NY State Senate Bill 2023-S9960

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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Dec 13, 2024	referred to rules

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Environmental Conservation Law
Laws Affected:: Add Art 31 §§31-0101 - 31-0107, En Con L; add §1858-a, Pub Auth L; add Art 19 §§19-101 - 19-103, Energy L

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Regulates energy consumption by data centers; requires annual disclosure reporting; prohibits incentives in fossil fuel power purchase agreements with utilities; requires the public service commission to create a community discount plan to account for increased energy costs for customers with host communities and make data center operators responsible for subsidizing energy costs within such host community.

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S9960

SPONSOR: GONZALEZ
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the environmental conservation law, the public authori-
ties law and the energy law, in relation to regulation of energy
consumption by data centers

 
PURPOSE:

The purpose of this bill is to ensure that data centers do not negative-
ly impact the communities within which they are built and ensure that
New York State is able to continue promoting cutting-edge technology
while simultaneously reaching its climate goals set out in the Climate
Leadership and Community Protection Act.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Title.

Section 2. Legislative intent and findings.

Section 3. Amends the environmental conservation law. Requires operators
of data centers to disclose projected information regarding the data
center's location and organization, use of labor, energy usage, green-
house gas emissions, waste heat, water usage, and water pollution prior
to construction of the data center. Additionally requires operators of
data centers to hold public hearings prior to submitting their data
disclosure reports. Furthermore, requires data center operators to
submit annual updated reports regarding the in efforts to reduce emis-
sions, energy consumption, waste heat, and water usage, and their
efforts to protect the public from water pollution and scarcity.

Section 4. Amends the public authorities law to authorize the authority
to determine reasonable energy consumption effectiveness goals for the
creation and operation of data centers.

Section 5. Amends the energy law. Disallows utility providers from
providing economic incentives or discounts for fossil fuel power
purchase agreements. Requires by 2030, at least one-third of all energy
used by data center operators must come from renewable energy sources,
achieved through exclusive power purchase agreements for renewable ener-
gy, at least two-thirds renewable energy by 2035, and by 2050, all ener-
gy used by data centers must be provided through power purchase agree-
ments for renewable energy. Authorizes the public service commission to
create a community discount plan to counteract increased energy costs
for regular customers due to a new data center's operations.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In 2021, data center operations accounted for around 1.8% of electricity
use in the United States, roughly equivalent to the electricity consump-
tion of the entirety of New Jersey. The expansion of artificial intelli-
gence has caused and will continue to cause increased demand for the
already rapidly growing use of data centers. In the age of climate
change, artificial intelligence exacerbates our need for energy as it is
much more energy-intensive than typical cloud-based applications. For

example, a ChatGPT query needs almost 10 times as much electricity as a
Google search.

Additionally, approximately 0.5% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions
could be attributed to data centers in 2021, and this number is project-
ed to increase tenfold by 2040. However, recent outside reports have
estimated that big tech companies have underreported their emissions and
that the real emissions are about 7.6 times higher than reported. This
underreporting is partially due to Big tech companies' use of third-par-
ty data centers from whom they rent data capacity, as Big tech companies
do not attribute the emissions caused by third-party data centers to
themselves.

This increasing prevalence of data centers and the lack of disclosure
from data center operators pose an extreme threat to the climate goals
in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. New York State
has set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels
by 40% by 2030. Not only will the creation of more data centers cause
additional energy usage and emissions, but the in lack of transparency
surrounding such emissions will directly interfere with New York State's
attempts to counteract those emissions and meet its climate goals.

This bill further aims to encourage data center operators to use renewa-
ble energy to operate data centers. Big tech data center operators
currently claim to be carbon neutral, partially through purchasing
renewable energy certificates. These certificates prove that Big tech
companies are buying renewable energy-generated electricity, but they do
not require the companies to use that electricity to power their facili-
ties. Big tech companies use this loophole to use vast amounts of fossil
fuel. This bill requires each operator to directly power its data
centers with renewable energy in amounts that align with New York
State's climate goals.

