Bill Text: NY S07453 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Establishes the electric landscaping equipment rebate program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and reduce noise pollution by promoting the adoption of quieter, zero-emission landscaping equipment; provides for rebates at the point of sale for applicants purchasing or leasing certain equipment; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-0)
Status: (Vetoed) 2022-12-28 - VETOED MEMO.184 [S07453 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S07453-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7453--A Cal. No. 122 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE October 20, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sens. KRUEGER, GAUGHRAN, KAPLAN, MAY, MAYER, RAMOS, BIAG- GI, BROOKS, HOYLMAN, SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules -- recommitted to the Committee on Energy and Telecommunications in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- reported favorably from said committee, ordered to first and second report, ordered to a third reading, amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to establishing the electric landscaping equipment rebate program; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The public authorities law is amended by adding a new 2 section 1884 to read as follows: 3 § 1884. Electric landscaping equipment rebate program. 1. There is 4 hereby created within the authority an electric landscaping equipment 5 rebate program. The purpose of the program is to reduce greenhouse gas 6 emissions, improve air quality, and reduce noise pollution by promoting 7 the adoption of quieter, zero-emission landscaping equipment. 8 2. As used in this section: 9 (a) "Commercial landscaping business" shall mean a sole-proprietor- 10 ship, firm, limited liability company, partnership, corporation or other 11 business entity whose primary concern involves the care and maintenance 12 of yards, gardens, or other outdoor landscapes for clients, including, 13 but not limited to, lawn care, gardening, and the removal or pruning of 14 trees or shrubs. 15 (b) "Institutional or commercial applicant" shall mean a commercial 16 landscaping business, or a state agency, state authority, local authori- 17 ty, town, county, village, school district, private school, university, 18 not-for-profit corporation, or other nonprofit organization. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13058-06-2S. 7453--A 2 1 (c) "Individual applicant" shall mean a person, who is not an institu- 2 tional or commercial applicant, and who intends to use an eligible lawn 3 care device for private home use and not for any commercial purposes. 4 (d) "Eligible lawn care device" shall mean a battery-powered electric 5 lawn care device that is new, has not been used or previously owned, and 6 is purchased or leased from a storefront or online retailer. Eligible 7 lawn care device shall not include corded electric equipment, reel 8 mowers, or tractors used to pull other lawn care devices. 9 (e) "Lawn care device" shall mean any device powered mechanically, 10 which is intended to be used or is actually used for the mowing of 11 grass, the cutting or chipping of trees, tree roots or tree branches, or 12 the clearing of leaves or other vegetation from lawns, sidewalks, public 13 streets or public highways and shall include, but not be limited to, 14 such devices as lawn mowers and lawn mower attachments, lawn edgers and 15 trimmers, hedge trimmers, leaf blowers, leaf vacuums, mulchers, chip- 16 pers, chainsaws, and pole saws, as well as batteries and chargers for 17 such devices. 18 (f) "Local authority" shall have the same meaning as in subdivision 19 two of section two of this chapter. 20 (g) "State agency" shall mean all state departments, boards, commis- 21 sions, offices or institutions. 22 (h) "State authority" shall have the same meaning as in subdivision 23 one of section two of this chapter. 24 3. The authority shall award rebates at the point of sale for eligible 25 lawn care devices in amounts as determined by this section. An institu- 26 tional or commercial applicant shall receive no more than fifteen thou- 27 sand dollars in rebates through the electric landscaping equipment 28 rebate program per year. An individual applicant shall receive no more 29 than three hundred dollars in rebates through the electric landscaping 30 equipment rebate program per year. 31 4. The authority shall determine the rebate eligibility of each appli- 32 cant in accordance with the requirements of this section and rules 33 promulgated by the authority. The total amount of rebates allocated to 34 certified applicants in each fiscal year shall not exceed the amount of 35 funds available for the program in such fiscal year. Rebates shall be 36 allocated to applicants on a first-come, first-served basis, determined 37 by the date the application is received, until all appropriated funds 38 for the fiscal year are expended or the program ends, whichever comes 39 first. The authority shall have authority to reduce eligible lawn care 40 device rebate amounts from the amounts specified in subdivision seven of 41 this section. Such reduction shall occur only if the authority deter- 42 mines that funds would otherwise be exhausted prior to the end of a 43 fiscal year. 44 5. The authority shall promulgate rules and regulations to implement 45 and administer the provisions of this section no later than one year 46 after the effective date of this section, including rules and regu- 47 lations relating to the forms required to claim a rebate under this 48 section, the required documentation and basis for establishing eligibil- 49 ity for a rebate, procedures and guidelines for claiming a rebate, the 50 collection of economic impact data from applicants, and any other 51 requirements the authority deems necessary. The authority shall conduct 52 education and outreach, with informational materials made available in 53 at least English and the three most common non-English languages spoken 54 by individuals with limited-English proficiency in the state of New 55 York, based on United States census data, as necessary to inform poten-S. 7453--A 3 1 tial applicants and manufacturers and retailers of eligible lawn care 2 devices about the electric landscaping equipment rebate program. 3 6. The authority shall determine and publish on its website on an 4 ongoing basis the amount of available funding for rebates remaining in 5 each fiscal year. 6 7. (a) The purchaser or lessee of an eligible lawn care device may be 7 eligible for the following rebates: 8 (i) an applicant who purchases or leases a new edger, lawn trimmer, 9 hedge trimmer, chainsaw, or pole saw may receive a rebate of up to 10 seventy percent of the purchase price, but no more than two hundred 11 dollars per device. 12 (ii) an applicant who purchases or leases a new leaf blower or leaf 13 vacuum may receive a rebate of up to seventy percent of the purchase 14 price, but no more than two hundred dollars per device. 15 (iii) an applicant who purchases or leases a new walk-behind mower may 16 receive a rebate of up to seventy percent of the purchase price, but no 17 more than five hundred dollars per device. 18 (iv) an applicant who purchases or leases a new ride-on or stand-ride 19 mower may receive a rebate of up to seventy percent of the purchase 20 price, but no more than five thousand dollars per device. 21 (v) an applicant who purchases or leases additional batteries and 22 chargers for an eligible lawn care device may receive a rebate of one 23 hundred percent of the purchase price for up to two batteries and one 24 charger per eligible lawn care device purchased. 25 (b) The calculation of the purchase price shall not include additional 26 costs such as taxes, fees, accessories, or delivery charges. 27 8. No later than two years after the effective date of this section, 28 and annually thereafter on the first of January, the authority shall 29 issue a report to the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of 30 the assembly, the chair of the senate committee on energy and telecommu- 31 nications and the chair of the assembly committee on energy detailing 32 the status of the electric landscaping equipment rebate program. Such 33 report shall include: 34 (a) the amount of funding dedicated by the authority for the program 35 in the preceding year; 36 (b) the amount of eligible purchases for which a rebate was awarded; 37 (c) the amount and geographic distribution of rebates; and 38 (d) any other information the authority deems necessary. 39 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be 40 deemed repealed January 1, 2030.
