Bill Text: NY S02134 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides that no utility may discontinue residential utility service during cold weather periods to a premises where an owner of the premises has notified the utility that the customer of record is a tenant, or where the address of the customer of record differs from the address of the premises being served, unless a five day notice of impending termination has been mailed to the owner and occupant or occupants of such premises.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-01-18 - REFERRED TO ENERGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS [S02134 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S02134-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         2134
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   January 18, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  KRUGER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
         printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
         cations
       AN  ACT  to  amend the public service law, in relation to termination of
         service
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Section 32 of the public service law is amended by adding
    2  two new subdivisions 7 and 8 to read as follows:
    3    7. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF  LAW,  AFTER  RECEIPT  BY  A
    4  UTILITY  CORPORATION  OR  MUNICIPALITY OF A WRITTEN NOTICE FROM AN OWNER
    5  THAT RESIDENTIAL GAS OR ELECTRIC SERVICE IS BEING PROVIDED TO  A  TENANT
    6  OF  THE  OWNER  IN A ONE-FAMILY, TWO-FAMILY, THREE-FAMILY OR FOUR-FAMILY
    7  DWELLING, THE UTILITY CORPORATION OR MUNICIPALITY  SHALL  NOT  TERMINATE
    8  RESIDENTIAL GAS OR ELECTRIC HEAT RELATED SERVICE DURING THE COLD WEATHER
    9  PERIODS ESTABLISHED BY THE COMMISSION REGULATIONS TO THAT TENANT:
   10    (A)  FOR  NON-PAYMENT OF BILLS RENDERED FOR SERVICE UNLESS THE UTILITY
   11  CORPORATION OR MUNICIPALITY, (I) AFTER RECEIPT  OF  NOTIFICATION  BY  AN
   12  OWNER PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION AFFORDED THAT OWNER AN OPPORTUNITY TO
   13  ASSURE  THE  CONTINUATION OF RESIDENTIAL GAS OR ELECTRIC SERVICE IN THAT
   14  OWNER'S NAME IN THE EVENT OF A SUBSEQUENT TERMINATION OF GAS OR ELECTRIC
   15  SERVICE DUE TO NON-PAYMENT OF BILLS RENDERED FOR SERVICE BY A TENANT, OR
   16  (II) NO LATER THAN FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO THE DATE SET FORTH AS THE EARLIEST
   17  POSSIBLE DATE OF SERVICE TERMINATION IN THE FINAL NOTICE OF  TERMINATION
   18  SENT  TO  THAT TENANT, HAS MAILED A NOTICE TO THE OWNER ADVISING THAT IF
   19  NEITHER SATISFACTORY PAYMENT NOR PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS HAVE BEEN MADE  BY
   20  THE  TENANT  BEFORE THAT DATE, THE TENANT'S GAS OR ELECTRIC SERVICE WILL
   21  BE TERMINATED ON OR AFTER THAT DATE, AND THE OWNER MAY PREVENT A SERVICE
   22  TERMINATION AT THE DWELLING BY MAKING ARRANGEMENTS TO OPEN A NEW ACCOUNT
   23  AS OF THE DATE THAT THE TENANT'S  SERVICE  WOULD  FIRST  BE  SUBJECT  TO
   24  SERVICE TERMINATION; OR
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD06674-01-1
       S. 2134                             2
    1    (B)  UPON THE REQUEST OF THAT TENANT UNLESS THE UTILITY CORPORATION OR
    2  MUNICIPALITY (I) AFTER RECEIPT OF NOTIFICATION BY AN OWNER  PURSUANT  TO
    3  THIS  SUBDIVISION  AFFORDED  THAT  OWNER  AN  OPPORTUNITY  TO ASSURE THE
    4  CONTINUATION OF RESIDENTIAL GAS OR ELECTRIC SERVICE IN THAT OWNER'S NAME
    5  IN  THE  EVENT  OF A SUBSEQUENT VOLUNTARY TERMINATION OF GAS OR ELECTRIC
    6  SERVICE BY A TENANT, OR (II) HAS NOTIFIED THE OWNER BY EITHER MAILING  A
