S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2679
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 22, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  RAMOS  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to call centers  for
   gas  and electric corporations; to amend a chapter of the laws of 2024
   amending the public service law relating to call centers for  gas  and
   electric  corporations,  as  proposed  in legislative bills numbers S.
   8626-A and A. 9444-A, in relation to the effectiveness thereof; and to
   repeal certain provisions of the public service law relating thereto
 
   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, as amended by a chapter  of  the  laws  of  2024
 amending  the  public  service  law relating to call centers for gas and
 electric corporations, as  proposed  in  legislative  bills  numbers  S.
 8626-A and A.  9444-A, 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] BY PHONE OR IN WRITING on: customer financial respon-
 sibility; receiving [application]  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 communi-

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02896-01-5
              

 S. 2679                             2

 cation 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.] THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL NOT APPLY
 TO COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS TO RESOLVE A CUSTOMER INQUIRY. FOR
 PURPOSES  OF  THIS  SECTION, "COLLECTION ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES" SHALL NOT
 INCLUDE CALLS OR ACTIVITIES RELATED TO THE COLLECTION OF DEBTS THAT  ARE
 REFERRED  TO  THIRD-PARTY  COLLECTION  AGENCIES  OR  THOSE INVOLVING THE
 DIRECT PURSUIT OF FINANCIAL RECOVERY ON DELINQUENT ACCOUNTS.
   (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 send such customer  assistance  outside  such
 gas  or  electric  corporation's  New  York  state  service territory or
 outside of New York state without notice, 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  commission may make rules
 designed to exclude repetitive, redundant or irrelevant testimony  while
 giving  all interested parties the opportunity to present their documen-
 tary 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 facili-
 ty providing customer service or  the  relocation  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 direct-
 ly 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 relo-
 cation 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  terri-
 tory  or outside of New York state be used as justification 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 SEND  CUSTOMER  ASSIST-
 ANCE  REQUESTS  OUTSIDE  OF  SUCH  CORPORATION'S  NEW YORK STATE SERVICE
 TERRITORY OR OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK STATE IN THE  FOLLOWING  CIRCUMSTANCES:
 (I)  WHEN  A  CALL  CENTER  OR CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE FACILITY IS UNABLE TO
 ADEQUATELY RESPOND TO CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE REQUESTS DUE TO NATURAL DISAS-
 TER, CYBER ATTACK, TEMPORARY LOSS OF INTERNET  OR  PHONE  CONNECTION  OR
 POWER, A STATE OR LOCAL DECLARED EMERGENCY THAT IMPACTS THE ABILITY OF A
 CALL  CENTER  TO  MANAGE  CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE REQUESTS, OR CUSTOMER CALL
 VOLUME THAT EXCEEDS THE CAPACITY OF THE CALL CENTER GIVEN NORMAL  STAFF-
 ING  LEVELS;  (II)  FOR  THE  PURPOSE OF WORKFORCE TRAINING; OR (III) TO
 initiate work flexibility policies that allow call center  employees  to
 work  from  an  approved  alternative  worksite other than a call center
 location[.  Provided] PROVIDED, however, before a gas or electric corpo-
 ration can establish policies for any call  center  employees  that  are
 S. 2679                             3
 
 represented  by  a  bona  fide  labor  organization through a collective
 bargaining agreement, such policies must have been mutually agreed to by
 the corporation and the labor organization. Such WORK FLEXIBILITY  poli-
 cies  shall not [violate] BE CONSIDERED A VIOLATION OF this section. ANY
 TRANSFER OF CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE REQUESTS OUTSIDE OF NEW  YORK  STATE  OR
 OUTSIDE  OF  THE CORPORATION'S NEW YORK STATE SERVICE TERRITORY PURSUANT
 TO SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL BE TEMPORARY  AND  ONLY  FOR
 THE  DURATION  OF THE EMERGENCY SITUATION. A CORPORATION MUST NOTIFY THE
 COMMISSION OF ANY  TRANSFERS  WITHIN  TEN  BUSINESS  DAYS  FOLLOWING  AN
 EXEMPTION  CLAIMED  PURSUANT  TO SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS PARAGRAPH. FOR
 THE PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH, "NEW YORK STATE SERVICE TERRITORY" SHALL
 BE UNDERSTOOD TO REFER TO THE DESIGNATED GEOGRAPHIC AREA SERVED  BY  THE
 GAS  OR  ELECTRIC CORPORATION IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS LEGAL SERVICE OBLI-
 GATIONS.  THE RELOCATION OF CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE  CALLS  TO  ANY  OF  THE
 CORPORATION'S  CALL  CENTERS WITHIN NEW YORK STATE IN EXISTENCE PRIOR TO
 THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF  TWO  THOUSAND  TWENTY-
 FIVE  THAT  AMENDED  THIS  PARAGRAPH, REGARDLESS OF THE SPECIFIC SERVICE
 TERRITORY, SHALL NOT BE CONSIDERED A VIOLATION OF THIS PARAGRAPH.
   [(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
 days make a determination if such gas or  electric  corporation  was  in
 violation of this section.]
   § 2. Subdivision 4-a of section 25 of the public service law, as added
 by  a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the public service law relat-
 ing to call centers for gas and electric corporations,  as  proposed  in
 legislative bills numbers S. 8626-A and A. 9444-A, is REPEALED.
   §  3.  Section  4 of a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the public
 service law relating to call centers for gas and electric  corporations,
 as  proposed  in  legislative  bills numbers S. 8626-A and A. 9444-A, is
 amended to read as follows:
   § 4. This act shall take  effect  [immediately]  ON  THE  ONE  HUNDRED
 EIGHTIETH  DAY  AFTER  IT SHALL HAVE BECOME A LAW and shall apply to all
 actions or proceedings commenced on or after the effective date of  this
 act.
   §  4.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
 sections one and two shall take effect on the same date and in the  same
 manner  as a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the public service law
 relating to call centers for gas and electric corporations, as  proposed
 in legislative bills numbers S. 8626-A and A. 9444-A, takes effect.