NY State Senate Bill 2023-S2993

Senate Bill S2993

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Requires utility service providers to disclose planned rate increases to consumers within a certain amount of time

download bill text pdf

Current 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 03, 2024	referred to energy and telecommunications
Jan 26, 2023	referred to energy and telecommunications

2023-S2993 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Add §28, Pub Serv L; add §399-yyyy, Gen Bus L; amd §1020-cc, Pub Auth L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S6278

2023-S2993 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires utility service providers to disclose planned rate increases to consumers within thirty but no less than seven days before a planned price increase takes effect; requires utility providers to provide contact information and a mechanism to cancel service completely.

2023-S2993 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S2993

SPONSOR: HARCKHAM
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, the general business law and the
public authorities law, in relation to requiring utility service provid-
ers to disclose planned rate increases to consumers within a certain
amount of time

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation would require utility service providers to disclose
planned rate increases to consumers and to provide a mechanism to allow
the consumer to cancel service when notified of such a rate increase.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new section 28 to the public service law to require any
gas corporation, electric corporation, water corporation or munici-
pality, steam corporation or telephone corporation to disclose to a
consumer any planned rate increases for services within 30 but not more

than seven days before such planned increase. This information shall be
communicated in a clear and conspicuous manner. This notification shall
be outside of any billing statement via phone, e-mail, letter, text or
any combination thereof with the statement "This is a notification of a
planned increase for the services currently being rendered". This commu-
nication shall provide information on how a consumer can contact the
service provider and shall include a mechanism to allow a consumer to
cancel their service. Section 2 Amends the General Business Law to
require any cable or internet service provider to disclose to a consumer
any planned rate increases for services within 30 but not more than
seven days before such planned increase. This information shall be
communicated in a clear and conspicuous manner. This notification shall
be outside of any billing statement via phone, email, letter, text or
any combination thereof with the statement "This is a notification of a
planned increase for the services currently being rendered". This commu-
nication shall provide information on how a consumer can contact the
service provider and shall include a mechanism to allow for a consumer
to cancel their service.

Section 3 amends the public authorities law to require LIPA's service
provider to follow the provisions of Section 28 of the Public Service
Law. Section 4 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Now more than ever, consumers are experiencing frustration when looking
at a utility bill with unexplained increases in costs.  Consumers are
often left searching through their bill, or any other correspondence
from their provider to see why prices are increasing.  This legislation
simply tries to inform consumers in a clear and conspicuous manner that
a rate increase will be occurring. The goal of this bill is to make it
as easy as possible for consumers to know that their bill will be chang-
ing- simply requiring a provider to send out a separate and clear commu-
nication of a rate increase is a simple means to achieve this important
consumer protection.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-2022: S6278/A9706 - Died in Energy and Telecommunications/Died on
Third Reading

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect in 180 days.

2023-S2993 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2993
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 26, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, the general business law and the
   public  authorities  law,  in  relation  to  requiring utility service
   providers to disclose planned rate increases  to  consumers  within  a
   certain amount of time
 