    7  NOTICE  TO  THE  OWNER  AT  LEAST  FIVE  DAYS PRIOR TO THE DAY OF ACTUAL
    8  DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE  OR  BY  GIVING  ACTUAL  NOTICE  BY  TELEPHONE
    9  CONVERSATION  WITH  THE OWNER OR THE OWNER'S AGENT AT LEAST TWO BUSINESS
   10  DAYS PRIOR TO THE DAY OF ACTUAL  DISCONTINUANCE  OF  SERVICE,  THAT  THE
   11  OWNER MAY OPEN A NEW ACCOUNT FOR SERVICE IN THE OWNER'S NAME.
   12    8.  NO UTILITY CORPORATION OR MUNICIPALITY SHALL TERMINATE RESIDENTIAL
   13  UTILITY GAS OR ELECTRIC SERVICE IN ANY INSTANCE WHERE  THE  CUSTOMER  OF
   14  RECORD'S  MAILING  ADDRESS  OR  DWELLING  UNIT  DIFFERS  FROM THE STREET
   15  ADDRESS OF THE DWELLING OR THE DWELLING  UNIT  IN  A  MULTIPLE  DWELLING
   16  WHERE  SERVICE  IS TO BE TERMINATED, UNLESS (A) IN THE CASE OF A REQUEST
   17  FROM THE CUSTOMER OF RECORD THAT  UTILITY  SERVICE  BE  TERMINATED,  THE
   18  UTILITY  CORPORATION  OR  MUNICIPALITY DETERMINES, AT THE TIME OF ACTUAL
   19  DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE, THAT THE DWELLING UNIT OR THE  DWELLING  UNIT
   20  IN  A MULTIPLE DWELLING WHERE SERVICE IS TO BE TERMINATED IS UNOCCUPIED,
   21  OR (B) IN THE CASE OF EITHER A TERMINATION OF SERVICE FOR NON-PAYMENT OF
   22  BILLS RENDERED FOR SERVICE OR A REQUEST FROM THE CUSTOMER OF RECORD THAT
   23  UTILITY SERVICE BE TERMINATED, A NOTICE IS MAILED  TO  THE  OCCUPANT  OR
   24  OCCUPANTS OF THAT DWELLING AT LEAST FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO THE DAY OF ACTUAL
   25  DISCONTINUANCE  OF  SERVICE,  ADVISING  THAT  SERVICE IS SCHEDULED TO BE
   26  TERMINATED ON OR AFTER A SPECIFIED DATE, AND THAT THE OCCUPANT OR  OCCU-
   27  PANTS  MAY  MAKE  ALTERNATIVE  ARRANGEMENTS  TO  OPEN  A NEW ACCOUNT FOR
   28  SERVICE IN AN OCCUPANT'S NAME. THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS  SUBDIVISION  DO
   29  NOT APPLY TO THE DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE REQUIRING NOTICES PURSUANT TO
   30  SECTIONS  THIRTY-THREE  AND  THIRTY-FOUR  OF  THIS  ARTICLE,  NOR TO THE
   31  DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE TO  SHARED  METER  ACCOUNTS  AS  SPECIFIED  IN
   32  COMMISSION REGULATIONS.
   33    S  2.  Subdivision 5 of section 33 of the public service law is renum-
   34  bered subdivision 6 and a new subdivision 5 is added to read as follows:
   35    5. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER  PROVISION  OF  LAW,  NO  PUBLIC  UTILITY
   36  COMPANY OR MUNICIPALITY SHALL DISCONTINUE GAS, ELECTRIC OR STEAM SERVICE
   37  TO  AN ENTIRE MULTIPLE DWELLING (AS DEFINED IN THE MULTIPLE DWELLING LAW
   38  OR THE MULTIPLE RESIDENCE LAW) LOCATED ANYWHERE IN  THIS  STATE  UPON  A
   39  REQUEST  FROM  THE CUSTOMER OF RECORD UNLESS (A) THE UTILITY CORPORATION
   40  OR MUNICIPALITY DETERMINES, AT THE  TIME  OF  ACTUAL  DISCONTINUANCE  OF
   41  SERVICE,  THAT THE DWELLING UNITS IN THE MULTIPLE DWELLING WHERE SERVICE
   42  IS TO BE TERMINATED ARE UNOCCUPIED, OR (B) A NOTICE  IS  MAILED  TO  THE
   43  OCCUPANTS  OF  THE MULTIPLE DWELLING AT LEAST FIVE DAYS PRIOR TO THE DAY
   44  OF ACTUAL DISCONTINUANCE OF SERVICE ADVISING THAT SERVICE  IS  SCHEDULED
   45  TO  BE  TERMINATED  ON OR AFTER A SPECIFIED DATE, AND THAT THE OCCUPANTS
   46  MAY MAKE ALTERNATIVE ARRANGEMENTS TO OPEN A NEW ACCOUNT FOR  SERVICE  AS
   47  OF  THE  DATE  THAT THE SERVICE TO THE MULTIPLE DWELLING IS TO BE TERMI-
   48  NATED. THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS SUBDIVISION DO NOT APPLY TO THE  DISCON-
   49  TINUANCE  OF SERVICE TO SHARED METER ACCOUNTS AS SPECIFIED IN COMMISSION
   50  REGULATIONS.
   51    S 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
   52  have become a law.