NY State Senate Bill 2021-S2671

Senate Bill S2671

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Relates to carbon dioxide allowances for biomass-fired electric generating facilities under the carbon dioxide budget trading program

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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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 05, 2022	referred to energy and telecommunications
Jan 22, 2021	referred to energy and telecommunications

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2021-S2671 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Add §73, Pub Serv L; amd §1854, Pub Auth L; amd §19-0312, En Con L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2013-2014: S6499
2015-2016: S4529
2017-2018: S6063
2019-2020: S1431

2021-S2671 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes that electric generating facilities that use biomass for more than 50% of its annual heat input shall not be required to obtain carbon dioxide allowances for carbon dioxide emissions attributable to the burning of biomass under the carbon dioxide budget trading program.

2021-S2671 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S2671

SPONSOR: RITCHIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, the public authorities law, and
the environmental conservation law, in relation to biomass-fired elec-
tric generating facilities subject to the regional greenhouse gas initi-
ative and the CO2 budget trading program

 
PURPOSE:

To encourage existing coal-fired electricity generating facilities to
convert to combusting biomass.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Declares the Legislature's intent.

Section 2: Adds section 73 to the public service law.

Section 3: Amends section 1854 of the public authorities law by adding a
new subdivision 22.

Section 4: Amends section 19-0321 of the environmental conservation law
by adding a new subdivision 4.

Section 5: States that the act shall take effect ninety days after this
bill shall have become law. Section five also authorizes the Department
of Environmental Conservation to amend or repeal any regulation neces-
sary for the implementation of the act.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

New York State's Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative effort to reduce
pollution and CO2 emissions by encouraging the development of renewable
energy sources has shown that a market-based approach can result in a
cleaner environment and economic growth. Encouraging investment in
locally produced renewable energy sources such as biomass has helped
reduce New York's dependency on fossil fuels while spurring the upstate
economy. Converting coal-fired electric generating facilities to use
biomass, such as the recent transformation at Fort Drum's military
installation, can also spur New York's upstate economy by creating new
forestry-based jobs harvesting waste wood and low value wood products.

The combustion of biomass offers a sustainable and manageable carbon
lifecycle since the materials included in biomass generally absorb atmo-
spheric carbon during their lifecycle and then return it to the atmos-
phere during combustion. This process mimics the natural lifecycle of
plant life that can fall to the forest floor, decompose and return its
carbon to the atmosphere. Expanding the use of biomass as a renewable
energy source helps support more than four thousand jobs employed
directly or indirectly by the industry.

In fact, many of the largest and more successful biomass facilities are
located in New York State's rural areas that have high unemployment and
are in desperate need of new jobs and economic growth. New York State
also possesses an abundance of biomass fuel due to the large amount of
untapped forest and agricultural land where biomass fuel can be
collected. Biomass is the equivalent of solar energy stored in organic
matter and is environmentally friendly while costing around one third of
the cost of fossil fuels.

New York's RGGI policies already encourage the development of new biom-
ass-fired electric generating facilities. However, the state can help
encourage more conversions of coal-fired facilities (boilers, combustion
turbines, or combined cycle systems) to environmentally friendly biomass
systems by treating conversions in the same manner as a new facility.

To remedy this situation, and consistent with the intent of RGGI to
encourage more renewable energy generation, the legislature declares
that formerly coal-fired electric generating facilities that convert to
primarily biomass-fired facilities shall be treated in the same manner
as a new biomass facility under the RGGI regulations.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2019-2020: S1431

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect within 90 days.

2021-S2671 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2671
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 22, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. RITCHIE, GRIFFO -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and  Tele-
   communications
 
 AN  ACT to amend the public service law, the public authorities law, and
   the environmental conservation law, in relation to biomass-fired elec-
   tric generating facilities subject  to  the  regional  greenhouse  gas
   initiative and the CO2 budget trading program
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Legislative  intent.  The  legislature  hereby  finds  and
 declares  that  it is in the economic and environmental interests of the
 citizens of the state of New York to  support  and  encourage  renewable
 energy generation through the conversion of coal-fired electric generat-
 ing  facilities  to  biomass-fired facilities. The combustion of biomass
 offers a sustainable and manageable carbon lifecycle since the materials
 included in biomass generally absorb  atmospheric  carbon  during  their
 lifecycle  and then return it to the atmosphere during combustion.  This
 process mimics the natural lifecycle of plant life that can fall to  the
 forest floor, decompose and return its carbon to the atmosphere.
   The  legislature  further  finds  and declares that biomass production
 facilities support and sustain jobs, particularly in upstate  New  York,
 where more than four thousand people are employed directly or indirectly
 by  the industry. In fact, many of the largest and most successful biom-
 ass facilities are located in parts of New York  state  that  have  high
 unemployment and are in desperate need of economic development. New York
 state  also  possesses  an  abundance  of  biomass fuel due to the large
 amount of untapped forest and agricultural land where biomass  fuel  can
 be collected. Biomass is the equivalent of solar energy stored in organ-
 ic matter and is environmentally friendly while costing around one third
 of the cost of fossil fuels.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06238-01-1

