What's happening
This bill requires gas and electric corporations to file annual reports with the Public Service Commission, regardless of other rules or orders.
Why it matters
Closes reporting loopholes. By stating that annual reporting is required “notwithstanding any other rule, regulation, or order,” the bill ensures that gas and electric companies cannot avoid filing their annual reports due to conflicting or less stringent requirements elsewhere in law or in commission decisions.
Strengthens regulatory oversight. Reliable, consistent reporting gives the Public Service Commission more complete and up-to-date information, which can improve its ability to monitor utility companies, enforce rules, and respond to issues like financial instability or poor service.
Improves transparency and accountability. Mandatory annual reports—detailing finances, ownership, executive pay, and operations—allow for greater public and government scrutiny, potentially deterring mismanagement or abuse and informing policy decisions.
Increases potential penalties for noncompliance. Since the requirement is now unambiguous and applies in all cases, utilities face clear financial penalties for failing to report or for submitting incomplete/incorrect reports, incentivizing better compliance.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Toughen Utility Annual Reports
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to energy and telecommunications
- Referred to energy and telecommunications
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3619
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 25, 2017
Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommunications
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to annual reports required to be filed by gas and electric corporations
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 6 of section 66 of the public service law, as amended by chapter 784 of the laws of 1923, is amended to read as follows:
6. [Require] Notwithstanding any other rule, regulation, or order, require every person and corporation under its supervision and it shall be the duty of every such person and corporation to file with the commission an annual report, verified by the oath of the president, vice-president, treasurer, secretary, general manager, or receiver, if any, thereof, or by the person required to file the same. The verification shall be made by said official holding office at the time of the filing of said report, and if not made upon the knowledge of the person verifying the same shall set forth the sources of his information and the grounds of his belief as to any matters not stated to be verified upon his knowledge. The report shall show in detail (a) the amount of its authorized capital stock and the amount thereof issued and outstanding; (b) the amount of its authorized bonded indebtedness and the amount of its bonds and other forms of evidence of indebtedness issued and outstanding; (c) its receipts and expenditures during the preceding year; (d) the amount paid as dividends upon its stock and as interest upon its bonds; (e) the names of its officers and the aggregate amount paid as salaries to them and the amount paid as wages to its employees; (f) the location of its plant or plants and system, with a full description of its property and franchises, stating in detail how each franchise stated to be owned was acquired; and (g) such other facts
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07488-01-7
S. 3619 2
pertaining to the operation and maintenance of the plant and system, and the affairs of such person or corporation as may be required by the commission. Such reports shall be in the form, cover the period and be filed at the time prescribed by the commission. The commission may, from time to time, make [changes and] additions in such forms. When any such report is defective or believed to be erroneous, the commission shall notify the person, corporation or municipality making such report to amend the same within a time prescribed by the commission. Any such person or corporation or municipality which shall neglect to make any such report or which shall fail to correct any such report within the time prescribed by the commission shall be liable to a penalty of one hundred dollars and an additional penalty of one hundred dollars for each day after the prescribed time for which it shall neglect to file or correct the same, to be sued for in the name of the people of the state of New York. The amount recovered in any such action shall be paid into the state treasury and be credited to the general fund. The commission may extend the time prescribed for cause shown.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public service law, in relation to annual reports required to be filed by gas and electric corporations
Purpose
This bill will require the filing of annual reports to the Public Service Commission by the various gas and electric corporations, and elucidates the parameters of such reports.
Summary of provisions
This bill amends subsection 6 of section 66, as amended by Chapter 784 of the laws of 1923, of the Public Service Law to require the filing of annual reports by gas and electric corporations.
Justification
For nearly a century, since the founding of the department of public service (Commission), New York energy corporations have been required by law to file an annual report. The annual report is a necessary tool in maintaining transparency and oversight of the industry, providing critical information on the operations, accounts, capital, debt, and management of power producers. The Commission has confirmed that it has unilaterally exempted power producers from filing annual reports, for perhaps as long as the last twenty years. In 1991 the Commission waived the annual reporting requirement for a.small 95 megawatt cogeneration facility. Since this decision, the Commission has opened the door to a blanket exemption for the entire power producing industry, including multi-billion dollar corporations such as Eatergy.
Without annual reporting, New Yorkers do not have accessible information on the sales, revenue, costs, or price of electricity at power generating facilities. In the absence of maintaining and analyzing the critical market information neither the ratepayers nor the Commission can: 1.) assure that the industry is providing consumers with the lowest possible prices within a restructured, competitive marketplace; 2.) determine the competitiveness of energy markets and improve the inefficiencies; or 3.) guard against market manipulation and opportunities for collusion.
This bill reinstates the PSC's fundamental statutory duty to oversee and assure that just and reasonable rates are charged by power producers by compelling the corporations, without exception, to file annual reports for review by the PSC.
Legislative history
2015-16: S.3975/A.1993- Referred to Energy and Telecom 2013-14: S.3091/A.2846- Referred to Energy and Telecomm 2011-12: S.5514/A.7306- Referred to Energy and Telecomm/Passed the Assembly
Fiscal implications
None to the state.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.