NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8895

Senate Bill S8895

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Requires electric companies to provide alternative measures to ensure customers with documented need for essential electricity for medical needs have access to electricity during power outages

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules 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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Aug 11, 2020	referred to rules

co-Sponsors

2019-S8895 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A11017
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §66, Pub Serv L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S928, A3042
2023-2024: A538

2019-S8895 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires electric companies to provide alternative measures to ensure customers with documented need for essential electricity for medical needs have access to electricity during power outages; requires electric companies to provide generators or lodging for such individuals and transportation for medical devices; prohibits electric companies from passing costs for such alternative measures on to rate payers.

2019-S8895 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8895

SPONSOR: KAPLAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to requiring elec-
tric companies to provide alternative measures to ensure customers with
documented need for essential electricity for medical needs are able to
maintain their health and well-being during power outages

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation would require that those electric customers who docu-
ment their need for essential electricity for medical needs will be
provided alternative measures to ensure their health and well-being if
power cannot adequately be provided.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

This legislation amends Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of subdivi-
sion 21 of section 66 of the public service law, as added by section 4

of part X of chapter 57 of the laws of 2013 to require that those elec-
tric customers who document their need for essential electricity for
medical needs will be provided alternative measures to ensure their
health and well-being if power cannot adequately be provided. These
provisions include electric generators or lodging for the individual as
well as transportation for their medical devices as needed. This section
also clarifies that any cost incurred shall not be borne by rate payers.

Section 2 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Under law, electric companies are required to identify and have an
outreach plan for customers who have documented their need for essential
electricity due to their medical needs, however there is no priority
guarantee of power restoration. This legislation seeks to provide alter-
native measures to these individuals who are dependent on electricity to
meet their medical needs. Superstorm Sandy, and now Tropical Storm Isai-
as have shown us the critical need for fail safe measures to be in place
to save these individuals lives. This legislation ensures that if a
power outage occurs and that outage will impact the health and well-be-
ing of a medically needy individual there are other means to continue
their necessary treatment. Simply, this legislation will save lives.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S8895 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8895
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              August 11, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  KAPLAN -- 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  requiring  elec-
   tric  companies  to  provide  alternative measures to ensure customers
   with documented need for essential electricity for medical  needs  are
   able to maintain their health and well-being during power outages

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of  subdivision  21  of
 section 66 of the public service law, as added by section 4 of part X of
 chapter 57 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
   (iii)  identification of and outreach plans to customers who had docu-
 mented their need for essential electricity for medical needs, INCLUDING
 PROVISIONS REGARDING HOW SUCH CUSTOMERS WILL BE PROVIDED  WITH  ALTERNA-
 TIVE  MEASURES  TO  ENSURE  THEIR  HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IF POWER CANNOT
 ADEQUATELY BE PROVIDED. SUCH PROVISIONS SHALL INCLUDE PROVIDING ELECTRIC
 GENERATORS OR LODGING FOR THE INDIVIDUAL REQUIRING SUCH ESSENTIAL  ELEC-
 TRICITY  FOR  MEDICAL  NEEDS  AND  SHALL  ALSO INCLUDE TRANSPORTATION OF
 MEDICAL DEVICES, AS NEEDED. SUCH PROVISIONS SHALL ALSO SPECIFY THAT  ANY
 COST INCURRED BY AN ELECTRIC COMPANY IN PROVIDING SUCH ALTERNATIVE MEAS-
 URES SHALL NOT BE BORNE BY RATE PAYERS;
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17095-01-0

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Senate Bill S8895

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Sponsored By

Anna M. Kaplan