Bill Text: NY A07208 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides that it shall be unlawful to discharge any radiological substance into the Hudson River in connection with the decommissioning of a nuclear power plant; provides for attorney general enforcement.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 33-3)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-06-10 - substituted by s6893 [A07208 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A07208-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7208

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      May 12, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  LEVENBERG  --  read once and referred to the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation

        AN ACT to amend the  environmental  conservation  law,  in  relation  to
          decommissioning nuclear power plant discharges into the Hudson River

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

     1    Section 1.  The environmental conservation law is amended by adding  a
     2  new article 30 to read as follows:
     3                                  ARTICLE 30
     4    DECOMMISSIONING NUCLEAR POWER PLANT DISCHARGES INTO THE HUDSON RIVER
     5  Section 30-0101. Legislative findings.
     6          30-0103. Unlawful discharges.
     7  § 30-101. Legislative findings.
     8    1.  The  legislature  finds  that while the energy and economic output
     9  generated by nuclear power plants are beneficial to the  state  and  its
    10  residents,  discharges  into  waters of the state of radiological agents
    11  from nuclear power plants have various adverse and substantial  economic
    12  impacts on the state and its residents.
    13    2.  The  legislature  further finds that communities with interests in
    14  the Hudson River are concerned with the economic impacts on  local  real
    15  estate  values and economic development with respect to the discharge of
    16  waste from nuclear power plants into waters of the  state  during  plant
    17  decommissioning,  which  effect  is no longer balanced by countervailing
    18  economic benefits of the plant  to  those  communities  that  the  plant
    19  provided during operation.
    20    3.  The legislature further finds that other methods of managing waste
    21  from decommissioning nuclear power plants are available  and  would  not
    22  result in the same economic impacts.
    23    4. The legislature therefore finds and declares that it is the duty of
    24  the  state to act to preserve the economic vitality of affected communi-
    25  ties.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11357-03-3
        A. 7208                             2

     1  § 30-0103. Unlawful discharges.
     2    To  the  extent not subject to preemption by federal law, and notwith-
     3  standing any other state or  local  law,  rule,  or  regulation  to  the
     4  contrary,  it  shall be unlawful to discharge any radiological substance
     5  into the Hudson River in connection with the decommissioning of a nucle-
     6  ar power plant.
     7    § 2. Article 71 of the environmental conservation law  is  amended  by
     8  adding a new title 28 to read as follows:
     9                                   TITLE 28
    10                          ENFORCEMENT OF ARTICLE 30
    11  Section 71-2801. Applicability of title.
    12          71-2803. Penalties.
    13          71-2805. Attorney general enforcement.
    14  § 71-2801. Applicability of title.
    15    In  addition to the provisions of sections 71-0101 and 71-0301 of this
    16  article, the provisions  of  this  title  shall  be  applicable  to  the
    17  enforcement of article 30 of this chapter and to this title.
    18  § 71-2803. Penalties.
    19    Any  person  who  violates  section  30-0103  of this chapter shall be
    20  liable for a civil penalty not  to  exceed  thirty-seven  thousand  five
    21  hundred dollars for the first day of the violation, not to exceed seven-
    22  ty-five thousand dollars for the second day of the violation, and not to
    23  exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars per violation thereafter.  For
    24  purposes  of this section, each day in which a violation occurs shall be
    25  considered a separate violation.
    26  § 71-2805. Attorney general enforcement.
    27    The penalties provided by section  71-2803  of  this  title  shall  be
    28  recoverable in an action brought by the attorney general.
    29    §  3.  Severability. The provisions of this act shall be severable and
    30  if any portion thereof or the applicability thereof  to  any  person  or
    31  circumstances  shall  be held invalid, the remainder of this act and the
    32  application thereof shall not be affected thereby.
    33    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.