NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8695

Senate Bill S8695

2023-2024 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

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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 01, 2024	referred to energy and telecommunications

2023-S8695 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A538
Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §66, Pub Serv L; amd §1020-f, Pub Auth L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: A11017
2021-2022: A3042

2023-S8695 (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.

2023-S8695 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8695

SPONSOR: CLEARE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law and the public authorities law,
in relation to requiring electric companies to provide alternative meas-
ures to ensure customers are able to maintain their health and well-be-
ing during power outages

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

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 PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends 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 to require that those electric custom-

ers who document their need for essential electricity for medical needs
will be provided alternative measures to ensure their health and wellbe-
ing if power cannot adequately be provided.  These provisions include
electric generators or lodging for the individual as well as transporta-
tion of their medical devices as needed. This section also clarifies
that any cost incurred shall not be borne by rate payers.

Section 2 amends paragraph 1 of subdivision (cc) of section 1020-f of
the public authorities law, as added by section 7 of part A of chapter
173 of the laws of 2013 requiring service providers' emergency response
plans to include provisions regarding how customers will be provided
with alternate measures to ensure their health and well-being if power
cannot adequately be provided. These provisions include electric genera-
tors or lodging for any individual as well as transportation of their
medical devices as needed.

Section 3 sets 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, Tropical Storm Isaias and
Hurricane Ida 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-being of a medically needy individual there are other means to
continue their necessary treatment. Simply put, this legislation will
save lives.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2019-20: A11017-Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions

2021-22: A3042-Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8695 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8695
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 1, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  CLEARE -- 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 and the public authorities law,
   in relation to requiring electric  companies  to  provide  alternative
   measures  to  ensure  customers  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 separately amended by  chapters
 395  and  743 of the laws of 2022 and chapter 38 of the laws of 2023, 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, which
 shall include but not be limited to, apnea monitors for infants, cuirass
 respirators, hemodialysis machines,  IV  feeding  machines,  IV  medical
 infusion  machines, oxygen concentrators, positive pressure respirators,
 respirator/ventilators, rocking bed respirators, suction  machines,  and
 tank  type  respirators.  SUCH  OUTREACH  PLANS SHALL INCLUDE PROVISIONS
 REGARDING HOW SUCH CUSTOMERS WILL BE PROVIDED WITH ALTERNATIVE  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  ELECTRICITY  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 MEASURES SHALL NOT BE
 BORNE BY RATE PAYERS;
   § 2. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (cc) of section 1020-f of  the  public
 authorities  law,  as  separately  amended by chapter 395 of the laws of
 2022 and chapter 38 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
   1. The service provider shall, in  consultation  with  the  authority,
 prepare  and  maintain  an  emergency  response  plan  (i) to assure the
 reasonably prompt restoration of service in the  case  of  an  emergency
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD01666-05-4
 S. 8695                             2
 
 event,  defined for purposes of this subdivision as an event where wide-
 spread outages have occurred in the authority's service territory due to
 a storm or other causes beyond the control  of  the  authority  and  the
 service provider, (ii) consistent with the requirements of paragraph (a)
 of subdivision twenty-one of section sixty-six of the public service law
 and  any  regulations and orders adopted thereto, and (iii) establishing
 the separate responsibilities of the  authority  and  service  provider.
 Such  emergency  response plan shall include plans setting forth how the
 communication and coordination of efforts between the authority, service
 provider, authority employees,  service  provider  employees,  authority
 company  crews,  service provider company crews, mutual aid crews, other
 utilities, local governments and any service provider  or  other  entity
 performing services to assist the authority shall occur.  Such emergency
 response  plan  shall  include  identification of and outreach plans for
 customers who have documented their need for essential  electricity  for
 medical needs, which shall include but not be limited to, apnea monitors
 for  infants,  cuirass  respirators,  hemodialysis machines, intravenous
 feeding machines, intravenous medical infusion machines, oxygen  concen-
 trators, positive pressure respirators, respirators/ventilators, rocking
 bed  respirators,  suction  machines,  and  tank  type respirators. SUCH
 OUTREACH PLANS SHALL ALSO INCLUDE  PROVISIONS  REGARDING  HOW  CUSTOMERS
 WILL  BE  PROVIDED  WITH ALTERNATIVE MEASURES TO ENSURE THEIR HEALTH AND
 WELL-BEING IF POWER CANNOT ADEQUATELY BE PROVIDED. SUCH PROVISIONS SHALL
 INCLUDE PROVIDING ELECTRIC GENERATORS  OR  LODGING  FOR  ANY  INDIVIDUAL
 REQUIRING ESSENTIAL ELECTRICITY FOR MEDICAL NEEDS AND SHALL ALSO INCLUDE
 TRANSPORTATION OF MEDICAL DEVICES, AS NEEDED.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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