S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8626--A
I N S E N A T E
February 22, 2024
___________
Introduced by Sens. MANNION, ADDABBO, GOUNARDES, HARCKHAM, JACKSON,
PARKER, RAMOS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to
be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommunications --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to call centers for
gas and electric corporations
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 13 of section 65 of
the public service law, paragraph (a) as added by chapter 330 of the
laws of 2010 and paragraph (b) as amended by chapter 520 of the laws of
2014, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Every gas corporation or electric corporation furnishing utility
services shall provide the following call center customer assistance
receiving inquiries AND ASSOCIATED OFFICE TASKS BY PHONE, IN WRITING, OR
ANY ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO EMAILS,
TEXTS, AND CHATS on: customer financial responsibility; receiving APPLI-
CATION requests to initiate or terminate service; receiving requests for
emergency services; SHARED METERING; determining deposit required or
billing rate; receiving meter and service orders and access to meter
requests; explaining company rates, regulations, policies, procedures,
and common practices; initiating trouble order forms and high bill
investigations; INBOUND AND/OR OUTBOUND handling OF payment and other
credit arrangements such as obtaining deposits, financial statements and
payment plans; COLLECTION ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES and referring customers
to social service agencies and other assistance programs. FOR PURPOSES
OF THIS SECTION, EACH INDIVIDUAL PHONE CALL, WRITING, EMAIL, TEXT, CHAT,
OR ANY OTHER COMMUNICATION SHALL COUNT AS AN INDEPENDENT INSTANCE OF
CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE, AND THEREFORE EACH SHALL TRIGGER A GAS OR ELECTRIC
CORPORATION'S DUTIES UNDER PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
(b) (I) No gas or electric corporation shall close a call center or
other facility providing the customer assistance set forth in paragraph
(a) of this subdivision or [relocate] SEND such customer assistance [to
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13564-06-4
S. 8626--A 2
another area of] OUTSIDE SUCH GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S New York
state SERVICE TERRITORY or outside of New York state without notice
[and], A hearing AND APPROVAL before the commission. Upon receipt of the
notice required pursuant to this paragraph, the commission shall provide
notice of the proceeding to interested parties and the public; and shall
promptly fix a date for the commencement of a public hearing thereon not
less than sixty days after such receipt. The testimony presented at such
hearing may be presented in writing or orally, provided that the commis-
sion may make rules designed to exclude repetitive, redundant or irrel-
evant testimony while giving all interested parties the opportunity to
present their documentary and/or testimonial evidence. The commission
shall make a record of all testimony in all contested hearings. THE
COMMISSION WITHIN THIRTY DAYS SHALL APPROVE OR DENY THE CLOSURE OF A
CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE OR THE RELO-
CATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES. For purposes of this
section "public hearing" means a public forum at a physical location,
attended by commission members or their designees, where oral testimony
is accepted and written testimony may be submitted for inclusion in the
record. Such forum shall be open to parties to the proceeding and the
general public for the presentation of comments that shall be limited to
relevant facts directly related to the proceeding in question. Such
hearing shall be commenced upon proper notice to the parties to the
proceeding and the public at least thirty days prior to the scheduled
date. SUCH HEARING SHALL BE CLOSED AFTER THE COMMISSION APPROVES OR
DENIES THE CLOSURE OF A CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER
SERVICE OR THE RELOCATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES. IN
NO EVENT SHALL A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S HISTORY OF SENDING
CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE OUTSIDE THE GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S NEW YORK
STATE SERVICE TERRITORY OR OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK STATE BE USED AS JUSTI-
FICATION FOR DOING SO AFTER THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF THE
LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-FOUR THAT AMENDED THIS PARAGRAPH TAKES
EFFECT. IT SHALL BE PERMISSIBLE FOR A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION TO
INITIATE WORK FLEXIBILITY POLICIES THAT ALLOW CALL CENTER EMPLOYEES TO
WORK FROM AN APPROVED ALTERNATIVE WORKSITE OTHER THAN A CALL CENTER
LOCATION. PROVIDED, HOWEVER, BEFORE A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION CAN
ESTABLISH POLICIES FOR ANY CALL CENTER EMPLOYEES THAT ARE REPRESENTED BY
A BONA FIDE LABOR ORGANIZATION THROUGH A COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE-
MENT, SUCH POLICIES MUST HAVE BEEN MUTUALLY AGREED TO BY THE CORPORATION
AND THE LABOR ORGANIZATION. SUCH POLICIES SHALL NOT VIOLATE THIS
SECTION.