   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
 28 to read as follows:
   §  28. NOTICE OF PLANNED RATE INCREASE FOR SERVICES. 1. ANY GAS CORPO-
 RATION, ELECTRIC CORPORATION, WATER CORPORATION OR  MUNICIPALITY,  STEAM
 CORPORATION  OR TELEPHONE CORPORATION SHALL BE REQUIRED TO DISCLOSE TO A
 CONSUMER ANY PLANNED RATE INCREASE FOR SERVICES BEING RENDERED  TO  SUCH
 CONSUMER,  WITHIN THIRTY BUT NO LESS THAN SEVEN DAYS BEFORE SUCH PLANNED
 RATE INCREASE TAKES EFFECT.
   2. (A) ANY NOTIFICATION OF A PLANNED RATE INCREASE  PURSUANT  TO  THIS
 SECTION SHALL BE COMMUNICATED TO THE CONSUMER IN A CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS
 METHOD WHICH IS SUFFICIENT TO ALERT SUCH CONSUMER THAT SUCH PLANNED RATE
 INCREASE IS OCCURRING.
   (B)  A  CONSUMER SHALL BE NOTIFIED IN A SEPARATE COMMUNICATION OUTSIDE
 OF ANY BILLING  STATEMENT  VIA  PHONE,  ELECTRONIC  MAIL,  LETTER,  TEXT
 MESSAGE OR ANY COMBINATION THEREOF THAT INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT
 "THIS  IS  A  NOTIFICATION  OF  A PLANNED RATE INCREASE FOR THE SERVICES
 CURRENTLY BEING RENDERED".  INCLUSION OF SUCH NOTIFICATION  AS  PART  OF
 ANY BILLING STATEMENT SHALL NOT CONSTITUTE COMPLIANCE WITH THIS SECTION.
   3.  ANY  GAS  CORPORATION,  ELECTRIC CORPORATION, WATER CORPORATION OR
 MUNICIPALITY, STEAM CORPORATION OR TELEPHONE CORPORATION  SHALL  PROVIDE
 WITH  ANY  NOTIFICATION  OF A PLANNED RATE INCREASE INFORMATION ON HOW A
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05712-01-3
 S. 2993                             2

 
 CONSUMER CAN CONTACT THE SERVICE PROVIDER AND SHALL ALSO INCLUDE A MECH-
 ANISM TO ALLOW FOR A CONSUMER TO CANCEL THEIR SERVICE ALTOGETHER.
   §  2. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 399-
 yyyy to read as follows:
   § 399-YYYY. NOTICE OF PLANNED RATE INCREASES FOR  CABLE  AND  INTERNET
 SERVICES.  1.  ANY CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY OR INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER
 SHALL BE REQUIRED TO DISCLOSE TO A CONSUMER ANY  PLANNED  RATE  INCREASE
 FOR  SERVICES BEING RENDERED TO SUCH CONSUMER, WITHIN THIRTY BUT NO LESS
 THAN SEVEN DAYS BEFORE SUCH PLANNED RATE INCREASE TAKES EFFECT.
   2. (A) ANY NOTIFICATION OF A PLANNED RATE INCREASE  PURSUANT  TO  THIS
 SECTION SHALL BE COMMUNICATED TO THE CONSUMER IN A CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS
 METHOD WHICH IS SUFFICIENT TO ALERT SUCH CONSUMER THAT SUCH PLANNED RATE
 INCREASE IS OCCURRING.
   (B)  A  CONSUMER SHALL BE NOTIFIED IN A SEPARATE COMMUNICATION OUTSIDE
 OF ANY BILLING  STATEMENT  VIA  PHONE,  ELECTRONIC  MAIL,  LETTER,  TEXT
 MESSAGE OR ANY COMBINATION THEREOF THAT INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT
 "THIS  IS  A  NOTIFICATION  OF  A PLANNED RATE INCREASE FOR THE SERVICES
 CURRENTLY BEING RENDERED". INCLUSION OF SUCH NOTIFICATION AS PART OF ANY
 BILLING STATEMENT SHALL NOT CONSTITUTE COMPLIANCE WITH THIS SECTION.
   3. ANY CABLE TELEVISION COMPANY OR  INTERNET  SERVICE  PROVIDER  SHALL
 PROVIDE  WITH ANY NOTIFICATION OF A PLANNED RATE INCREASE INFORMATION ON
 HOW A CONSUMER CAN CONTACT THE SERVICE PROVIDER AND SHALL ALSO INCLUDE A
 MECHANISM TO ALLOW FOR A CONSUMER TO CANCEL THEIR SERVICE ALTOGETHER.
   § 3. Section 1020-cc of the  public  authorities  law  is  amended  by
 adding a new subdivision 3 to read as follows:
   3.  SERVICE  PROVIDERS  SHALL  BE SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION
 TWENTY-EIGHT OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE LAW.
   § 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.

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