 S. 2671                             2
 
   As  such,  to the extent that operators of electric generating facili-
 ties in New York state are willing to convert formerly coal-fired facil-
 ities (boilers, combustion  turbines,  or  combined  cycle  systems)  to
 instead  be fueled by biomass, state policy should encourage and support
 such  conversions  rather  than discourage them. While new biomass-fired
 electric generating facilities are not required to  acquire  CO2  allow-
 ances  under  the  regulations  implementing the Regional Greenhouse Gas
 Initiative (RGGI) in New York state, former coal-fired  facilities  that
 convert  to  combusting biomass are still subject to RGGI's requirements
 under existing regulations, which effectively discourages  such  conver-
 sions.  To remedy this situation, and consistent with the intent of RGGI
 to encourage more renewable energy generation, the legislature  declares
 that  formerly coal-fired electric generating facilities that convert to
 primarily biomass-fired facilities shall be treated in the  same  manner
 as a new biomass facility under the RGGI regulations.
   §  2.  The public service law is amended by adding a new section 73 to
 read as follows:
   § 73. COOPERATION WITH THE NEW YORK STATE ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOP-
 MENT AUTHORITY AND THE DEPARTMENT  OF  ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION.  THE
 DEPARTMENT  SHALL  COOPERATE WITH THE NEW YORK STATE ENERGY RESEARCH AND
 DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY AND THE DEPARTMENT OF  ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION
 IN  THE  IMPLEMENTATION  OF  SUBDIVISION  FOUR OF SECTION 19-0312 OF THE
 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION LAW RELATING TO ELECTRIC  GENERATING  FACILI-
 TIES  THAT  ARE  SUBJECT TO THE CO2 BUDGET TRADING PROGRAM (6 NYCRR PART
 242) ESTABLISHED BY THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION  IN
 CONNECTION WITH THE REGIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS INITIATIVE.
   § 3. Section 1854 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 22 to read as follows:
   22.  COOPERATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION AND
 THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SERVICE. THE AUTHORITY SHALL COOPERATE WITH THE
 DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION AND THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  PUBLIC
 SERVICE  IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SECTION 19-0312 OF
 THE ENVIRONMENTAL  CONSERVATION  LAW  RELATING  TO  ELECTRIC  GENERATING
 FACILITIES  THAT  ARE SUBJECT TO THE CO2 BUDGET TRADING PROGRAM (6 NYCRR
 PART 242) ESTABLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION IN
 CONNECTION WITH THE REGIONAL GREENHOUSE GAS INITIATIVE.
   § 4. Section 19-0312 of the environmental conservation law is  amended
 by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
   4.  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY LAW, RULE, REGULATION OR POLICY TO THE CONTRA-
 RY, AN ELECTRIC GENERATING FACILITY  INCLUDING  ANY  BOILER,  COMBUSTION
 TURBINE  OR  COMBINATION CYCLE SYSTEM, THAT A. WAS FORMERLY FOSSIL FUEL-
 FIRED DUE TO THE USE OF COAL AS ITS PRIMARY FUEL,
   B. IS NO LONGER AUTHORIZED TO COMBUST  COAL  UNDER  ITS  AIR  TITLE  V
 FACILITY  PERMIT  ISSUED  BY  THE DEPARTMENT PURSUANT TO 6 NYCRR SUBPART
 201-6,
   C. USES ELIGIBLE BIOMASS FOR MORE THAN FIFTY  PERCENT  OF  ITS  ANNUAL
 HEAT INPUT, AND
   D.  USES  FOSSIL  FUEL  FOR  LESS THAN FIVE PERCENT OF ITS ANNUAL HEAT
 INPUT, SHALL NOT BE DEFINED AS FOSSIL FUEL-FIRED UNDER  THE  CO2  BUDGET
 TRADING  PROGRAM  (6 NYCRR PART 242).  FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVI-
 SION:
   "BOILER", "COMBUSTION TURBINE",  "COMBINED  CYCLE  SYSTEM",  "ELIGIBLE
 BIOMASS"  AND  "FOSSIL FUEL" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANINGS AS ASCRIBED TO
 SUCH TERMS IN 6 NYCRR § 242-1.2.
   § 5. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have  become  a law and shall apply to all control periods commencing on

 S. 2671                             3
 
 or after January 1, 2012. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment
 and/or repeal of any rule or regulation by the  department  of  environ-
 mental  conservation necessary for the implementation of this act on its
 effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such
 effective date.

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Senate Bill S2671

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Sponsored By

Patty Ritchie