Bill Text: NY A07731 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to the purchase of zero-emission capable hybrid and zero-emission buses; relates to the procurement of electric-powered buses, vehicles or other related equipment; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-01-03 - referred to transportation [A07731 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A07731-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7731 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY June 6, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. LUPARDO -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the transportation law, in relation to the purchase of zero-emission capable hybrid and zero-emission buses; and to amend the public authorities law and the general municipal law, in relation to the procurement of electric-powered buses, vehicles or other related equipment; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The transportation law is amended by adding a new section 2 17-c to read as follows: 3 § 17-c. Zero-emission capable hybrid buses and zero-emission buses. 4 1. For the four-year period commencing January first, two thousand twen- 5 ty-five and ending December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-eight, 6 every public transportation system eligible to receive operating assist- 7 ance under the provisions of section eighteen-b of this article shall be 8 required to purchase only zero-emission capable hybrid buses or zero-em- 9 ission buses and related equipment and facilities as part of the normal 10 replacement of its fleet. 11 2. (a) For purposes of this section "zero-emission capable hybrid bus" 12 shall mean a motor vehicle that has a seating capacity of fifteen or 13 more passengers in addition to the driver and used for transportation of 14 persons; is capable of being propelled by an electric motor and associ- 15 ated power electronics which provide acceleration torque to the drive 16 wheels during normal vehicle operation and draws electricity from an 17 onboard battery or electric generator; has an internal combustion engine 18 for extended driving range where recharging infrastructure is not readi- 19 ly accessible, and otherwise as needed for safe and effective travel; 20 and is capable of operating on demand without direct emission of atmo- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD09967-03-3A. 7731 2 1 spheric pollutants, and being paired with geofencing technology to auto- 2 matically shut down the engine in specified locations. 3 (b) For purposes of this section "zero-emission bus" shall mean a 4 motor vehicle that has a seating capacity of fifteen or more passengers 5 in addition to the driver and used for the transportation of persons; is 6 propelled by an electric motor and associated power electronics which 7 provide acceleration torque to the drive wheels during normal vehicle 8 operation and draws electricity from a hydrogen fuel cell or from a 9 battery which is capable of being recharged from an external source of 10 electricity; or otherwise operates without direct emission of atmospher- 11 ic pollutants. 12 3. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, all 13 rights or benefits, including terms and conditions of employment, and 14 protection of civil service and collective bargaining status of all 15 existing employees of authorized entities shall be preserved and 16 protected. Nothing in this section shall result in the: (i) displace- 17 ment of any currently employed worker or loss of position (including 18 partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-overtime 19 work, wages, or employment benefits) or result in the impairment of 20 existing collective bargaining agreements; (ii) transfer of existing 21 duties and functions related to maintenance and operations currently 22 performed by existing employees of authorized entities to a contracting 23 entity; or (iii) transfer of future duties and functions ordinarily 24 performed by employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity. 25 (b) Prior to the beginning of the procurement process for new zero-em- 26 ission capable hybrid buses and zero-emission buses, the transit author- 27 ity, agency or municipality shall create and implement a workforce 28 development report that (i) forecasts the number of jobs provided by 29 existing omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or equipment that would be 30 eliminated or substantially changed after the purchase, as well as the 31 number of jobs expected to be created at the transit provider by the 32 proposed purchase over a five-year period from the date of the publica- 33 tion of the workforce development report, (ii) identifies gaps in skills 34 needed to operate and maintain the new zero-emission capable hybrid 35 buses and zero-emission buses, rolling stock, vehicles or related equip- 36 ment, (iii) includes a comprehensive plan to transition, train, or 37 retrain employees that are impacted by the proposed purchase, and (iv) 38 contains an estimated budget to transition, train, or retrain employees 39 that are impacted by the proposed purchase. 40 (c) Nothing contained herein shall be construed to affect (i) the 41 existing rights of employees pursuant to an existing collective bargain- 42 ing agreement, or (ii) the existing representational relationships among 43 employee organizations or the bargaining relationships between the 44 employer and an employee organization. Prior to beginning the procure- 45 ment process for new zero-emission capable hybrid buses and zero-emis- 46 sion buses, rolling stock, vehicles or related equipment, the transit 47 authority, agency or municipality shall inform the respective collective 48 bargaining agent of any potential jobs that may be affected, altered, or 49 eliminated as a result of the purchase, and it shall be a mandatory 50 subject for collective bargaining. 51 § 2. The transportation law is amended by adding a new section 18-c to 52 read as follows: 53 § 18-c. Capital plan requirements. In formulating the five-year 54 department of transportation capital plans, the department shall: (a) 55 consider the requirement of section seventeen-c of this article in its 56 disbursement of payment for the costs of mass transportation capitalA. 