Implements the "New York State Build Public Renewables Act"; requires the New York power authority to provide only renewable energy and power to customers; requires such authority to be the sole provider of energy to all state owned and municipal properties; requires certain New York power authority projects and programs pay a prevailing wage and utilize project labor agreements.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6453--C
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 29, 2021
___________
Introduced by Sens. PARKER, SALAZAR, ADDABBO, BAILEY, BIAGGI, BRESLIN,
BRISPORT, CLEARE, GIANARIS, GOUNARDES, HARCKHAM, HINCHEY, HOYLMAN,
JACKSON, KAVANAGH, KRUEGER, LIU, MAY, MYRIE, RAMOS, RIVERA, SANDERS,
SEPULVEDA, SERRANO, SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and
when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommu-
nications -- recommitted to the Committee on Energy and Telecommuni-
cations in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to implementing
the "New York State Build Public Renewables Act"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 the "New York State Build Public Renewables Act".
3 § 2. Section 1005 of the public authorities law is amended by adding
4 fourteen new subdivisions 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40,
5 41, 42, and 43 to read as follows:
6 30. (a) The authority is authorized and directed to purchase, acquire,
7 plan, design, engineer, finance, construct, operate, manage, improve
8 and/or maintain any renewable energy project.
9 (b) For the purposes of this subdivision and subdivisions thirty-one,
10 thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty-
11 seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty, forty-one, forty-two and
12 forty-three of this section, the following terms shall have the follow-
13 ing meanings:
14 (i) "renewable energy" shall have the same meaning as renewable energy
15 systems as set forth in section sixty-six-p of the public service law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05455-21-2
S. 6453--C 2
1 (ii) "renewable energy project" shall be defined as all infrastructure
2 which generates, stores, distributes or transmits renewable energy or
3 thermal energy as defined in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, and
4 includes the construction, installation and/or operation of ancillary
5 facilities or equipment done in connection with any such renewable ener-
6 gy generating projects, including, but not limited to, energy storage
7 systems, electric vehicle charging infrastructure and offshore wind
8 support and installation vessels owned by the authority, and the
9 production, use, and sale of green hydrogen defined as hydrogen produced
10 through electrolysis powered using one hundred percent renewable energy.
11 31. Where a renewable energy site appropriate for New York state falls
12 into federal jurisdiction, the authority may participate in lease
13 auctions in an attempt to obtain ownership of that area.
14 32. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority
15 shall, on or after January first, two thousand thirty, only generate
16 renewable energy and shall only purchase, acquire, plan, design, engi-
17 neer, finance, and construct generation and transmission facilities for
18 the purpose of generating, storing, distributing and transmitting renew-
19 able energy. The authority shall phase out its use of existing non-re-
20 newable generation no later than December thirtieth, two thousand thir-
21 ty, unless the authority provides to its trustees, and makes publicly
22 available, an attestation in writing, signed by the independent system
23 operator and a representative of the regional clean energy hub in which
24 the facility is located, identifying the existence of a reliability
25 need. The authority shall work with the New York state energy research
26 and development authority to provide any funding necessary for a
27 regional clean energy hub to meet the needs of this subdivision. The
28 authority, in consultation with the independent system operator, shall
29 ensure that the phase out of its existing non-renewable generation does
30 not lead to an increase in the delivery of out-of-state non-renewable
31 generation into the New York state electric grid. For the purposes of
32 this subdivision, a "reliability need" means an electricity system need,
33 which if unmet, would result in a violation of the electric power system
34 planning and operating policies, standards, criteria, guidelines, proce-
35 dures, and rules promulgated by the North American Electric Reliability
36 Corporation ("NERC"), Northeast Power Coordinating Council ("NPCC"), and
37 the New York State Reliability Council ("NYSRC"), as they may be amended
38 from time to time.
39 (b) The authority shall prioritize funding, siting, building, and
40 owning renewable energy projects which: (i) actively benefit disadvan-
41 taged communities as defined by the climate justice working group; (ii)
42 minimize harm to wildlife, ecosystems, public health, and public safety;
43 (iii) do not violate Indigenous rights or sovereignty; and (iv) which
44 are the most cost-effective to the state according to the best available
45 cost modeling research. The types of renewable energy projects the
46 authority builds shall be determined and prioritized in consultation
47 with affected labor unions and community organizations via the New York
48 state energy research and development authority's regional clean energy
49 hubs.
50 33. (a) Within two years of the effective date of this subdivision,
51 the authority shall make public a ten-year climate and resiliency plan.
