Bill Text: NY A02246 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended


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 11-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-22 - print number 2246b [A02246 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A02246-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         2246--B

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 25, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. SIMON, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, EPSTEIN, TAYLOR, COLTON,
          DAVILA, THIELE, BURDICK, KELLES, ARDILA -- read once and  referred  to
          the  Committee  on  Environmental  Conservation  -- recommitted to the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation in  accordance  with  Assembly
          Rule  3,  sec.  2  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee --  recommitted
          to  the  Committee  on  Environmental  Conservation in accordance with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        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,  produce  zero-emissions.
     8  Privately  licensed  ferries  that receive funding from the state or any
     9  agency or public authority thereof, where such  funds  are  provided  to
    10  subsidize  a particular route, shall, in any fiscal year which commences
    11  on or after April first, two  thousand  thirty,  purchase  zero-emission
    12  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

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03192-05-4

        A. 2246--B                          2

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

        A. 2246--B                          3

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