Lastly, because of data center growth, New York utilities may need to
increase annual energy generation between 7% to 26% above 2023 levels to
meet demand. This demand increase will directly affect the average
consumer, causing customer bills to increase incrementally each year
through 2032. Without considering data centers, customer electricity
bills increase annually by 79%, and data center operation will cause an
additional 1-2% increase yearly. Similar energy hikes have been seen
across the U.S., with data centers not paying for their fair share of
energy usage in states such as California.  In Santa Clara, California,
data center operation accounted for 82% of the city's electrical bills
in 2023, but the burden of that electricity usage fell upon Santa Clara
residents and small businesses.  This bill aims to protect New York
State customers from these bill hikes by providing utility discounts to
communities within which new data centers are created.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

N/A

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
90 days after the bill becomes law.

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9960
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             December 13, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GONZALEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, the public  authori-
   ties  law  and  the  energy  law,  in relation to regulation of energy
   consumption by data centers
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  This act shall be known and may be cited as the "New York
 state sustainable data centers act".
   § 2. Legislative intent and findings. The legislature finds that  data
 centers are significant energy and water consumers and contribute to air
 and  water pollution. The expansion and operation of data centers across
 the state impairs New York state's ability to achieve the benchmarks set
 out in the state's climate goals due to their significant use of  energy
 and  water  and  significant  emissions  of  greenhouse  gases generated
 through the power needs of their operation. Given the growing demand for
 the construction of data centers, there is a critical  need  to  improve
 the  energy  efficiency of data centers and reduce their energy consump-
 tion, water consumption, reliance on fossil fuels, and pollutant  expul-
 sion.    Additionally,  where  renewable  energy  is  used to power data
 centers, this act will ensure that such energy is being  used  responsi-
 bly,  with  the  interests  and health of the public in mind, especially
 concerning power purchase agreements between utility companies and  data
 center  operators  as they may not directly reduce emissions tied to the
 data center.
   § 3. The environmental conservation law is amended  by  adding  a  new
 article 31 to read as follows:
                                ARTICLE 31
               REGULATION OF DATA CENTER ENERGY CONSUMPTION
 SECTION 31-0101. DEFINITIONS.
         31-0103. DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORTS.
         31-0105. PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT.
         31-0107. ANNUAL DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORT UPDATES.
 § 31-0101. DEFINITIONS.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD16231-08-4
 S. 9960                             2
 
   FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS ARTICLE:
   1.  "CUSTOMER"  SHALL MEAN A HOMEOWNER OR TENANT RECEIVING ELECTRICITY
 OR NATURAL GAS AS A RETAIL CUSTOMER.
   2. "DATA CENTER" SHALL MEAN: (A) A STRUCTURE, GROUP OF STRUCTURES,  OR
 INFRASTRUCTURE  WITHIN  AN  EXISTING  STRUCTURE FOR THE CENTRAL HOUSING,
 INTERCONNECTION AND OPERATION  OF  INFORMATION  TECHNOLOGY  AND  NETWORK
 TELECOMMUNICATIONS  EQUIPMENT  FOR  THE  PROVISION OF DATA STORAGE, DATA
 PROCESSING, OR DATA TRANSPORT SERVICES; AND (B) ALL  RELATED  FACILITIES
 AND  INFRASTRUCTURE FOR POWER DISTRIBUTION, ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, COOL-
 ING AND SECURITY REQUIRED TO DELIVER THE DESIRED SERVICE WITH RESPECT TO
 THE SPECIFIC DATA CENTER, WHICH IS ONLY CONNECTED TO DATA CENTER  OPERA-
 TION AND WOULD NOT HAVE AN IMPACT ON AN ELECTRIC GRID.
   3.  "DATA  CENTER  OPERATOR" SHALL MEAN WHOEVER IS EITHER THE OWNER OF
 THE DATA CENTER OR HAS COMPARABLE RIGHTS OF  USE  OVER  A  DATA  CENTER,
 INCLUDING  ANY  PERSON  OR  ENTITY  RESPONSIBLE FOR ALLOCATING SPACE FOR
 EXTERNAL USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY  AND  NETWORK  TELECOMMUNICATIONS
 EQUIPMENT WITHIN A DATA CENTER.
   4.  "DATA  CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORT" SHALL MEAN THAT REPORT WHICH DATA
 CENTER OPERATORS MUST SUBMIT TO THE DEPARTMENT PRIOR TO CONSTRUCTION  OF
 A DATA CENTER, AS REQUIRED BY SECTION 31-0103 OF THIS ARTICLE.
   5. "DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES" SHALL MEAN: (A) AREAS BURDENED BY CUMU-
 LATIVE  ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND OTHER HAZARDS THAT CAN LEAD TO NEGA-
 TIVE PUBLIC HEALTH EFFECTS; (B) AREAS WITH CONCENTRATIONS OF PEOPLE THAT
 ARE OF LOW INCOME, HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT, HIGH RENT BURDEN,  LOW  LEVELS  OF
 HOME  OWNERSHIP,  LOW  LEVELS  OF  EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, OR MEMBERS OF
 GROUPS THAT HAVE HISTORICALLY EXPERIENCED DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF
 RACE OR ETHNICITY; AND (C) AREAS VULNERABLE TO THE  IMPACTS  OF  CLIMATE
 CHANGE SUCH AS FLOODING, STORM SURGES, AND URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECTS.
   6.   "EMPLOYEE" SHALL MEAN AN INDIVIDUAL WHO PERFORMS SERVICES FOR AND
 UNDER THE CONTROL AND DIRECTION OF AN EMPLOYER FOR WAGES OR OTHER REMUN-
 ERATION, OR NATURAL PERSONS EMPLOYED AS INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS TO CARRY
 OUT WORK IN FURTHERANCE OF AN EMPLOYER'S BUSINESS ENTERPRISE WHO ARE NOT
 THEMSELVES EMPLOYERS.
   7. "GREENHOUSE GAS" SHALL MEAN CARBON DIOXIDE, CARBON MONOXIDE,  METH-
 ANE,  NITROUS OXIDE, HYDROFLUOROCARBONS, PERFLUOROCARBONS, SULFUR HEXAF-
 LUORIDE, AND ANY OTHER SUBSTANCE  EMITTED  INTO  THE  AIR  THAT  MAY  BE
 REASONABLY  ANTICIPATED  TO CAUSE OR CONTRIBUTE TO ANTHROPOGENIC CLIMATE
 CHANGE.
   8. "HOST COMMUNITY" SHALL MEAN ANY MUNICIPALITY WITHIN  WHICH  A  DATA
 CENTER,  OR  ANY  PORTION  THEREOF,  HAS  BEEN DEVELOPED OR PROPOSED FOR
 DEVELOPMENT.
   9. "HYPERSCALE DATA CENTER" SHALL MEAN A DATA CENTER THAT TAKES UP TEN
 THOUSAND SQUARE FEET OR MORE AND USES AT LEAST FIVE THOUSAND SERVERS.
   10. "MICRO DATA CENTER" SHALL MEAN A  DATA  CENTER  THAT  IS  ENCLOSED
 WITHIN  ONE  STANDARD SERVER RACK AND DOES NOT SUPPORT CRITICAL LOADS OF
 MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED FIFTY KILOWATTS.
   11. "NEGATIVE IMPACT" SHALL MEAN ANY INCREASE IN GREENHOUSE GAS  EMIS-
 SIONS,  CONCENTRATION  OF PARTICULATES BEING INTRODUCED INTO NATURAL AND
 DRINKING WATER, NOISE POLLUTION OR ANY  OTHER  FORM  OF  POLLUTION  THAT
 WOULD DECREASE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN A HOST COMMUNITY.
   12.  "POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENT" SHALL MEAN THE AGREEMENTS BETWEEN DATA
 CENTER OPERATORS AND A UTILITY PROVIDER WHERE DATA CENTER OPERATORS  BUY
 AN  AMOUNT  OF EITHER RENEWABLE OR NON-RENEWABLE ENERGY OUTPUT FROM THAT
 POWER PLANT.
   13. "RENEWABLE ENERGY" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS "RENEWABLE ENER-
 GY SYSTEMS" AS DEFINED IN SECTION SIXTY-SIX-P OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE LAW.
 S. 9960                             3
 