52 Such climate and resiliency plan shall be designed to minimize costs to
53 ratepayers, while balancing the interests of employees, grid reliability
54 and resiliency, disadvantaged communities as defined by the climate
55 justice working group, and the environment. Such plan shall be developed
56 in consultation with the New York state independent system operator,
S. 6453--C 3
1 the New York state energy research and development authority, the
2 New York state department of public service, and climate and resiliency
3 experts, labor organizations, environmental justice communities, resi-
4 dential and small business ratepayer advocates, and community organiza-
5 tions via the New York state energy research and development authori-
6 ty's regional clean energy hubs. Such resiliency plan shall outline the
7 renewable energy projects the authority plans to build, how the authori-
8 ty plans to phase out non-renewable assets and how the authority plans
9 to comply with the climate leadership and community protection act and
10 the renewable energy targets in subdivisions thirty-two and thirty-four
11 of this section, and efforts to improve energy and electric grid resili-
12 ency. The authority shall update such plan annually, after public
13 comment and a hearing. Such updated plan shall include a review of the
14 state's progress towards the renewable energy goals of the climate lead-
15 ership and community protection act. If the authority, in consultation
16 with the New York state energy research and development authority,
17 determines that the renewable energy goals of the climate leadership and
18 community protection act are not likely to be met within the timeframe
19 established by the law, the authority shall include in the updated plan
20 the renewable energy projects it plans to build to ensure the state
21 meets such goals, including the permit applications submitted, the stage
22 of each project in the development process, when such projects are
23 expected to be commissioned, and any barriers to deployment experienced
24 by the authority. If the authority has identified a reliability need to
25 maintain its existing non-renewable generation pursuant to subdivision
26 thirty-two of this section, the authority shall identify in the annual
27 report the renewable energy project, energy storage project, trans-
28 mission or distribution infrastructure, demand response, or other such
29 project or projects that the authority, or another entity, only if such
30 entity has obtained all the necessary permits and has begun
31 construction, plans to develop to meet the reliability need.
32 (b) Within two years of the effective date of this subdivision, the
33 authority shall make public a democratization plan, with a mandate to
34 implement the plan within two years of its completion. Such plan shall
35 be created in partnership with, and codesigned with, a statewide alli-
36 ance of community organizations with at least five years' history of
37 working on energy democracy and implementation issues, providing funding
38 for this alliance as necessary for their participation in the completion
39 of the plan. Such plan shall ensure that the scale up of renewable build
40 out across the state occurs in line with the principles of energy democ-
41 racy and transparency.
42 (c) The authority shall hold at least eight public hearings within two
43 years of the effective date of this subdivision related to the climate
44 and resiliency plan. The hearing shall be publicized in various forms
45 of media, including but not limited to the authority's website, local
46 newspapers and social media platforms, and shall also be accessible via
47 livestream. In advance of such hearing, the authority shall conspicu-
48 ously post written notice of such hearing in all authority facilities
49 and New York state energy research and development authority regional
50 clean energy hubs on a sign posted at each facility entrance and exit
51 used by employees, and shall provide at least two weeks advance notice
52 of such hearing to authority customers by directly communicating such
53 notice to customer phone, email and mailing lists. Hearings shall be
54 permitted between 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM, and the
55 authority shall provide all speakers with the option to sign up to speak
56 within those three hour windows such that no speaker shall wait longer
S. 6453--C 4
1 than three hours to speak. In addition to oral testimony, written
2 testimony from the public for such hearings shall be accepted by the
3 authority no less than two weeks after each hearing. Each speaker shall
4 have at least three minutes to speak, and a remote option shall be
5 provided for submitting comments via video conference, phone, including
6 short message services (SMS) text messages and/or written comment, which
7 shall be read aloud. Provisions for translation services, American sign
8 language interpretation, closed captioning, and access to accommodations
9 provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act shall be provided upon
10 request.
11 (d) The authority shall maintain all data, meeting minutes, recordings
12 and documents that do not include personal customer information, includ-
13 ing but not limited to depreciation schedules, annual financial state-
14 ments of itemized spending, environmental impact statements, cost-bene-
15 fit analyses, climate and resiliency plans, renewable energy project
16 plans, and annual reports on operations, customer service, reliability,
17 resiliency and sustainability. All such data, meeting minutes,
18 recordings and documents shall be made available on the authority's
19 website, or otherwise made accessible by the authority upon request.
20 All such records shall be maintained as business records for a minimum
21 of ten years. The state comptroller shall audit the authority at least
22 once every two years until two thousand thirty to ascertain whether the
23 authority is in compliance with the renewable energy targets outlined in
24 this subdivision and subdivisions thirty-two, thirty-four and thirty-
25 five of this section and whether the authority's spending and operations
26 are effectively and efficiently promoting the common good. The most
27 recent comptroller audits shall also be made available on the authori-
28 ty's website, or otherwise made accessible by the authority upon
29 request.
