Senator Thomas, Assemblyman Thiele Announce Rory Lancman as New Executive Director of LIPA Legislative Commission

(Albany, NY) — The New York State Legislative Commission on the Future of the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) is proud to announce the appointment of Rory Lancman as the new Executive Director for the Commission. Co-Chairs Senator Kevin Thomas and Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. welcome Rory Lancman to the team, and are confident that Mr. Lancman will bring the appropriate expertise, leadership and commitment needed to navigate the Commission’s findings and recommendations. In his new role, Rory will be directly responsible for the leadership and daily management of the Commission. 

Senator Kevin Thomas said, “I am excited to welcome Rory Lancman to the Commission and look forward to working with him on issuing a final report with recommendations that benefit Long Island consumers. Mr. Lancman is no stranger to the New York State legislative process and we’re thrilled to have him as our Executive Director!”

Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr said, “Rory Lancman stands out as a qualified, passionate and expert professional. As the Commission begins its efforts towards implementing a new transparent and more efficient model for LIPA, I am very confident that our work will benefit from Rory’s knowledge and experience across multiple levels of government and I look forward to working with him.”

Mr. Lancman has an impressive resume of public service and brings years of experience working with utility operators to his new role. Before his appointment, he served Eastern Queens residents as a former NYS Assemblyman, New York City Councilmember and most recently, as NYS Special Counsel for Ratepayer Protection, overseeing New York's regulated electric, gas, water, and telecom companies meet their contractual and regulatory obligations to their customers.

"Long Island and Queens residents served by LIPA deserve the most reliable, cost-effective, and accountable system for delivering electric service, and I commend the legislature for establishing this commission and the commissioners themselves for the seriousness and sense of purpose they are bringing to this mission. I look forward to working with the commissioners, the advisory committee, and other stakeholders to help the commission fulfill its mandate to provide the legislature with 'the specific actions, legislation, and timeline necessary to restructure LIPA into a true publicly owned power authority,’” said Rory Lancman.

Senator James Gaughran said, “I congratulate Rory Lancman on his appointment to the LIPA Commission. His career in public service has been widespread, and I know he will continue to put consumers at the center of his work. I look forward to assisting Mr. Lancman and the Commission in their search for ways to finally bring public power to Long Island.”

Senator James Sanders said, “As a newly appointed member of this commission myself, I am looking forward to working with Rory Lancman, my former colleague in government, as he serves as its new Executive Director, a role for which he is well qualified. Together we will examine ways LIPA can provide quality service and efficient response time to outages during storms and natural disasters, not only on Long Island but to the parts of Queens and New York City where LIPA provides service.”

Enacted as part of the 2022-23 budget, the commission was created to investigate and report to the legislature on the establishment of a public power model for the operation of the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA), which currently contracts its utility operations to a third-party service provider. This model has failed Long Island ratepayers in multiple ways, including in its responses to Superstorm Sandy in 2012 and Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020. The new commission aims to provide the legislature with the specific actions, legislation, and timeline necessary to restructure LIPA into a true publicly owned power authority before Dec. 31, 2025.

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