   14. "UTILITY PROVIDER" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS "UTILITY  COMPA-
 NY" AS DEFINED IN SECTION TWO OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE LAW.
 § 31-0103. DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORTS.
   WHERE  A  PLANNED  DATA  CENTER  IS  PROJECTED TO HAVE THE CAPACITY TO
 CONSUME FIVE OR MORE MEGAWATTS AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT, A DATA CENTER OPERA-
 TOR SHALL SUBMIT A DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORT TO THE  PUBLIC  SERVICE
 COMMISSION  PRIOR TO COMMENCING ANY CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES RELATED TO A
 DATA CENTER. THE REPORT SHALL BE MADE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE VIA THE  PUBLIC
 SERVICE COMMISSION'S WEBSITE AND CONTAIN DATA INCLUDING:
   1. BASIC INFORMATION
   (A)  THE  HOST COMMUNITY OR COMMUNITIES IN WHICH THE DATA CENTER SHALL
 BE LOCATED; AND
   (B) THE ORGANIZATION OF THE PLANNED DATA CENTER AS A  SINGLE  OPERATOR
 ENTERPRISE  OR MANAGED DATA CENTER, COLOCATION FACILITY, HYPERSCALE DATA
 CENTER, MICRO DATA CENTER, OR A CONTAINER OR MODULAR DATA CENTER.
   2. LABOR
   THE NUMBER OF FULL-TIME AND PART-TIME EMPLOYEES THE DATA CENTER OPERA-
 TOR INTENDS TO EMPLOY AT THE PLANNED DATA CENTER AND RELEVANT DEMOGRAPH-
 IC INFORMATION INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
   (A) THE EDUCATION LEVELS OF THE EMPLOYEES INTENDED TO BE  EMPLOYED  AT
 THE PLANNED DATA CENTER, WITH PERCENTAGES INCLUDED FOR HIGHEST EDUCATION
 ACHIEVED  INCLUDING  HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA, ASSOCIATE'S DEGREE, BACHELOR'S
 DEGREE, AND HIGHER LEVEL OF EDUCATION; AND
   (B) THE PERCENTAGE OF EMPLOYEES RESIDING  IN  THE  HOST  COMMUNITY  OR
 COMMUNITIES.
   3. PROJECTED ENERGY USAGES
   (A) THE PROJECTED MEAN ENERGY USAGE OF THE PLANNED DATA CENTER PER DAY
 MEASURED IN KILOWATT-HOURS;
   (B)  THE PROJECTED MEAN AMOUNT OF ENERGY USAGE PER HOUR OF THE PLANNED
 DATA CENTER DURING PEAK LOAD MEASURED IN KILOWATT-HOURS AND  ANTICIPATED
 FREQUENCY OF PEAK LOAD PER WEEK;
   (C)  THE PROJECTED ANNUAL AMOUNT OF CARBON EMISSIONS PRODUCED TO POWER
 THE FACILITY, INCLUDING OFF-SITE EMISSIONS, MEASURED IN METRIC TONS;
   (D) THE PROJECTED ANNUAL AMOUNT OF GREENHOUSE GAS  EMISSIONS  PRODUCED
 ON-SITE MEASURED IN METRIC TONS;
   (E)  THE  PROJECTED ANNUAL AMOUNT OF WASTE HEAT PRODUCED ON-SITE MEAS-
 URED IN BRITISH THERMAL UNITS;
   (F) THE PROJECTED OVERALL PERCENTAGES OF ENERGY USED FOR THE  SPECIFIC
 DATA  CENTER,  CALCULATED  PRIOR TO CONSIDERING CARBON OFFSETS, THAT ARE
 GENERATED FROM FOSSIL FUEL,  RENEWABLE  ENERGY,  AND  NEITHER  RENEWABLE
 ENERGY  NOR FOSSIL FUEL FOR THAT YEAR, AND RELATED INFORMATION INCLUDING
 BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
   (I) THE PROJECTED TYPE OF ENERGY BEING USED  THAT  IS  NEITHER  FOSSIL
 FUEL NOR RENEWABLE ENERGY, WHERE APPLICABLE;
   (II) THE FORMS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY EXPECTED TO BE UTILIZED; AND
   (III)  THE  PROJECTED  PERCENTAGE OF ENERGY USAGE THAT IS FOSSIL FUEL,
 RENEWABLE ENERGY, AND NEITHER RENEWABLE ENERGY NOR FOSSIL FUEL WHERE THE
 DATA CENTER IS OPERATING AT PEAK; AND
   (G) THE PROJECTED ANNUAL AMOUNT OF  WASTE  HEAT  MEASURED  IN  BRITISH
 THERMAL UNITS BEING TRANSFORMED INTO ENERGY TO POWER THE DATA CENTER.
   4. PROJECTED WATER USAGE
   ONLY  WHERE  A  PLANNED  DATA  CENTER IS REQUIRED TO OBTAIN AND HOLD A
 WATER WITHDRAWAL PERMIT, THE DATA CENTER OPERATOR SHALL REPORT:
   (A) AMOUNT OF WATER PROJECTED TO BE USED ANNUALLY MEASURED IN  GALLONS
 AND HOW THAT WATER SHALL BE USED IN THE PLANNED DATA CENTER; AND
 S. 9960                             4
 
