Bill Text: NY S05939 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Prohibits the development of any new major electric generating facilities that would be powered in whole or in part by any fossil fuel, unless the developer of such facility can demonstrate a need for such facility, and that there is no other reasonable method to satisfy such need.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 18-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-06-03 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S05939 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S05939-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5939

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     March 23, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  RAMOS  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
          cations

        AN  ACT  to amend the public service law and the environmental conserva-
          tion law, in relation to prohibiting the development of any new  major
          electric  generating  facilities  that would be powered in whole or in
          part by any fossil fuel

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

     1    Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
     2  the "clean futures act".
     3    § 2. Section 160 of the public service law is amended by adding a  new
     4  subdivision 10 to read as follows:
     5    10.  "Fossil  fuel"  means  coal,  petroleum products, and fuel gases.
     6  "Coal" shall include bituminous  coal,  anthracite  coal,  and  lignite.
     7  "Fuel  gases"  shall include but not be limited to methane, natural gas,
     8  liquefied natural gas, and manufactured fuel gases. "Petroleum products"
     9  shall include all products refined or rerefined from synthetic or  crude
    10  oil  or oil extracted from other sources, including natural gas liquids.
    11  Provided that nothing in this subdivision shall affect the exclusion for
    12  public utility services set forth in subdivision two of this section.
    13    § 3. Section 162 of the public service law is amended by adding a  new
    14  subdivision 6 to read as follows:
    15    6. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regulation,
    16  beginning  upon  the  effective date of this subdivision the board shall
    17  not issue a certificate for any major electric generating facility  that
    18  would be powered in whole or in part by any fossil fuel.
    19    (b)  Notwithstanding  paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the board may
    20  issue a certificate for a major electric generating facility powered  in
    21  whole  or in part by any fossil fuel if both of the following conditions
    22  are met:

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10500-05-1
        S. 5939                             2

     1    (i) The developer of such major  electric  generating  facility  shall
     2  provide  to  the board, the commission, and the commissioner of environ-
     3  mental conservation, an attestation in writing, signed by both New  York
     4  independent  system  operator  and the appropriate New York transmission
     5  owner or public authority, attesting to:
     6    (1) the existence of a reliability need;
     7    (2)  the  unavailability  of  either local or bulk transmission system
     8  upgrades that would address such reliability need; and
     9    (3) such major electric generating facility would resolve  such  reli-
    10  ability need; and
    11    (ii)  The  developer  of such major electric generating facility shall
    12  demonstrate to the satisfaction of the board, the  commission,  and  the
    13  commissioner of environmental conservation that the existing reliability
    14  need  cannot be addressed within an appropriate time frame by any combi-
    15  nation of transmission, energy storage, zero carbon electric generation,
    16  demand response, and/or energy efficiency.
    17    (c) Any written communication  between  an  applicant  and  the  board
    18  concerning  a  proposed major electric generating facility shall be made
    19  publicly available on the department's website.
    20    § 4. Section 172 of the public service law is amended  by  adding  two
    21  new subdivisions 3 and 4 to read as follows:
    22    3.  The  department  of environmental conservation shall not issue any
    23  permit otherwise authorized pursuant to subdivision one of this section,
    24  or issued pursuant to section 19-0311 of the environmental  conservation
    25  law, for any major electric generating facility that would be powered in
    26  whole  or in part by any fossil fuel, unless the developer of such major
    27  electric generating facility has satisfied the  provisions  of  subpara-
    28  graphs  (i)  and (ii) of paragraph (b) of subdivision six of section one
    29  hundred sixty-two of this article.
    30    4. Any written communication between an applicant for a permit  pursu-
    31  ant  to  subdivision  one of this section and the department of environ-
    32  mental conservation shall be made publicly available on  the  department
    33  of conservation's website.
    34    §  5. Section 19-0311 of the environmental conservation law is amended
    35  by adding a new subdivision 6 to read as follows:
    36    6. No permit shall be issued under  this  section  that  would  be  in
    37  violation of subdivision three of section one hundred seventy-two of the
    38  public  service law. Any written communications between an applicant for
    39  such a permit and the department shall be made publicly available on the
    40  department's website.
    41    § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.