Bill Text: NY A08542 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Prohibits utility corporations from charging customers for gas or electric service which was rendered more than three months of the monthly billing period; requires utility corporations to provide a thirteen-month usage history in their bills.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-23 - substituted by s8012 [A08542 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A08542-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          8542

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     January 8, 2024
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. JACOBSON -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions

        AN  ACT  to amend the public service law, in relation to the finality of
          certain utility charges and the contents  of  utility  bills;  and  to
          amend  a  chapter  of the laws of 2023 amending the public service law
          relating to the finality of certain utility charges and  the  contents
          of  utility  bills, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4234-A
          and A. 4055-A, in relation to the effectiveness thereof

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Subdivision 1 of section 41 of the public service law, as
     2  amended by a chapter  of the laws of 2023 amending  the  public  service
     3  law relating to the finality of certain utility charges and the contents
     4  of utility bills, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4234-A and
     5  A.  4055-A, is amended to read as follows:
     6    1.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision  of  law, [no] if a utility
     7  corporation or municipality [shall charge] does not render a residential
     8  customer for gas or electric service [which was rendered more than two],
     9  with the exception of a seasonal or short-term customer  as  defined  by
    10  rule  of the commission, a monthly bill for gas and/or electric services
    11  used by such customer during that monthly period, or,  in  the  case  of
    12  bi-monthly  meter  reads,  during that month and the prior month, within
    13  three months [prior to the mailing of the first bill to the customer for
    14  such service unless] from the end date of such monthly  billing  period,
    15  then,  such  residential  customer shall not be charged for such gas and
    16  electric services which were not billed  to  the  customer  as  provided
    17  herein,  unless  the  failure of the corporation or municipality to bill
    18  sooner was not due to the neglect of the corporation or municipality  or
    19  was due to the culpable conduct of the customer. If the customer remains
    20  liable  for  such  service, the utility shall permit payments to be made
    21  under an installment payment plan, provided, however, that  the  utility
    22  or  municipality  may require prompt payment if the non-billing resulted
    23  from the culpable conduct of the customer. Any such installment  payment

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04105-06-4
        A. 8542                             2

     1  plan  may provide for a downpayment of up to one-half of the amounts due
     2  from the customer, or three months average billing, whichever is less.
     3    § 2. Section 41-a of the public service law, as added by a chapter  of
     4  the laws of 2023 amending the public service law relating to the finali-
     5  ty  of  certain  utility  charges  and the contents of utility bills, as
     6  proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 4234-A and A. 4055-A, is renum-
     7  bered section 66-w and is amended to read as follows:
     8    §  66-w.  Finality  of  charges;  small   non-residential   customers.
     9  Notwithstanding  any  other provision of law[, no utility corporation or
    10  municipality shall charge a non-residential customer for gas or electric
    11  service which was rendered more than two months prior to the mailing  of
    12  the  first  bill  to the customer for such service unless the failure of
    13  the corporation or municipality to bill sooner was not due to the negli-
    14  gence or neglect of the corporation or municipality or was  due  to  the
    15  culpable  conduct  of  the customer] if a utility corporation or munici-
    16  pality does not render a small non-residential customer for gas or elec-
    17  tric service, with the exception of a seasonal or short-term customer as
    18  defined by rule of the commission, a monthly bill for gas  and/or  elec-
    19  tric  services  used by such customer during that monthly period, or, in
    20  the case of bi-monthly meter reads, during  that  month  and  the  prior
    21  month,  within  three  months  from the end date of such monthly billing
    22  period, then, such small non-residential customer shall not  be  charged
    23  for such gas and electric services which were not billed to the customer
    24  as  provided  herein,  unless  the failure of the corporation or munici-
    25  pality to bill sooner was not due to the neglect of the  corporation  or
    26  municipality  or  was  due  to the culpable conduct of the customer. The
    27  commission shall promulgate  regulations  necessary  to  effectuate  the
    28  purposes  of this section. For the purposes of this section, "small non-
    29  residential customer" means non-residential electric customers that  are
    30  non-demand  billed  customers and non-residential gas customers that use
    31  less than or equal to 750 dekatherms  per  year.  Such  term  shall  not
    32  include street lighting accounts.
    33    §  3.  Subdivision 7 of section 44 of the public service law, as added
    34  by a chapter  of the laws of 2023 amending the public service law relat-
    35  ing to the finality of certain utility charges and the contents of util-
    36  ity bills, as proposed in legislative bills numbers  S.  4234-A  and  A.
    37  4055-A, is amended to read as follows:
    38    7.  [As]  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, as part of every
    39  billing statement, [the] any utility corporation [or municipality]  that
    40  serves  more  than fifteen thousand customers in the state shall provide
    41  [both in graph and written form, for the prior two years of the customer
    42  or the prior customers at the same address, the  monthly  usage  of  the
    43  customer,  the  monthly  unit charges for usage, and the monthly billing
    44  charge amount to the customer. This  requirement  shall  apply  to  both
    45  residential  and  non-residential customers] the average daily usage per
    46  month or the monthly usage at the customer's address for the prior thir-
    47  teen months. Additionally, notwithstanding any conflicting provision  of
    48  law,  upon  request  by  the  customer,  such  utility corporation shall
    49  provide monthly billing charge amounts at such  customer's  address  for
    50  the  thirteen  months prior to the current billing period, no later than
    51  thirty days after such request is made.
    52    § 4. Section 4 of a chapter  of the laws of 2023 amending  the  public
    53  service  law relating to the finality of certain utility charges and the
    54  contents of utility bills, as proposed in legislative bills  numbers  S.
    55  4234-A and A. 4055-A, is amended to read as follows:
        A. 8542                             3

     1    § 4. This act shall take effect on the [first of January next succeed-
     2  ing  the  date upon which] one hundred eightieth day after it shall have
     3  become a law. Effective  immediately,  the  addition,  amendment  and/or
     4  repeal  of  any  rule  or regulation necessary for the implementation of
     5  this  act  on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
     6  on or before such effective date.
     7    § 5.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however,  that
     8  sections  one,  two, and three of this act shall take effect on the same
     9  date and in the same manner as a chapter of the laws  of  2023  amending
    10  the  public  service  law  relating  to  the finality of certain utility
    11  charges and the contents of utility bills, as  proposed  in  legislative
    12  bills numbers S. 4234-A and A. 4055-A, takes effect.