   (B)  MEAN  AMOUNT  OF  WATER  EXPECTED  TO  BE  USED DAILY MEASURED IN
 GALLONS.
   5. PROJECTED WATER POLLUTION
   (A) ANNUAL PROJECTED AMOUNT OF WATER BEING DEPOSITED INTO THE ENVIRON-
 MENT MEASURED IN GALLONS; AND
   (B) HOW WATER BEING REINTRODUCED INTO THE ENVIRONMENT WILL BE TREATED,
 IF  AT ALL, TO REMOVE POLLUTANTS AND/OR TO WHAT EXTENT WATER TEMPERATURE
 WILL BE ADJUSTED, IF AT ALL, BEFORE BEING REINTRODUCED INTO THE ENVIRON-
 MENT.
   6. ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES
   THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION AND THE DEPARTMENT MAY PROMULGATE  RULES
 REQUIRING ADDITIONAL POINTS OF DISCLOSURE, AS APPROPRIATE.
 § 31-0105. PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT.
   THE DATA CENTER OPERATOR SHALL HOLD AT LEAST TWO PUBLIC HEARINGS WITH-
 IN  SIXTY  DAYS PRIOR TO SUBMITTING ITS DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORT TO
 THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION. AT LEAST ONE OF THE TWO  PUBLIC  HEARINGS
 MUST  BE  HELD  WITHIN THE HOST COMMUNITY WHERE THE DATA CENTER OPERATOR
 PLANS TO CREATE ITS DATA CENTER.  THE DATA CENTER OPERATOR SHALL PROVIDE
 ADVANCE NOTICE TO RESIDENTS OF SUCH HOST COMMUNITY OF SUCH PUBLIC  HEAR-
 INGS.  SUCH  NOTICE  SHALL INCLUDE THE TIME, PLACE, AND LOCATION OF SUCH
 PUBLIC HEARINGS, A SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSED DATA CENTER PROJECT, AND  THE
 SPECIFIC  LOCATION  OF  THE  PLANNED  DATA  CENTER. METHODS OF PROVIDING
 NOTICE TO A HOST COMMUNITY SHALL INCLUDE, BUT SHALL NOT BE  LIMITED  TO,
 COVERAGE  ON  A LOCAL NEWS STATION AND WRITTEN NOTICE IN A LOCAL NEWSPA-
 PER. DURING A PUBLIC HEARING CONDUCTED PURSUANT  TO  THIS  SECTION,  THE
 DATA  CENTER  OPERATOR  MUST EXPLICITLY DISCLOSE THE ANTICIPATED IMPACTS
 THAT ITS DATA CENTER WILL HAVE ON  HOST  COMMUNITY  EMPLOYMENT  OPPORTU-
 NITIES,  AIR QUALITY, WATER USAGE, ELECTRICITY USAGE, AND WATER QUALITY,
 INCLUDING THE NUMBER OF NEW JOBS IT  WILL  CREATE  FOR  THE  SURROUNDING
 AREA,  AND  THE  CHANGES  IN AIR QUALITY IT EXPECTS TO CAUSE THROUGH ITS
 OPERATION, EXPRESSED IN PARTS PER MILLION AND THE PERCENTAGE OF WATER IT
 EXPECTS TO USE OF THE HOST COMMUNITY'S WATER  SUPPLY.    IT  SHALL  ALSO
 ADDRESS  THE  EFFORTS IT WILL MAKE TO REDUCE ANY NEGATIVE IMPACTS TO THE
 HOST COMMUNITY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT THAT  THE  PLANNED  DATA  CENTER  MAY
 CAUSE.
 § 31-0107. ANNUAL DATA CENTER DISCLOSURE REPORT UPDATES.
   1.  DATA CENTER OPERATORS SHALL SUBMIT UPDATED DATA DISCLOSURE REPORTS
 TO THE DEPARTMENT ANNUALLY, WHICH  THE  DEPARTMENT  SHALL  POST  ON  ITS
 WEBSITE.  DATA CENTER OPERATORS SHALL INCLUDE ALL CHANGES TO THE DISCLO-
 SURES REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SECTION 31-0103 OF THIS ARTICLE FROM YEAR-TO-
 YEAR. ADDITIONALLY, ANNUAL REPORTS SHALL INCLUDE  INFORMATION  REGARDING
 THE  DATA CENTER OPERATOR'S EFFORTS TOWARD GREATER ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND
 OVERALL SUSTAINABILITY THAT YEAR.   SUCH FINDINGS SHALL  BE  DRAFTED  IN
 CLEAR  AND  CONCISE  LANGUAGE  READILY COMPREHENSIBLE FOR MEMBERS OF THE
 GENERAL PUBLIC. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL PUBLICLY POST  THE  REPORT  ON  THE
 DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE WITHIN ONE WEEK OF RECEIPT.
   2. SPECIFICALLY, DATA CENTER OPERATORS SHALL REPORT:
   (A) EFFORTS MADE TO REDUCE ENERGY CONSUMPTION WITHIN THE PAST YEAR;
   (B)  A  COMPARISON  OF  THE  YEAR'S  ENERGY CONSUMPTION TO THE INITIAL
 PROJECTED AMOUNTS OUTLINED IN SUBDIVISION THREE OF  SECTION  31-0103  OF
 THIS  ARTICLE,  AND,  FOLLOWING THE FIRST YEAR, A COMPARISON TO THE YEAR
 BEFORE, EXPRESSED IN BRITISH THERMAL UNITS;
   (C) A PROJECTION FOR ENERGY USAGE FOR THE NEXT  YEAR,  DISCLOSING  THE
 SAME  INFORMATION AS REQUIRED BY SUBDIVISION THREE OF SECTION 31-0103 OF
 THIS ARTICLE;
 S. 9960                             5
 
