What's happening
This bill gives the New York Power Authority first rights to buy or operate renewable energy facilities and bans for-profit energy service companies.
Why it matters
Expands public control over renewable energy. By giving the New York Power Authority (NYPA) the first chance to buy or operate renewable energy facilities, the bill shifts future renewable energy development and ownership toward public hands, potentially leading to greater public accountability and reinvestment of profits into public goods.
Excludes for-profit companies from energy services. The ban on for-profit energy service companies (ESCOs) means customers would only be able to buy energy from not-for-profit entities, utilities, or the NYPA, possibly reducing aggressive marketing and deceptive practices sometimes associated with for-profit ESCOs, but also limiting consumer choice and market competition.
Prioritizes renewable energy sources and infrastructure. The NYPA is not only given rights to acquire renewable generation and storage projects, but is also empowered to sell renewable energy directly to end users, supporting climate goals and potentially accelerating the state’s transition to clean energy.
Potential impacts on rates and reliability. With NYPA and not-for-profit entities playing a larger role, electricity rates, service innovation, and grid reliability could be affected—positively or negatively—depending on the Authority’s management efficiency and the absence of private market competition.
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Who cares
New York Power Authority
The bill would let NYPA match purchase prices and become the buyer of renewable generation facilities, projects and their power, and sell entirely renewable energy directly to end-use customers over utility systems.
Renewable energy developers and buyers
NYPA could step into a purchase of a renewable facility, project or its output by matching the purchase price.
Energy services companies
The bill would repeal General Business Law section 349-d, remove ESCO references from certain NYPA supply provisions and limit another NYPA sales channel to not-for-profit ESCOs or other authorized entities.
Community choice aggregation communities
The bill would change which intermediaries NYPA could use to supply their energy, including specifying not-for-profit ESCOs or other authorized entities for sales tied to NYPA-financed renewable projects.
Headline styles
State Runs All Energy Sales
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to energy and telecommunications
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
State Control of Energy Supply
In Assembly Committee · Corporations, Authorities And Commissions · Sponsor Robert C. Carroll
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7243
IN SENATE
January 13, 2020
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 authorities law and the public service law, in relation to providing the New York power authority with the right of first offer and refusal for certain renewable generation facilities and any power or energy created by such renewable generation facilities; bans energy services companies; and to repeal certain provisions of the general business law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 1005 of the public authorities law is amended by adding two new subdivisions 28 and 29 to read as follows:
28. (a) To purchase, finance, plan, design, engineer, acquire, construct, operate or manage any renewable generation facility, renewable energy generating project, battery energy storage systems, renewable thermal energy technology such as heat pumps, solar thermal, or other heating or cooling technologies using renewable sources of energy that do not emit greenhouse gases, or any power or energy created by a renewable generation facility or renewable energy generation project under the right of first offer and refusal established under section twentyeight of the public service law.
(b) For purposes of this subdivision, "renewable energy generating project" shall mean a project that generates power and energy by means of renewable energy resources, or that stores and supplies power and energy generated by means of renewable energy resources, and includes the construction, installation and/or operation of ancillary facilities or equipment done in connection with any such renewable energy generating projects, provided, however, that such term shall not include the authority's Saint Lawrence hydroelectric project or Niagara hydroelectric project.
29. To sell or provide energy services to end-use customers using the transmission or distribution system of a utility. Any power or energy sold under this subdivision shall be made entirely from renewable energy
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13943-03-9
S. 7243 2
resources. For the purposes of this subdivision, "renewable energy resources" means solar power, wind power, hydroelectric, and any other generation resource authorized by any renewable energy standard adopted by the state for the purpose of implementing any state clean energy standard.
§ 2. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 28 to read as follows:
§ 28. New York power authority right of first offer and refusal. The New York power authority, as established by title one of article five of the public authorities law, shall be allowed to match the purchase price of any renewable generation facility, renewable energy generation project and any power or energy created by a renewable generation facility or renewable energy generation project. In the event that such authority matches such purchase price, such authority shall assume the role of purchaser of the renewable generation facility, renewable energy generation project or any power or energy created by a renewable generation facility or renewable energy generation project.
§ 3. Section 349-d of the general business law is REPEALED.