(II) THE COMMISSION SHALL MAKE AVAILABLE A FORM ALLOWING AN ENTITY TO
TAKE AN ACTION AGAINST A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION THAT KNOWINGLY
FAILED OR NEGLECTED TO OBEY OR COMPLY WITH THIS SECTION. UPON RECEIPT OF
SUCH FORM, IT SHALL COMMENCE A PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE IF A CALL CENTER
OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE WAS CLOSED OR CUSTOMER
SERVICE ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES WERE RELOCATED OUTSIDE NEW YORK STATE WITH-
OUT NOTICE, HEARING, AND APPROVAL BEFORE THE COMMISSION. PURSUANT TO
THIS PARAGRAPH, THE COMMISSION SHALL PROVIDE NOTICE OF SUCH PROCEEDING
TO INTERESTED PARTIES AND THE PUBLIC AND SHALL PROMPTLY FIX A DATE FOR
THE COMMENCEMENT OF A PUBLIC HEARING THEREON NOT LESS THAN SIXTY DAYS
AFTER SUCH RECEIPT. THE TESTIMONY PRESENTED AT SUCH HEARING MAY BE
PRESENTED IN WRITING OR ORALLY, PROVIDED THAT THE COMMISSION MAY MAKE
RULES DESIGNED TO EXCLUDE REPETITIVE, REDUNDANT OR IRRELEVANT TESTIMONY
WHILE GIVING ALL PARTIES THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT THEIR DOCUMENTARY
AND/OR TESTIMONIAL EVIDENCE. THE COMMISSION SHALL A MAKE RECORD OF ALL
TESTIMONY IN ALL CONTESTED HEARINGS. THE COMMISSION SHALL WITHIN THIRTY
S. 8626--A 3
DAYS MAKE A DETERMINATION IF SUCH GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION WAS IN
VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION.
§ 2. Section 25 of the public service law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 4-a to read as follows:
4-A. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS
SECTION, ANY SUCH PUBLIC UTILITY COMPANY, CORPORATION OR PERSON AND THE
OFFICERS, AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES THEREOF THAT KNOWINGLY FAILS OR NEGLECTS
TO OBEY OR COMPLY WITH SECTION SIXTY-FIVE OF THIS CHAPTER, OR AN ORDER
OR REGULATION ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION SIXTY-FIVE OF THIS CHAPTER, OR
SUCH PUBLIC UTILITY COMPANY, CORPORATION OR PERSON AND THE OFFICERS,
AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES THEREOF KNOWINGLY SENDS A CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE
INQUIRY OUTSIDE A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S NEW YORK STATE SERVICE
TERRITORY OR OUTSIDE THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT NOTICE, A HEARING AND
APPROVAL BEFORE THE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO SECTION SIXTY-FIVE OF THIS
CHAPTER, SHALL FORFEIT TO THE STATE OF NEW YORK A SUM NOT TO EXCEED THE
GREATER OF:
(A) FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS CONSTITUTING A CIVIL PENALTY FOR EACH SEPA-
RATE AND DISTINCT CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRY SENT OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK AND
ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS CONSTITUTING A CIVIL PENALTY FOR EACH DAY A
CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING THE CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE IS
CLOSED; OR
(B) THE MAXIMUM FORFEITURE DETERMINED IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUBDIVISION
TWO OF THIS SECTION.
§ 3. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of
competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in
its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
the legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such
invalid provisions had not been included herein.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all
actions or proceedings commenced on or after the effective date of this
act.