   (D) EFFORTS MADE TO REDUCE FOSSIL FUEL CONSUMPTION  AND  INCREASE  THE
 PERCENTAGE  OF  ENERGY  USE  FROM RENEWABLE ENERGY WITHIN THE PAST YEAR,
 WITH A COMPARISON OF THE YEAR'S FOSSIL FUEL CONSUMPTION TO THE PROJECTED
 AMOUNT, AND, FOLLOWING THE FIRST YEAR, A COMPARISON TO THE YEAR  BEFORE,
 EXPRESSED IN TERAWATT-HOURS;
   (E) EFFORTS MADE TO REDUCE WATER CONSUMPTION WITHIN THE PAST YEAR;
   (F)  FOR  DATA  CENTERS  THAT  ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE A WATER WITHDRAWAL
 PERMIT, A COMPARISON OF THE YEAR'S WATER USAGE TO THE PROJECTED  AMOUNT,
 AND,  FOLLOWING  THE  FIRST  YEAR,  A  COMPARISON  TO  THE  YEAR BEFORE,
 EXPRESSED IN GALLONS;
   (G) FOR DATA CENTERS THAT ARE REQUIRED  TO  HAVE  A  WATER  WITHDRAWAL
 PERMIT,  A  PROJECTION FOR WATER USAGE FOR THE NEXT YEAR, DISCLOSING THE
 SAME INFORMATION AS REQUIRED BY SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SECTION  31-0103  OF
 THIS ARTICLE;
   (H)  EFFORTS  MADE TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC FROM POLLUTED
 WATER IN THE PAST YEAR  ACCOMPANIED  BY  MEASUREMENTS  OF  ACTUAL  WATER
 POLLUTION  EXPRESSED IN MILLIGRAMS PER LITER AND AIR POLLUTION EXPRESSED
 IN PARTS PER MILLION;
   (I) EFFORTS MADE TO REDUCE WASTE HEAT AND UTILIZE WASTE HEAT TO  POWER
 THE  DATA CENTER ACCOMPANIED BY MEASUREMENTS OF ACTUAL HEAT WASTE EXPUL-
 SION AND REUSE, MEASURED IN BRITISH THERMAL UNITS; AND
   (J) PERCENTAGE OF DATA CENTER EMPLOYEES  THAT  LIVE  WITHIN  THE  HOST
 COMMUNITY.
   3.  IF  A  DATA  CENTER  OPERATOR IS NO LONGER IN COMPLIANCE WITH THIS
 SECTION AND SECTIONS 31-0103 AND 31-0105 OF  THIS  ARTICLE,  THE  PUBLIC
 SERVICE  COMMISSION  SHALL  NOTIFY  THE  DATA  CENTER OPERATOR. THE DATA
 CENTER OPERATOR SHALL HAVE SIXTY DAYS TO CURE SUCH  VIOLATION.  IF  SUCH
 VIOLATION  HAS  NOT  BEEN CURED AFTER SIXTY DAYS, SUCH DATA CENTER SHALL
 CEASE OPERATION.
   § 4. The public authorities law is amended by  adding  a  new  section
 1858-a to read as follows:
   §  1858-A.  ENERGY  CONSUMPTION EFFECTIVENESS GOALS. NO LATER THAN ONE
 YEAR AFTER THE  EFFECTIVE  DATE  OF  THIS  SECTION,  THE  AUTHORITY,  IN
 CONJUNCTION WITH THE NEW YORK SYSTEM INDEPENDENT OPERATOR AND THE PUBLIC
 SERVICE  COMMISSION, SHALL DETERMINE REASONABLE ENERGY CONSUMPTION EFFI-
 CIENCY GOALS FOR THE DESIGN AND OPERATION OF  DATA  CENTERS,  INCLUDING,
 WITHOUT  LIMITATION,  RECYCLING  OF WASTE HEAT EMITTED FROM DATA CENTERS
 INTO AN ENERGY SOURCE. SUCH GOALS SHALL ALIGN WITH THE  BENCHMARKS  LAID
 OUT  IN  THE  NEW YORK STATE CLIMATE LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY PROTECTION
 ACT AND SHALL BE REVIEWED AND UPDATED ACCORDINGLY, ANNUALLY.
   § 5. The energy law is amended by adding a new article 19 to  read  as
 follows:
                                ARTICLE 19
                         POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS
 SECTION 19-101. FOSSIL FUEL POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS.
         19-103. COMMUNITY DISCOUNT PLAN.
   § 19-101. FOSSIL  FUEL  POWER  PURCHASE  AGREEMENTS. 1. POWER PURCHASE
 AGREEMENTS FOR ANY ENERGY GENERATED THROUGH THE  CONSUMPTION  OF  FOSSIL
 FUELS  SHALL NOT PROVIDE ECONOMIC INCENTIVES OR DISCOUNTS TO DATA CENTER
 OPERATORS, AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE THIRTY-ONE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSER-
 VATION LAW.
   2. IN FURTHERANCE OF THE GOALS SET OUT IN THE NEW YORK  STATE  CLIMATE
 LEADERSHIP  AND COMMUNITY PROTECTION ACT: (A) BY TWO THOUSAND THIRTY, AT
 LEAST ONE-THIRD OF ALL ENERGY USED BY  DATA  CENTERS  MUST  BE  PROVIDED
 THROUGH  POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS EXCLUSIVELY FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY; AND
 (B) BY TWO THOUSAND THIRTY-FIVE, AT LEAST TWO-THIRDS OF ALL ENERGY  USED
 S. 9960                             6
 
