Bill Text: NY S01312 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to decisions by the state board on electric generation; requires approval through public referendum prior to certification for establishing a major electric generating facility.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS [S01312 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S01312-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1312

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 11, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  ORTT  --  read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
          ment Operations

        AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to decisions by  the
          state  board  on electric generation; and to repeal certain provisions
          of such law relating thereto

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

     1    Section  1.  Subdivisions 1 and 7 of section 168 of the public service
     2  law, as added by chapter 388 of the laws of 2011, are amended to read as
     3  follows:
     4    1. The board shall make the final decision  on  an  application  under
     5  this  article  for  a  certificate or amendment thereof, upon the record
     6  made before the presiding examiner, including any briefs  or  exceptions
     7  to  any  recommended  decision  of such examiner or to any report of the
     8  associate examiner, and after hearing such oral argument  as  the  board
     9  shall determine. [Except for good cause shown to the satisfaction of the
    10  board,  a  determination  under  subdivision five of section one hundred
    11  sixty-seven of this article that the applicant's proposal is  preferable
    12  to alternatives shall be final. Such a determination shall be subject to
    13  rehearing  and review only after the final decision on an application is
    14  rendered.] Such a determination, before it shall  be  considered  final,
    15  shall  be  subject  to approval through public referendum by the munici-
    16  pality in which the facility applying to the board is located.  For  the
    17  purposes  of  this subdivision, "municipality" shall mean a city or town
    18  located in this state.
    19    7. Following [any rehearing and any judicial  review  of  the  board's
    20  decision] the public referendum, the board's jurisdiction over an appli-
    21  cation  shall  cease,  provided, however, that the permanent board shall
    22  retain jurisdiction with respect to the amendment, suspension or revoca-
    23  tion of a certificate.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00584-01-3
        S. 1312                             2

     1    § 2. Section 170 of the public service  law  is  REPEALED  and  a  new
     2  section 170 is added to read as follows:
     3    §  170.  Certification  by the board; establishment by referendum.  1.
     4  Before the final decision by the board may become effective, a  referen-
     5  dum  must  be  held  upon the question of approving an application for a
     6  certificate establishing a major electric  generating  facility  in  the
     7  municipality  where  the  proposed  facility  intends  to be located and
     8  approved by fifty-one per centum of voters. If a majority of  the  votes
     9  cast are in favor of establishing such a facility, it shall be mandatory
    10  upon  the  board  to  issue  a certificate. Such referendum must be held
    11  within sixty days, but not earlier than thirty days  after  the  board's
    12  decision.  For the purposes of this section, "municipality" shall mean a
    13  city or town located in this state.
    14    2.  Financing  of any expenditure, in whole or in part, shall be drawn
    15  from any monies remaining in the intervener account. Any further financ-
    16  ing of this endeavor shall be financed pursuant  to  alternative  county
    17  government law.
    18    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.