7731 3 1 projects and facilities and give preference in the form of payments to 2 public transportation systems eligible to receive operating assistance 3 under the provisions of section eighteen-b of this article that are able 4 to demonstrate commitments made towards purchasing zero-emission capable 5 hybrid buses and zero-emission buses and related equipment and facili- 6 ties; and (b) facilitate for purposes of meeting the requirement of 7 section seventeen-c of this article the coordination of purchasing, 8 installation and sharing services between public transportation systems 9 serving primarily outside the city of New York. 10 § 3. Section 2878-a of the public authorities law is amended by adding 11 a new subdivision 3 to read as follows: 12 3. (a) A transportation authority established under this chapter may, 13 by resolution approved by a two-thirds vote of its members then in 14 office, or by a declaration that competitive bidding is impractical or 15 inappropriate with respect to electric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, 16 vehicles or other related equipment because the item is available 17 through an existing contract between a vendor and (i) another public 18 authority provided that such other authority utilized a process of 19 competitive bidding or a process of competitive requests for proposals 20 to award such contracts, or (ii) the state of New York, or (iii) a poli- 21 tical subdivision of the state of New York, provided that in any case 22 when under this subdivision the authority determines that obtaining such 23 item thereby would be in the public interest and sets forth the reasons 24 for such determination. The authority shall accept sole responsibility 25 for any payment due the vendor as a result of the authority's order. In 26 each case where the authority declares competitive bidding impractical 27 or inappropriate, it shall state the reason therefor in writing and 28 summarize any negotiations that have been conducted. The authority shall 29 not award any contract pursuant to this subdivision earlier than thirty 30 days from the date on which the authority declares that competitive 31 bidding is impractical or inappropriate. All procurements approved 32 pursuant to this subdivision shall be subject to audit and inspection by 33 the department of audit and control or any successor agencies. For 34 purposes of this subdivision, "transportation authority" shall not 35 include transportation authorities governed under titles nine, nine-A 36 and eleven of article five of this chapter or title three of article 37 three of this chapter. For the purposes of this subdivision, "electric- 38 powered omnibuses" shall include any bus owned, leased, rented or other- 39 wise controlled by the authority that otherwise meets the definition of 40 bus provided in section five hundred nine-a of the vehicle and traffic 41 law that is propelled by an electric motor and associated power elec- 42 tronics which provide acceleration torque to the drive wheels during 43 normal vehicle operation and draws electricity from a hydrogen fuel cell 44 or from a battery which is capable of being recharged from an external 45 source of electricity; or otherwise operates without direct emission of 46 atmospheric pollutants. 47 (b) (i) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, all 48 rights or benefits, including terms and conditions of employment, and 49 protection of civil service and collective bargaining status of all 50 existing employees of authorized entities shall be preserved and 51 protected. Nothing in this section shall result in the: (1) displace- 52 ment of any currently employed worker or loss of position, including 53 partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-overtime 54 work, wages, or employment benefits, or result in the impairment of 55 existing collective bargaining agreements; (2) transfer of existing 56 duties and functions related to maintenance and operations currentlyA. 7731 4 1 performed by existing employees of authorized entities to a contracting 2 entity; or (3) transfer of future duties and functions ordinarily 3 performed by employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity. 4 (ii) Prior to the beginning of the procurement process for new elec- 5 tric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or related equipment, 6 the authority shall create and implement a workforce development report 7 that (1) forecasts the number of jobs provided by existing omnibuses, 8 rolling stock, vehicles or equipment that would be eliminated or 9 substantially changed after the purchase, as well as the number of jobs 10 expected to be created at the authority by the proposed purchase over a 11 five-year period from the date of the publication of the workforce 12 development report, (2) identifies gaps in skills needed to operate and 13 maintain the new electric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or 14 related equipment, (3) includes a comprehensive plan to transition, 15 train, or retrain employees that are impacted by the proposed purchase, 16 and (4) contains an estimated budget to transition, train, or retrain 17 employees that are impacted by the proposed purchase. 18 (c) Nothing contained herein shall be construed to affect (i) the 19 existing rights of employees pursuant to an existing collective bargain- 20 ing agreement, or (ii) the existing representational relationships among 21 employee organizations or the bargaining relationships between the 22 employer and an employee organization. Prior to beginning the procure- 23 ment process for new electric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles 24 or related equipment, the transit agency or municipality shall inform 25 the respective collective bargaining agent of any potential jobs that 26 may be affected, altered, or eliminated as a result of the purchase, and 27 it shall be a mandatory subject for collective bargaining. 28 § 4. Section 104 of the general municipal law is amended by adding a 29 new subdivision 3 to read as follows: 30 3. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section one hundred three of 31 this article or of any other general, special or local law, any chief 32 executive officer of a political subdivision or agency which operates a 33 public transportation system is authorized to make purchases of elec- 34 tric-powered omnibuses or other related equipment upon a resolution 35 approved by a two-thirds vote of its board then in office because the 36 item is available through an existing contract between a vendor and (i) 37 a public authority of the state provided that such other authority 38 utilized a process of competitive bidding or a process of competitive 39 requests for proposals to award such contracts, or (ii) the state of New 40 York, or (iii) a political subdivision of the state of New York, 41 provided that in any case when under this subdivision the political 42 subdivision determines that obtaining such item thereby would be in the 43 public interest and sets forth the reasons for such determination. The 44 political subdivision shall not award any contract pursuant to this 45 subdivision earlier than thirty days from the date on which the poli- 46 tical subdivision declares that competitive bidding is impractical or 47 inappropriate. All purchases shall be subject to audit and inspection by 48 the political subdivision for which made, in addition to the department 49 of audit and control of New York state. For purposes of this subdivi- 50 sion, "political subdivision or agency which operates a public transpor- 51 tation system" shall not include transportation authorities governed 52 under titles nine, nine-A and eleven of article five of the public 53 authorities law or title three of article three of the public authori- 54 ties law. For the purposes of this subdivision, "electric-powered omni- 55 buses" shall include any bus owned, leased, rented or otherwise 56 controlled by the political subdivision that otherwise meets the defi-A. 7731 5 1 nition of bus provided in section five hundred nine-a of the vehicle and 2 traffic law that is propelled by an electric motor and associated power 3 electronics which provide acceleration torque to the drive wheels during 4 normal vehicle operation and draws electricity from a hydrogen fuel cell 5 or from a battery which is capable of being recharged from an external 6 source of electricity; or otherwise operates without direct emission of 7 atmospheric pollutants. 8 (b) (i) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, all 9 rights or benefits, including terms and conditions of employment, and 10 protection of civil service and collective bargaining status of all 11 existing employees of authorized entities shall be preserved and 12 protected. Nothing in this section shall result in the: (1) displace- 13 ment of any currently employed worker or loss of position, including 14 partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-overtime 15 work, wages, or employment benefits, or result in the impairment of 16 existing collective bargaining agreements; (2) transfer of existing 17 duties and functions related to maintenance and operations currently 18 performed by existing employees of authorized entities to a contracting 19 entity; or (3) transfer of future duties and functions ordinarily 20 performed by employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity. 21 (ii) Prior to the beginning of the procurement process for new elec- 22 tric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or related equipment, 23 the transit agency or municipality shall create and implement a work- 24 force development report that (1) forecasts the number of jobs provided 25 by existing omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or equipment that would 26 be eliminated or substantially changed after the purchase, as well as 27 the number of jobs expected to be created at the transit provider by the 28 proposed purchase over a five-year period from the date of the publica- 29 tion of the workforce development report, (2) identifies gaps in skills 30 needed to operate and maintain the new electric-powered omnibuses, roll- 31 ing stock, vehicles or related equipment, (3) includes a comprehensive 32 plan to transition, train, or retrain employees that are impacted by the 33 proposed purchase, and (4) contains an estimated budget to transition, 34 train, or retrain employees that are impacted by the proposed purchase. 35 (c) Nothing contained herein shall be construed to affect (i) the 36 existing rights of employees pursuant to an existing collective bargain- 37 ing agreement, or (ii) the existing representational relationships among 38 employee organizations or the bargaining relationships between the 39 employer and an employee organization. Prior to beginning the procure- 40 ment process for new electric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles 41 or related equipment, the transit agency or municipality shall inform 42 the respective collective bargaining agent of any potential jobs that 43 may be affected, altered, or eliminated as a result of the purchase, and 44 it shall be a mandatory subject for collective bargaining. 45 § 5. Section 104 of the general municipal law, as amended by section 46 27 of part L of chapter 55 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as 47 follows: 48 § 104. Purchase through office of general services. 1. Notwithstanding 49 the provisions of section one hundred three of this article or of any 50 other general, special or local law, any officer, board or agency of a 51 political subdivision, of a district therein, of a fire company or of a 52 voluntary ambulance service is authorized to make purchases of commod- 53 ities and services available pursuant to section one hundred sixty-three 54 of the state finance law, may make such purchases through the office of 55 general services subject to such rules as may be established from time 56 to time pursuant to section one hundred sixty-three of the state financeA. 