NY State Senate Bill 2019-S6774

Senate Bill S6774

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to appointing ad hoc members to the New York state board on electric generation siting and the environment

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to energy and telecommunications
Oct 11, 2019	referred to rules

co-Sponsors

2019-S6774 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A8567
Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §161, Pub Serv L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S3714
2023-2024: S1487

2019-S6774 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to appointing ad hoc members to the New York state board on electric generation siting and the environment.

2019-S6774 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S6774

SPONSOR: ORTT
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the public service law, in relation to
appointing ad hoc members to the New York state board on electric gener-
ation siting and the environment

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To ensure that local municipalities are notified as to which local ad
hoc members have been appointed from their lists of candidates submitted
to sit on siting boards for electric generating facilities. To provide a
mechanism for appointment of local ad hoc members to siting boards for
electric generating facilities upon a failure of the president pro tem
of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and/or the governor to
appoint. To ensure that siting boards for electric generating facilities
cannot take any action until local ad hoc members are appointed.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends subdivision 2 of section 161 of the public service law

to state that the Governor shall appoint the ad hoc member from the list
of candidates within forty-five days.

Additionally adds subsection (b) to require notification to all involved
parties of the status of the appointment and application process.

Adds subsection (c) that grants state senators or assemblymembers the
authority to appoint ad hoc members if not completed according to
subsection (a).

Adds subsection (d) to define a quorum.

Section 2: provides the effective date

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Under current law a, siting board for an electric generating facility is
composed of seven members - five executive agency heads and two local ad
hoc members.

The host municipalities nominate lists of candidates for appointment as
local ad hoc members to the siting board. The president pro tem of the
senate and the speaker of the assembly each appoint one ad hoc member
from the lists submitted within 30 days of their nominations, If the
president pro tem of the senate or the speaker of the assembly fails to
appoint within 30 days, then the governor makes the appointments. If the
governor fails to appoint local ad hoc members within 45 days, then
there are no local ad hoc members on the siting board. The siting board
can proceed and conduct business without any local members.

A significant number of proposed projects are going forward without
local ad hoc members on the siting boards. For example, Horseshoe Solar
Project in the Towns of Caledonia and Rush,Morris Ridge Solar Project in
the Town of Mt. Morris, and Bear Ridge Solar Project in Towns of Cambria
and Pendleton. Municipalities submitted lists of candidates, but no
appointments were ever made.


By simply ignoring the lists of candidates, municipalities are denied
local representation and the siting boards go forward without them.
Municipalities are not even noticed as to who on their lists was
appointed, if anyone. Municipalities are kept in the dark and excluded
from the process when their communities are most affected by decisions
made by the siting boards. Local ad hoc members are needed to voice
local concerns and raise local issues. They are vital to any project.

This bill would require that municipalities be notified of what action,
if any, was taken on their lists of candidates. This will allow munici-
palities to take appropriate action to ensure their interests are
protected.

This bill would also ensure local membership on the siting boards. If
the president pro tern of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and/or
the governor fail to appoint one or both of the local ad hoc
members,then the senator and assembly member whose districts encompass
the proposed project will make the appointments.

Further, this bill would ensure that the siting boards could not take
any action without ad hoc local members being appointed.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately

2019-S6774 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6774
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             October 11, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  ORTT, GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to appointing ad hoc
   members to the New York state board on electric generation siting  and
   the environment

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 161 of the public service law,  as
 added by chapter 388 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   2. (A) Upon receipt of a pre-application preliminary scoping statement
 under  this  article,  the chair shall promptly notify the governor, the
 president pro tem of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the  chief
 executive officers representing the municipality and the county in which
 the  facility  is  proposed  to  be  located,  and,  if such facility is
 proposed to be located within the city of New York,  the  mayor  of  the
 city  of New York, as well as the chairperson of the community board and
 the borough president representing the area in  which  the  facility  is
 proposed  to  be  located.  One  ad hoc member shall be appointed by the
 president pro tem of the senate and one ad hoc member shall be appointed
 by the speaker of the assembly from a list of  candidates  submitted  to
 them,  in  the  following  manner.  If  such  facility is proposed to be
 located outside of the city of New York,  the  chief  executive  officer
 representing  the  municipality  shall  nominate four candidates and the
 chief executive officer representing  the  county  shall  nominate  four
 candidates for consideration. If such facility is proposed to be located
 outside  of the city of New York and in a village located within a town,
 the chief executive officer representing the town  shall  nominate  four
 candidates,  the  chief  executive officer representing the county shall
 nominate four candidates, and the chief executive  officer  representing
 the  village  shall  nominate four candidates for consideration. If such
 facility is proposed to be located in the city of New York,  the  chair-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD13658-04-9

 S. 6774                             2
 
 person  of  the community board, the borough president, and the mayor of
 the city of New York shall each nominate four candidates  for  consider-
 ation.  Nominations  shall  be submitted to the president pro tem of the
 senate and the speaker of the assembly within fifteen days of receipt of
 notification  of  the  pre-application preliminary scoping statement. In
 the event that the president pro tem of the senate does not appoint  one
 of  the  candidates within thirty days of such nominations, the governor
 shall appoint the ad hoc member  from  the  list  of  candidates  WITHIN
 FORTY-FIVE DAYS.  In the event that the speaker of the assembly does not
 appoint  one  of  the candidates within thirty days of such nominations,
 the governor shall appoint the ad hoc member from the list of candidates
 WITHIN FORTY-FIVE DAYS.  [In the event that one or both of  the  ad  hoc
 public members have not been appointed within forty-five days, a majori-
 ty of persons named to the board shall constitute a quorum.]
   (B)  IN THE EVENT THAT ONE OR BOTH OF THE AD HOC MEMBERS HAVE NOT BEEN
 APPOINTED, PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (A)  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION,  THE  CHAIR
 SHALL, WITHIN THIRTY DAYS, NOTIFY ALL PARTIES REQUIRED TO BE NOTIFIED OF
 THE  PRE-APPLICATION  PRELIMINARY SCOPING STATEMENT OF THE STATUS OF THE
 CANDIDATES SUBMITTED. THE STATE SENATOR OR SENATORS AND  STATE  ASSEMBLY
 MEMBER  OR  MEMBERS  WHO  REPRESENT  THE  DISTRICTS WHEREIN THE PROPOSED
 PROJECT IS PLANNED SHALL ALSO BE NOTIFIED OF THE STATUS  OF  THE  CANDI-
 DATES SUBMITTED.
   (C)  IF  ONE  OR  BOTH  OF  THE AD HOC MEMBERS HAVE NOT BEEN APPOINTED
 PURSUANT TO  PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, THEN THE  STATE  SENATOR
 OR  SENATORS  AND  STATE  ASSEMBLY  MEMBER  OR MEMBERS WHO REPRESENT THE
 DISTRICTS WHEREIN THE PROPOSED PROJECT IS PLANNED SHALL BE AUTHORIZED TO
 APPOINT AD HOC MEMBERS FROM THE LISTS OF  CANDIDATES  SUBMITTED  IN  THE
 SAME  MANNER  AS  THE PRESIDENT PRO TEM OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF
 THE ASSEMBLY.
   (D) UPON THE APPOINTMENT OF ALL AD HOC MEMBERS, A MAJORITY OF  PERSONS
 NAMED TO THE BOARD SHALL CONSTITUTE A QUORUM.
   §  2.  This  act  shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all
 current and future ad hoc member openings on the New York state board on
 electric generation siting and the environment.

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Senate Bill S6774

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Sponsored By

Robert G. Ortt