by chapter 904 of the laws  of  1947,  is  amended  to  read  as
    40  follows:
    41    1.  Construct, develop, improve, equip, maintain and operate the same,
    42  provided that, no later than January first, two thousand thirty-two, all
    43  ground support equipment used by any public airport shall be  zero-emis-
    44  sion ground support equipment.
    45    §  5.  The  public  authorities law is amended by adding a new section
    46  1886 to read as follows:
    47    § 1886. Study on publicly funded airports.   1.  The  authority  shall
    48  conduct  a  study  of  all  publicly funded airports within the state to
    49  assess the  financial  viability  of  using  renewable  energy  in  such
    50  airports.  Such study shall examine the use of renewable energy sources,
    51  including  but  not limited to, geothermal energy, solar energy and wind
    52  energy, for on-site generation of electricity.  Such study shall further
    53  examine, at a minimum:
    54    (a) the cost of each such source of renewable energy compared  to  the
    55  cost of non-renewable energy sources;
        A. 1331                             3

     1    (b) the efficiency of each such source of renewable energy compared to
     2  the efficiency of non-renewable energy sources; and
     3    (c) any safety implications for each such source of renewable energy.
     4    2.  The authority shall report its findings and any recommendations to
     5  the governor, the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker  of
     6  the  assembly  no later than five years after the effective date of this
     7  section.
     8    § 6. Section 1854 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
     9  new subdivision 27 to read as follows:
    10    27. To administer a program, using funds provided for such purpose, to
    11  provide a grant to commercial flying school and non-profit flying  clubs
    12  to install charging infrastructure applicable to federal aviation admin-
    13  istration  certified  electric  aircraft. To be eligible for such grant,
    14  flying schools and flying clubs shall be based at  airports  located  in
    15  this  state.  Any flying club seeking such grant shall have no less than
    16  twenty-five members. Priority shall be given to flying school  and  non-
    17  profit flying clubs that have been in business for at least five consec-
    18  utive years.
    19    §  7.  The  public  authorities law is amended by adding a new section
    20  1887 to read as follows:
    21    § 1887. Study on sustainable aviation fuel.  1.  The  authority  shall
    22  conduct  a  study  to  determine  how to make sustainable aviation fuel,
    23  certified per applicable standards such as the roundtable on sustainable
    24  biomaterials standards or the American society for testing and materials
    25  standards, more widely available at airports in the state, using locally
    26  sourced biomass as feedstock for the fuel whenever feasible.  Such study
    27  shall examine, at a minimum:
    28    (a) the resources available within the state to create such  sustaina-
    29  ble fuel;
    30    (b) the cost for creating such fuel;
    31    (c)  the  cost  to  implement  the  use  of such fuel within the state
    32  compared to the cost of maintaining  the  use  of  traditional  aviation
    33  fuel; and
    34    (d) any safety implications concerning the use of sustainable aviation
    35  fuel.
    36    2.  The authority shall report its findings and any recommendations to
    37  the governor, the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker  of
    38  the  assembly  no later than five years after the effective date of this
    39  section.
    40    § 8. Section 1266 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
    41  new subdivision 20 to read as follows:
    42    20. No later  than  January  first,  two  thousand  thirty-seven,  the
    43  authority, in consultation with the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Compa-
    44  ny,  the  Long Island Rail Road and the executive director of the metro-
    45  politan transportation  authority,  shall  require  that  all  passenger
    46  trains  operated  by  the Metro-North Commuter Rail Road Company and the
    47  Long Island Rail Road, and all work trains in the subway system operated
    48  by the metropolitan  transportation  authority  shall  be  zero-emission
    49  trains.    Any  branch of the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company that
    50  operates wholly or partially in  New  Jersey  or  Connecticut  shall  be
    51  exempt from the provisions of this subdivision.
    52    § 9. This act shall take effect immediately.