Enacts the public utility extreme weather and storm hardening assessment act of 2014

Summary of provisions

Section one of the bill establishes the title of the Act as the "Public Utility Extreme Weather and Storm Hardening Assessment Act of 2014."

Section two sets forth the legislative intent.

Section three adds a new subdivision (18) to Section 66 of the Public Service Law to:

1. Define the terms "public utility," "drought," "heightened potential for forest fires" and "weather event;"

2. Require that public utilities periodically prepare a climate change impact statement for submission to and review by the Public Service Commission;

3. Establish a schedule pursuant to which each public utility must submit a climate change impact statement to the PSC,

4. Establish the minimum contents for climate change impact statements;

5. Require the PSC to make climate change impact statements submitted by the public utilities available for public comment;

6. Require the PSC, following a public comment period, to evaluate the adequacy of each climate change impact statement; and

7. Authorize the PSC to augment, modify, or waive certain requirements for climate change impact statements.

Section four amends Article 5 of the Public Authorities Law to add a new subdivision (ii) to PAL section 1020-f to extend the climate change impact statement requirements set forth in section 66(18) of the Public Service Law to the Long Island Power Authority.

Section five amends Article 5 of the Public Authorities Law by designating the opening paragraph of PAL section 1014 as subdivision one and adding a new subdivision two to extend the climate change impact statement requirements set forth in section 66(18) of the Public Service Law to the New York Power Authority.

Section six establishes the effective date.

Justification

The recent failure of vital electric and natural gas services in the wake of several major storm events in the State significantly impacted millions of our citizens: hospitals were shut down and patients displaced, sewage treatment plants could not operate, communications systems were compromised, and many were without power for weeks. Superstorm Sandy alone caused power outages to over two million New Yorkers, resulting in between $30 and $50 billion in lost economic activity to the New York City metropolitan area. Although Sandy was an unprecedented storm, climate change is expected to increase the size and frequency of large storms, dramatically raise sea levels along our coasts and estuaries, and intensify other weather events such as heat waves, ice storms, and drought.

The Public Utility Extreme Weather and Storm Hardening Assessment Act of 2014 would require providers of electric and natural gas services, including the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) with the assistance of the service provider or providers, and the New York Power Authority (NYPA), to assess at five-year intervals the probable impacts of climate change on their infrastructure, operations and delivery of service; document how they have incorporated their findings into their operations, planning, infrastructure design, and emergency preparations; and explain how they propose to prepare for expected changes. The utilities would be required to submit this information in the form of a "Climate Change Impact Statement" to the Public Service Commission (PSC) and to county executives and the New York City Emergency Management Office. The PSC would publish each Climate Change Impact Statement for public comment, prepare an assessment based on public comment and its own analysis, and release its assessment for public use.

The Act is modeled on the recent Con Edison rate proceeding at the PSC, in which the Commission ordered that Con Ed employ stricter design standards to accommodate future climate conditions, thus ensuring that customer services and utility facilities would be protected from extreme weather due to climate change. The Act supports the PSC's order by providing a framework and process for the State's other regulated utilities, NYPA and LIPA to carry out these climate preparations in a systematic and transparent manner.

The Act is consistent with recommendations by the NYS 2100 Commission (2013), the Moreland Commission on Utility Storm Preparation and Response (2013), and ClimAid: the Integrated Assessment for Effective Climate Change Adaptation Strategies in New York State (Columbia University, CUNY, Cornell University, NYSERDA 2011).

Legislative history

New bill.

Fiscal implications

None.

Effective date

January 15th next succeeding the date on which the act shall have become a law.