NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8896

Senate Bill S8896

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Provides a discount to consumers of certain utilities for failure to provide contracted services

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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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Aug 11, 2020	referred to rules

co-Sponsors

2019-S8896 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A11020
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Add §119-d, Pub Serv L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S929, A3044
2023-2024: A196

2019-S8896 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides a discount to consumers who have a contract for service with a gas corporation, electric corporation, gas and electric corporation, water corporation, steam corporation, telegraph corporation, telephone corporation, cable television company, internet service provider or a municipality rendering equivalent utility services for failure to provide contracted services for a period of at least twenty-four hours.

2019-S8896 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8896

SPONSOR: KAPLAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to providing a
discount to consumers of certain utilities for failure to provide
contracted services

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation creates a discount on a consumer's bills for every day
they are without service for a period of time of every 24 hours.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new section 119-d to the public service law to provide
a consumer with a reduction of monthly charges by a percentage that is
equal to the number of days of the billing cycle divided by the number
of days such contracted service was not provided to the consumer. This
legislation covers gas corporations, electric corporations, gas and

electric corporation, water corporation, steam corporation, telegraph
corporation, telephone corporation, cable television company, Internet
service provider, or municipality rendering an equivalent service.

Section 2 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

When a consumer does not receive services they depend on, they are
understandably frustrated as they wait for those services to be fixed
and they are able to make use of these services.  As can be expected the
longer the delay, the greater the anger and frustration a consumer will
feel. Hopefully upon service restoration they find themselves deescalat-
ing and again enjoying the services they have contracted for. However,
imagine their feelings when they open their service bill and see that
they are being charged for services that they were unable to access,
this is unconscionable.  This legislation seeks to address this concern,
by giving that individual a discount on their bill based on the amount
of time contracted services were not available to them.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S8896 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8896
 
                             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  providing  a
   discount  to  consumers  of  certain  utilities for failure to provide
   contracted services
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The public service law is amended by adding a new section
 119-d to read as follows:
   § 119-D. FAILURE TO PROVIDE CONTRACTED SERVICES. A CONSUMER WHO HAS  A
 CONTRACT  FOR  SERVICE WITH A GAS CORPORATION, ELECTRIC CORPORATION, GAS
 AND ELECTRIC CORPORATION, WATER CORPORATION,  STEAM  CORPORATION,  TELE-
 GRAPH  CORPORATION,  TELEPHONE  CORPORATION,  CABLE  TELEVISION COMPANY,
 INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER OR A MUNICIPALITY RENDERING EQUIVALENT UTILITY
 SERVICES SHALL BE ENTITLED TO A DISCOUNT WHEN THE SERVICE SUCH  CONSUMER
 HAS CONTRACTED FOR IS NOT PROVIDED FOR BY SUCH GAS CORPORATION, ELECTRIC
 CORPORATION,  GAS  AND  ELECTRIC  CORPORATION,  WATER CORPORATION, STEAM
 CORPORATION, TELEGRAPH CORPORATION, TELEPHONE CORPORATION,  CABLE  TELE-
 VISION  COMPANY,  INTERNET  SERVICE PROVIDER OR A MUNICIPALITY RENDERING
 EQUIVALENT UTILITY SERVICES FOR A PERIOD OF AT LEAST TWENTY-FOUR  HOURS.
 SUCH  DISCOUNT  SHALL BE APPLIED TO THE MONTHLY CHARGES ASSESSED BY SUCH
 GAS CORPORATION, ELECTRIC CORPORATION,  GAS  AND  ELECTRIC  CORPORATION,
 WATER  CORPORATION,  STEAM CORPORATION, TELEGRAPH CORPORATION, TELEPHONE
 CORPORATION, CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY, INTERNET SERVICE  PROVIDER  OR  A
 MUNICIPALITY  RENDERING  EQUIVALENT  UTILITY  SERVICES  BY REDUCING SUCH
 MONTHLY CHARGES BY A PERCENTAGE THAT IS EQUAL TO THE NUMBER OF  DAYS  OF
 THE  BILLING CYCLE DIVIDED BY THE NUMBER OF DAYS SUCH CONTRACTED SERVICE
 WAS NOT PROVIDED TO THE CONSUMER.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17096-02-0

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Senate Bill S8896

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Sponsored By

Anna M. Kaplan