7731 6 1 law or through the general services administration pursuant to section 2 1555 of the federal acquisition streamlining act of 1994, P.L. 103-355; 3 provided that any such purchase shall exceed five hundred dollars and 4 that the political subdivision, district, fire company or voluntary 5 ambulance service for which such officer, board or agency acts shall 6 accept sole responsibility for any payment due the vendor. All purchases 7 shall be subject to audit and inspection by the political subdivision, 8 district, fire company or voluntary ambulance service for which made. No 9 officer, board or agency of a political subdivision, or a district ther- 10 ein, of a fire company or of a voluntary ambulance service shall make 11 any purchase through such office when bids have been received for such 12 purchase by such officer, board or agency, unless such purchase may be 13 made upon the same terms, conditions and specifications at a lower price 14 through such office. Two or more fire companies or voluntary ambulance 15 services may join in making purchases pursuant to this section, and for 16 the purposes of this section such groups shall be deemed "fire companies 17 or voluntary ambulance services." 18 2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section one hundred three of 19 this article or of any other general, special or local law, any chief 20 executive officer of a political subdivision or agency which operates a 21 public transportation system is authorized to make purchases of elec- 22 tric-powered omnibuses or other related equipment upon a resolution 23 approved by a two-thirds vote of its board then in office because the 24 item is available through an existing contract between a vendor and (a) 25 a public authority of the state provided that such other authority 26 utilized a process of competitive bidding or a process of competitive 27 requests for proposals to award such contracts, or (b) the state of New 28 York, or (c) a political subdivision of the state of New York, provided 29 that in any case when under this subdivision the political subdivision 30 determines that obtaining such item thereby would be in the public 31 interest and sets forth the reasons for such determination. The poli- 32 tical subdivision shall not award any contract pursuant to this subdivi- 33 sion earlier than thirty days from the date on which the political 34 subdivision declares that competitive bidding is impractical or inappro- 35 priate. All purchases shall be subject to audit and inspection by the 36 political subdivision for which made, in addition to the department of 37 audit and control of New York state. For purposes of this subdivision, 38 "political subdivision or agency which operates a public transportation 39 system" shall not include transportation authorities governed under 40 titles nine, nine-A and eleven of article five of the public authorities 41 law or title three of article three of the public authorities law. For 42 purposes of this subdivision, "electric-powered omnibuses" shall include 43 any bus owned, leased, rented or otherwise controlled by the political 44 subdivision that otherwise meets the definition of bus provided in 45 section five hundred nine-a of the vehicle and traffic law that is 46 propelled by an electric motor and associated power electronics which 47 provide acceleration torque to the drive wheels during normal vehicle 48 operation and draws electricity from a hydrogen fuel cell or from a 49 battery which is capable of being recharged from an external source of 50 electricity; or otherwise operates without direct emission of atmospher- 51 ic pollutants. 52 (b) (i) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, all 53 rights or benefits, including terms and conditions of employment, and 54 protection of civil service and collective bargaining status of all 55 existing employees of authorized entities shall be preserved and 56 protected. Nothing in this section shall result in the: (1) displace-A. 7731 7 1 ment of any currently employed worker or loss of position, including 2 partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-overtime 3 work, wages, or employment benefits, or result in the impairment of 4 existing collective bargaining agreements; (2) transfer of existing 5 duties and functions related to maintenance and operations currently 6 performed by existing employees of authorized entities to a contracting 7 entity; or (3) transfer of future duties and functions ordinarily 8 performed by employees of authorized entities to a contracting entity. 9 (ii) Prior to the beginning of the procurement process for new elec- 10 tric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or related equipment, 11 the transit agency or municipality shall create and implement a work- 12 force development report that (1) forecasts the number of jobs provided 13 by existing omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles or equipment that would 14 be eliminated or substantially changed after the purchase, as well as 15 the number of jobs expected to be created at the transit provider by the 16 proposed purchase over a five-year period from the date of the publica- 17 tion of the workforce development report, (2) identifies gaps in skills 18 needed to operate and maintain the new electric-powered omnibuses, roll- 19 ing stock, vehicles or related equipment, (3) includes a comprehensive 20 plan to transition, train, or retrain employees that are impacted by the 21 proposed purchase, and (4) contains an estimated budget to transition, 22 train, or retrain employees that are impacted by the proposed purchase. 23 (c) Nothing contained herein shall be construed to affect (i) the 24 existing rights of employees pursuant to an existing collective bargain- 25 ing agreement, or (ii) the existing representational relationships among 26 employee organizations or the bargaining relationships between the 27 employer and an employee organization. Prior to beginning the procure- 28 ment process for new electric-powered omnibuses, rolling stock, vehicles 29 or related equipment, the transit agency or municipality shall inform 30 the respective collective bargaining agent of any potential jobs that 31 may be affected, altered, or eliminated as a result of the purchase, and 32 it shall be a mandatory subject for collective bargaining. 33 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be 34 deemed repealed December 31, 2028; provided, however, that the amend- 35 ments to section 104 of the general municipal law made by section four 36 of this act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion of such 37 section pursuant to section 9 of subpart A of part C of chapter 97 of 38 the laws of 2011, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of 39 section five of this act shall take effect.
