Senator Parker's Legislation to Enhance Consumer Protections and Fairness in Utility Services passes the Senate

Brooklyn, NY – State Senator Kevin Parker is pleased to announce the recent legislative success of two pivotal bills, S1303B and S2623, which aim to address critical issues in utility services across New York State. S1303B focuses on ensuring fairness for consumers by implementing measures to prevent unjustified charges by utility companies. The bill would protect consumers from being burdened by unjustified or miscalculated fees, thereby promoting utility services' transparency and accountability. S2623 will enhance transparency in utility services by curbing unfair reporting practices that may negatively impact consumers. 

Upon the Senate's successful passage of these bills, Senator Parker remarked: "I am proud to have my colleagues support to pass these two bills this session as they mark significant progress in our ongoing efforts to safeguard consumer rights and promote fairness in utility services. These measures underscore our commitment to ensuring that unjustified charges or unfair reporting practices do not unduly burden New Yorkers. I extend my gratitude to my colleagues for their support and urge my counterparts in the Assembly to pass this critical legislation so it can become state law."

S1303B directs the Department of Public Service to adjust each utility corporation's residential fixed charge, ensuring that these charges accurately reflect only the fixed costs and operation and maintenance expenses directly related to metering, billing, service connections, and customer service provision. This legislation will prevent unjustified burdens on consumers by aligning charges more closely with the actual costs incurred by utility companies.

Similarly, S2623 directs the Department of State and the Public Service Commission to conduct a comprehensive study and report on the prevalence of disclosures made by public utilities, cable television companies, and cellular telephone service providers to credit reporting agencies regarding late payments and fee defaults by consumers. The legislation will help shed light on potentially unfair practices and protect consumers from unwarranted negative impacts on their credit due to late payments. 

                                                  About State Senator Kevin Parker

Senator Kevin Parker is intimately familiar with the needs of his ethnically diverse Brooklyn district comprising sections of Flatbush, East Flatbush, Kensington, Ditmas Park, Midwood, Flatlands, Canarsie, Georgetown, Old Mill Basin, Mill Basin, Marine Park, and Bergen Beach. A lifelong Brooklyn resident, Senator Parker is the Chairman of the Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee and a member of several other Senate committees including Finance, Rules, Banks, Internet and Technology, as well as Budget and Revenue.

                                                                   ###