 BY  DATA  CENTERS  SHALL  BE  PROVIDED THROUGH POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENTS
 EXCLUSIVELY FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY; AND (C) BY  TWO  THOUSAND  FIFTY,  ALL
 ENERGY  USED  BY  DATA  CENTERS SHALL BE PROVIDED THROUGH POWER PURCHASE
 AGREEMENTS EXCLUSIVELY FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY.
   § 19-103. COMMUNITY DISCOUNT PLAN. THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION SHALL
 CREATE  A  COMMUNITY DISCOUNT PLAN TO ACCOUNT FOR INCREASED ENERGY COSTS
 FOR CUSTOMERS WITHIN HOST COMMUNITIES. SUCH PLAN SHALL MAKE DATA  CENTER
 OPERATORS  RESPONSIBLE  FOR  SUBSIDIZING  ENERGY  COSTS  WITHIN THE HOST
 COMMUNITY. THE DISCOUNT ESTABLISHED BY  THE  PUBLIC  SERVICE  COMMISSION
 SHALL  NOT  EXCEED  TWENTY  PERCENT  FOR THE FIRST FIVE YEARS OF BILLING
 CYCLES.
   § 6. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.

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Senate Bill S9960

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Senate Bill S9960

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Sponsored By

Kristen Gonzalez

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S9960 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments