Bill Text: NY A09109 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to the design of uniform standards and conditions relating to the construction and operation of major renewable energy facilities and the review of applications for permits to develop such facilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-31 - referred to energy [A09109 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A09109-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9109 IN ASSEMBLY January 31, 2022 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. LUPARDO, BARRETT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Energy AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to the design of uniform standards and conditions relating to the construction and operation of major renewable energy facilities and the review of applications for permits to develop such facilities; and requires the office of renewable energy siting to establish or amend rules and regulations pertaining to renewable energy siting facilities The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 3 of section 94-c of the exec- 2 utive law, as added by section 4 of part JJJ of chapter 58 of the laws 3 of 2020, is amended to read as follows: 4 (c) The uniform standards and conditions established pursuant to this 5 section shall be designed to avoid or minimize, to the maximum extent 6 practicable, any potential significant adverse environmental impacts 7 and, to the maximum extent practicable, avoid, minimize, and mitigate 8 agricultural impacts to active agricultural lands related to the siting, 9 design, construction and operation of a major renewable energy facility. 10 Such uniform standards and conditions shall apply to those environmental 11 impacts the office determines are common to each type of major renewable 12 energy facility. 13 § 2. Paragraphs (e), (f), (g), (h), and (i) of subdivision 3 of 14 section 94-c of the executive law are relettered paragraphs (f), (g), 15 (h), (i), and (j) and a new paragraph (e) is added to read as follows: 16 (e) In its review of an application for a permit to develop a major 17 renewable energy facility, the office, in consultation with the depart- 18 ment of agriculture and markets shall ensure that a critical mass of 19 farmland within the designated region is not threatened, ensuring that 20 no more than five percent of prime soils within a regional economic 21 development council region shall have solar developed and ensure that 22 solar development shall not greatly hinder the amount of farmland within 23 New York state and/or be a potential threat to New York's food security. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13542-04-1A. 9109 2 1 § 3. Section 94-c of the executive law is amended by adding a new 2 subdivision 9 to read as follows: 3 9. Rules and regulations. The office shall establish and/or amend the 4 rules and regulations pertaining to such office to include the follow- 5 ing: 6 (a) the definition of prime farmland as defined in part 622.04 of the 7 USDA handbook and the definitions of unique farmland, specific charac- 8 teristics of unique farmland, additional farmland of statewide impor- 9 tance, and additional farmland of local importance as such terms are 10 defined in 7 CFR § 657.5. 11 (b)(i) preapplication procedures which require applicants to: 12 (1) submit a report delineating the impacts to prime agricultural land 13 and prime soils, unique farmland and farmland of statewide and local 14 importance, including soil classifications as established by the natural 15 resources conservation service; 16 (2) submit a cumulative impact study as to how the use of farmland for 17 solar siting will impact the regional food economy and regional overall 18 farmland protection plan; and 19 (3) ensure that a critical mass of farmland within the designated 20 region is not threatened, ensuring that no more than five percent of 21 prime soils are being sited within a regional economic development coun- 22 cil region; and 23 (ii) preference to be given to sites for solar development that are on 24 brownfields, landfills, parking lots, rooftops, gravel pits and other 25 areas where disturbance to local ecosystems is minimized. Such sites 26 shall be granted expedited approval. 27 (c) application procedures for major renewable energy facility siting 28 permits. Each application for such permit shall require: 29 (i) the submission of a cumulative impact statement within the study 30 area which includes the following criteria: 31 (1) categories based on solar array size, specifying the array capaci- 32 ty and how much power or electricity is expected to be generated, 33 on-site or associated electric load, and the land use footprint, includ- 34 ing the acreage of land underlying the array; 35 (2) customer type by identifying the end-use entity consuming the 36 electricity or receiving the electric credits generated by the project 37 and how such end-user is classified in a utilities' established electric 38 rate structures for different customer classes, including residential, 39 commercial, industrial, agricultural or low-income; 40 (3) categories based on solar array location, specifying whether solar 41 arrays are roof-mounted, designating preferred sites for solar develop- 42 ment and ineligible sites; 43 (4) categories based on solar array design, including specifying 44 whether such solar array utilizes dual use or agrivoltaics; and 45 (ii) for major renewable energy facilities sited on prime soils or 46 farmlands, the applicant to submit decommissioning plans for arrays on 47 agricultural land and decommissioning bonds for commercial-scale 48 projects. Such applications shall require the applicant to: 49 (1) include a decommissioning plan in the application; 50 (2) show substantial evidence that all structures and materials will 51 be removed upon decommissioning of such facility and to ensure that 52 soils will be capable of agricultural production; and 53 (3) obtain decommissioning surety bonds or another form of insurance 54 to secure all or a part of decommissioning costs required at the conclu- 55 sion of the lease.A. 9109 3 1 (d) requiring the submission of a farmland conservation fee of one 2 percent of the price per acre of prime soil or prime farmland which 3 solar is developed on. Such farmland conservation fee shall be deposited 4 in the farmland preservation fund subaccount of the environmental 5 protection fund. 6 (e) farmland protection and consideration of local economies. The 7 office shall take into account the regional impacts, based on the 8 regional economic development council region, on farmland preservation, 9 local food supply chains, and statewide food security; provided that the 10 office shall ensure that a critical mass of farmland within the desig- 11 nated region is not threatened and shall ensure that no more than five 12 percent of prime soils within a regional economic development council 13 region may be developed for solar projects. The office shall also 14 require the permittee to coordinate with county-level governments to 15 ensure no more than fifteen percent of the land mass by square mile of 16 any county shall be developed for solar energy development or no more 17 land mass than will significantly negatively impact the local economy, 18 whichever is smaller. 19 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 20 the amendments to section 94-c of the executive law made by sections 21 one, two and three of this act shall not affect the repeal of such 22 section and shall be deemed repealed therewith.