§ 4. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 27 of section 1005 of the public authorities law, as added by section 2 of part LL of chapter 58 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, as deemed feasible and advisable by the trustees, the authority is authorized to undertake the following actions when it deems it necessary or desirable to address the energy-related needs of any (i) authority customer, (ii) public entity, or (iii) CCA community:
(1) (A) supply power and energy procured from competitive market sources to any (i) authority customer, (ii) public entity, or (iii) CCA community through the supply of such products through an [energy services company or other] entity that is authorized by the public service commission to procure and sell energy products to participants of a CCA program, provided, however, that the authority shall not supply at any point more than a total of four hundred megawatts of power and energy to authority customers and public entities pursuant to the authority of this clause;
(B) supply renewable power, energy, or related credits or attributes procured through a competitive process, from competitive market sources, or through negotiation when a competitive procurement is not reasonably feasible and such products can be procured on reasonably competitive terms to (i) any authority customer, (ii) any public entity, or (iii) any CCA community through the supply of such products through an [energy services company or other] entity that is authorized by the public service commission to procure and sell energy products to participants of a CCA program; and
(2) (A) alone or jointly with one or more other entities, finance the development of renewable energy generating projects that are located in the state, including its territorial waters, and/or on property or in waters under the jurisdiction or regulatory authority of the United States, (B) purchase power, energy or related credits or attributes produced from such renewable energy generating projects, and (C) allocate and sell any such products to (i) any authority customer, (ii) any public entity, and (iii) any CCA community through [an] a not-for-profit energy services company or other entity that is authorized by the public service commission to procure and sell energy products to participants of a CCA program, provided that the authority shall not, pursuant to the authority in this subparagraph, finance more than six renewable energy
S. 7243 3
generation projects and have a per-project electric generating capacity in excess of twenty-five megawatts.
§ 5. Subdivision 5 of section 44 of the public service law, as added by chapter 359 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
5. At least once a year, every utility corporation, not-for-profit energy services company or municipality shall provide its customers with a notice that billing statements are available in large print format. Upon written request by a customer, a utility corporation, not-for-profit energy services company or municipality shall provide the customer's billing statements in the large print format commencing no later than sixty days after the date upon which the request is received by the utility corporation[, energy services company] or municipality. The provisions of this subdivision shall apply only to printed statements. For the purposes of this section, "large print" shall mean a printed font size of sixteen or greater to illuminate billing information. For the purposes of this section, "not-for-profit energy services company" or "not-for-profit ESCO" shall mean [an] a not-for-profit entity eligible to sell energy services to end-use customers using the transmission or distribution system of a utility corporation.
§ 6. Nothing in this act is intended to limit, impair, or affect the legal authority of the power authority of the state of New York under any other provision of title 1 of article 5 of the public authorities law.
§ 7. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amendments to subdivision 27 of section 1005 of the public authorities law made by section four of this act shall not affect the repeal of such subdivision and shall be deemed repealed therewith.
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 authorities law and the public service law, in relation to providing the New York power authority with the right of first offer and refusal for certain renewable generation facilities and any power or energy created by such renewable generation facilities; bans energy services companies; and to repeal certain provisions of the general business law relating thereto
Purpose or general idea of bill
To provide the right of first refusal on renewable energy projects to the New York Power Authority and to ban energy services companies.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends Section 1005 of the public authorities law by adding a new subdivision 28 which grants the New York Public Power Authority first refusal rights to purchase any renewable generation facility, renewable energy generation project or any power or energy created by a renewable generation facility or renewable energy generation project.
Section 2 amends the public service law to by adding a new section 28 which defines grounds of first refusal as needed for the previous section. The New York Power Authority shall be allowed to match the purchase price of any renewable facility, project, and or and renewably generated power, and so assume the role of purchaser.
Section 3 makes clear that nothing in the previous sections is intended to limit, impair, or affect the legal authority of the power authority of New York under any other provisions of tile 1 of article 5 of the public authorities law.
Section 4 states the act shall take effect immediately.
Justification
With the passage of the CLCPA, New York State has a mandate to scale up our renewable energy infrastructure. But currently, New York only gets around 5% of its energy from wind and solar, and most renewable energy in the state is purchased from Energy Service Companies (ESCOs). ESCOs employ predatory practices and are nearly always more expensive than obtaining generation through a utility, overcharging between $30 and $40 million/month. This bill would ban ESCOs and instead allow the New York Power Authority to build, purchase, and sell affordable 100% renewable energy to all New Yorkers. NYPA is the Most financially viable entity for scaling up renewables at the scale needed as it has the lowest cost of capital, doesn't need to generate a profit for shareholders, and can make renewable energy a right for all New Yorkers regardless of income, race, or class. This bill unleashes NYPA, giving it the ability to own new renewable energy generation and have the right of first offer on all new generation projects. It commits us to the renewable energy transi- tion that New York State needs while maintaining democratic oversight of our energy system.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:; This is a new bill
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
Immediate.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.