Bill Text: NY S05696 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Directs the public service commission to undertake a study of consumer protections adopted by electric corporations and utilities; includes reporting on the adequacy of the public service commission's assistance to customers facing disconnection of utility service.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-04 - REFERRED TO ENERGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS [S05696 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S05696-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         5696
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                     June 10, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  AVELLA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
         printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
         cations
       AN  ACT  to direct the public service commission to undertake a study of
         consumer protections adopted by electric corporations and utilities
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  The New York State public service commission shall under-
    2  take an immediate study of  consumer  protections  adopted  by  electric
    3  corporations  and  municipalities ("utilities") pursuant to article 2 of
    4  the public service law and provide a report to the governor, the  tempo-
    5  rary  president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the chair of
    6  the senate committee on energy and telecommunications and the  chair  of
    7  the  assembly committee on energy. Such report shall include an analysis
    8  of the effectiveness of current utility procedures for notifying custom-
    9  ers in arrears on utility charges of how they may avoid  termination  of
   10  electric,  gas  or steam service, including the availability of deferred
   11  payment agreements. In addition, such report shall review  the  adequacy
   12  of the commission's assistance to customers negotiating deferred payment
   13  agreements  with utilities in lieu of disconnection of service including
   14  the number of deferred payment plans by utility service  territory;  the
   15  number of incidences, if any, in which utilities have required more than
   16  the  lawfully  allowed  level of down payments or deferred payments from
   17  customers seeking to connect service or avoid disconnection; the  effec-
   18  tiveness and availability of the commission's shutoff hotline in receiv-
   19  ing  calls  from customers facing termination of electric, gas and steam
   20  service; the call volume to such hotline in each utility service  terri-
   21  tory;  the  monthly  number  of  electric  and natural gas customers who
   22  previously received utility bill assistance from the Home Energy Assist-
   23  ance Program whose service was terminated for bill  collection  purposes
   24  in  each  utility  service  area in the previous calendar year, provided
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD11689-01-1
       S. 5696                             2
    1  further that the commission shall  require  each  utility  provide  such
    2  information while maintaining customer confidentiality; and any proposed
    3  legislative  remedies  necessary  to increase customer awareness of such
    4  hotline. The report shall be made available to the public on the commis-
    5  sion's website.
    6    S  2. The New York State public service commission shall seek comments
    7  from utilities, municipalities, consumer advocates and  the  public  and
    8  may  include  in the report recommendations to improve existing consumer
    9  protection policies.
   10    S 3. If the study pursuant to section one of this act is not  received
   11  by  November  15,  2011,  the  commission  shall  institute a moratorium
   12  preventing utility corporations from terminating electric, gas or  steam
   13  service  to any residential customer in arrears with whom it has entered
   14  into an agreement for the provision of  such  services.  The  moratorium
   15  shall last for the period beginning December 1, 2011 and ending on March
   16  31,  2012.  Nothing  in this act shall be construed to prevent a utility
   17  corporation from charging customers for electric, gas or  steam  service
   18  or  from  offering a deferred payment agreement for the period beginning
   19  December 1, 2011 and ending on March 31, 2012.
   20    S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.