Bill Text: NY A09538 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Enacts the "public renewables transparency act"; relates to the New York power authority's conferral process; requires the conferral report be posted on the authority's website; provides that the authority shall provide an option for stakeholders to submit comments remotely as well, and incorporate feedback from such sessions and written comments into the final draft of the strategic plan; makes related provisions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 29-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-24 - print number 9538a [A09538 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A09538-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         9538--A

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     March 20, 2024
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. SHRESTHA, MAMDANI, SIMON, BURDICK, GONZALEZ-RO-
          JAS, GALLAGHER, SAYEGH,  WOERNER,  KIM,  MEEKS,  CUNNINGHAM,  SHIMSKY,
          STIRPE, EPSTEIN, DAVILA, SIMONE, STECK, EACHUS, RIVERA, KELLES, RAMOS,
          MITAYNES,  ANDERSON,  LEVENBERG,  FORREST, SEAWRIGHT, ALVAREZ, THIELE,
          TAPIA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Energy --  commit-
          tee  discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recom-
          mitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to the New  York
          power authority's conferral process

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

     1    Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may  be  cited  as
     2  the "public renewables transparency act".
     3    §  2.  Paragraph (d) of subdivision 27-a of section 1005 of the public
     4  authorities law, as amended by section 28 of part O of chapter 58 of the
     5  laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
     6    (d) No later than one hundred eighty days after the effective date  of
     7  this  subdivision,  and  annually thereafter, the authority shall confer
     8  with the New York state energy research and development  authority,  the
     9  department  of  public  service,  climate  and resiliency experts, labor
    10  organizations, and environmental  justice  and  community  organizations
    11  concerning  the  state's  progress on meeting the renewable energy goals
    12  established by the climate leadership and community protection act.   At
    13  each  board  of trustees' meeting, there shall be a public report deliv-
    14  ered and published on the development and implementation of the authori-
    15  ty's renewable energy generation strategic  plan.  When  exercising  the
    16  authority  provided for in paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the infor-
    17  mation developed through  such  conferral  shall  be  used  to  identify
    18  projects to help ensure that the state meets its goals under the climate
    19  leadership  and  community protection act. Any conferral provided for in
    20  this paragraph shall include consideration of the timing of projects  in
    21  the  interconnection  queue  of  the  federally designated electric bulk
    22  system operator for New York state, taking into  account  both  capacity
    23  factors  or  planned projects and the interconnection queue's historical

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14383-08-4
        A. 9538--A                          2

     1  completion rate. A report on  the  information  developed  through  such
     2  conferral  shall  be published and made accessible on the website of the
     3  authority, including, but not limited to, the  basis  of  the  conferral
     4  report. The published basis shall include notes from the conferral meet-
     5  ings.
     6    §  3.  Paragraph (d) of subdivision 27-a of section 1005 of the public
     7  authorities law, as added by section 1 of part QQ of chapter 56  of  the
     8  laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
     9    (d)  No later than one hundred eighty days after the effective date of
    10  this subdivision, and annually thereafter, the  authority  shall  confer
    11  with  the  New York state energy research and development authority, the
    12  office of renewable energy siting, the  department  of  public  service,
    13  climate  and  resiliency experts, labor organizations, and environmental
    14  justice and community organizations concerning the state's  progress  on
    15  meeting the renewable energy goals established by the climate leadership
    16  and  community protection act. At each board of trustees' meeting, there
    17  shall be a public report delivered and published on the development  and
    18  implementation  of the authority's renewable energy generation strategic
    19  plan. When exercising the authority provided for  in  paragraph  (a)  of
    20  this subdivision, the information developed through such conferral shall
    21  be  used  to  identify  projects to help ensure that the state meets its
    22  goals under the climate leadership and  community  protection  act.  Any
    23  conferral  provided for in this paragraph shall include consideration of
    24  the timing of projects in the interconnection  queue  of  the  federally
    25  designated electric bulk system operator for New York state, taking into
    26  account  both  capacity  factors  or  planned projects and the intercon-
    27  nection queue's historical completion rate. A report on the  information
    28  developed  through such conferral shall be published and made accessible
    29  on the website of the authority, including,  but  not  limited  to,  the
    30  basis  of  the conferral report. The published basis shall include notes
    31  from the conferral meetings.
    32    § 4. Subparagraph (vii)  of  paragraph  (e)  of  subdivision  27-a  of
    33  section  1005  of  the  public authorities law, as added by section 1 of
    34  part QQ of chapter 56 of the  laws  of  2023,  is  amended  to  read  as
    35  follows:
    36    (vii)  The  authority  shall post a draft of the strategic plan on its
    37  website for public comment for a period of at least sixty days  starting
    38  no  later  than  October  eleventh,  and shall hold at least [three] six
    39  public hearings on the draft strategic plan in regionally diverse  parts
    40  of  the state. The authority shall provide an option for stakeholders to
    41  submit comments remotely as well, and  incorporate  feedback  from  such
    42  sessions  and  written  comments  into  the final draft of the strategic
    43  plan.
    44    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that the  amend-
    45  ments to paragraph (d) of subdivision 27-a of section 1005 of the public
    46  authorities  law made by section two of this act shall be subject to the
    47  expiration and reversion of such paragraph pursuant  to  section  34  of
    48  part  O  of  chapter  58 of the laws of 2024, as amended, when upon such
    49  date the provisions of section three of this act shall take effect.