What's happening
This bill prohibits gas and electric companies from avoiding liability for service interruptions caused by their employees’ ordinary negligence.
Why it matters
Holds utility companies accountable. This bill ensures that gas and electric corporations cannot escape responsibility for service interruptions caused by the ordinary negligence of their workers, making it easier for affected customers to seek compensation.
Invalidates liability waivers in tariffs. Any rules or rate schedules that attempt to limit or eliminate the company’s liability for such interruptions are explicitly declared void, strengthening consumer protections against unfair contract terms.
Shifts risk management to utilities. By removing the ability of companies to avoid liability through regulatory filings, the bill incentivizes utilities to invest more in employee training, infrastructure maintenance, and safety to prevent negligent outages.
Establishes public policy precedent. Declaring these liability waivers void as a matter of public policy could influence future legal and regulatory standards for other regulated industries, potentially expanding consumer rights beyond the energy sector.
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Who cares
Headline styles
No Liability Shield for Utilities
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
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1284
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 14, 2019
Introduced by Sen. GIANARIS -- 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 the liability of gas and electric corporations arising from the negligence of their employees, servants or agents
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 12 of section 66 of the public service law is amended by adding a new undesignated paragraph to read as follows:
Nothing contained in this subdivision shall be construed to, and no rule, regulation, order or practice of the commission shall authorize the filing by any gas corporation or electric corporation of any schedule setting forth rules or regulations relating to rates or service which, in words or effect, absolve or attempt to absolve such corporation from liability for the interruption of its supply of service arising from the ordinary negligence of its employees, servants or agents. Any part of any schedule filed by such corporation setting forth any such rules or regulations relating to absolution from liability shall be deemed void as against public policy.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04466-01-9
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 the liability of gas and electric corporations arising from the negligence of their employees, servants or agents
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends subdivision 12 of § 66 of the Public Service Law to prohibit the filing by gas or electric corporations of any schedules absolving any such corporation from liability for the interruption of its supply of services arising from the ordinary negligence of its employees, servants, or agents. Any such schedule currently filed is deemed void as against public Policy.
Justification
In the Summer of 2011, the western part of Queens suffered a massive power outage that lasted 9 days. The Assembly Queens Power Outage Task Force studied the outage's causes and the inadequate responses by the company responsible for the transmission and distribution system, Consolidated Edison, and by the Public Service Commission. One underly- ing cause of this debacle was found to be the reliance by New York's utility regulators on antiquated laws, regulations and policies that let companies engaged in energy transmission and distribution operate with- out effective oversight.
Several of the findings and recommendations of the Task Force concerned the inadequacy of Consolidated Edison's policies regarding reimbursement for its failure to deliver a safe and adequate supply of electricity, as the Public Service Law requires. One fundamental barrier to the public's ability to be appropriately compensated is the current language in the tariffs filed by electric and gas utilities disclaiming any responsibil- ity for disruptions of service, except in cases of gross negligence.
The Task Force recommended that the Legislature should amend the Public Service Law to remove the tariff bar against suits for damages from outages due to simple negligence. This bill would accomplish this goal, which would result in assigning the same degree of legal responsibility to operators of energy transmission and distribution systems as virtual- ly every other business currently bears.
Prior legislative history
2018: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2017: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2016: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2015: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2014: Died in Energy & Telecommunications Committee
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.