30 (e) (i) The authority, in consultation with the New York state energy
31 research and development authority and the public service commission,
32 shall develop and conduct an energy efficiency and energy audit program
33 to identify public buildings most in need of retrofits and efficiency
34 measures. Such program shall provide for the installation of renewable
35 heating and cooling systems, and, when feasible, other green building
36 projects as defined in section 58-0101 of the environmental conservation
37 law, in public housing and public schools by the year two thousand thir-
38 ty-five, prioritizing first public affordable housing and public schools
39 in disadvantaged communities. The authority shall hire authority employ-
40 ees or contractors to perform energy audits, retrofits and other effi-
41 ciency programs for these buildings, and provide incentives, in conjunc-
42 tion with the New York state energy research and development authority,
43 for energy efficient appliances and induction stoves, as needed, to meet
44 the climate goals outlined in the climate leadership and community
45 protection act. If the buildings selected for this program need mold
46 remediation measures or lead abatement measures to be carried out before
47 energy efficiency measures can be safely implemented, the authority
48 shall also hire employees or contractors to perform lead abatement meas-
49 ures and/or mold remediation measures for these buildings.
50 (ii) The authority shall annually post on its website a report evalu-
51 ating the energy efficiency program, including, but not limited to, the
52 number of customers served by the efficiency program, the customer demo-
53 graphics, the number of retrofits and energy audits performed, the
54 number of jobs created and employee demographics, and the amount of
55 energy and dollars saved as a result of the program.
S. 6453--C 5
1 (iii) All work subject to this subdivision shall be considered public
2 work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor law, and shall
3 utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this subdivision,
4 "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective bargaining
5 agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf of the
6 authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor organ-
7 ization establishing the labor organization as the collective bargaining
8 representative for all persons who will perform work on a public work
9 project, and which provides that only contractors and subcontractors who
10 sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organization can perform
11 project work. All contractors and subcontractors associated with this
12 work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship agreements as defined
13 by article twenty-three of the labor law.
14 (f) The authority shall submit an annual report to the governor and to
15 the legislature which shall be made available to the public. Such report
16 shall include the:
17 (A) Ten year climate and resiliency plan described in paragraph (a) of
18 this subdivision;
19 (B) Amount of energy produced by each facility;
20 (C) Energy transferred between facilities within the authority;
21 (D) Energy transferred outside of the authority for sale;
22 (E) Kilowatt-hour sales by project;
23 (F) Revenues and costs for each project facility;
24 (G) Accumulated provision for depreciation of each project facility;
25 (H) Financial and operating information of the energy efficiency
26 program;
27 (I) Enrollment in and effectiveness of renewable energy auto-enroll-
28 ment, retrofit, and energy efficient appliance programs;
29 (J) Any projected rate increase for the year; and
30 (K) An analysis of the authority's actions to ensure the state will
31 meet the renewable energy goals of the climate leadership and community
32 protection act.
33 34. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on or after January
34 first, two thousand thirty, the authority shall be the sole provider of
35 electricity to all state owned, leased, controlled, or operated build-
36 ings and on or after January first, two thousand thirty-five, the
37 authority shall be the sole provider of electricity to all municipal
38 owned, leased, controlled, or operated buildings that use electricity.
39 A municipal owned, leased, controlled, or operated building that uses
40 electricity may elect not to receive its energy supply from the authori-
41 ty if (i) the authority's energy supply rate is higher than the energy
42 supply rate of the utility in the municipal building's service territo-
43 ry, as determined by the twelve-month average utility supply rate; (ii)
44 the municipal building is being served by a municipal electric utility
45 that shall supply only renewable energy to the building; or (iii) the
46 municipal building elects to participate in a community choice aggre-
47 gation program that shall supply only renewable energy to the building.
48 35. (a) The authority is authorized to sell or provide renewable ener-
49 gy to residential end-use customers and CCA communities. Any excess
50 renewable energy produced by the authority and not used or stored by
51 state or municipal owned or leased buildings shall be sold directly to
52 low-to-moderate income households first, prioritizing low-to-moderate
53 income households in disadvantaged communities, and at a rate that is
54 fifty percent less than the energy supply rate of the utility in the
55 customer's service territory. Any remaining excess renewable energy
56 produced by the authority shall be sold to residential end-use customers
S. 6453--C 6
1 or CCA's at the wholesale cost. For the purposes of this paragraph, the
2 term "low-to-moderate income households" shall mean households with
3 annual incomes at or below eighty percent of the area median income of
4 the county or metro area where they reside.
5 (b) Within three years following the effective date of this subdivi-
6 sion, the authority's trustees, in consultation with the New York state
7 energy research and development authority's regional clean energy hubs,
8 shall develop a progressive rate structure based on income and energy
9 usage to be offered to end-use customers and CCA communities.
10 (c) The authority shall work with the office of temporary and disabil-
11 ity assistance to assist low-income customers to access the low income
12 home energy assistance program and other utility benefits and shall
13 offer deferred payment agreement payment plans for customers that fall
14 into arrears.
15 (d) The authority is authorized to sell up to thirty percent of the
16 electricity that it provides to residential and commercial customers to
17 customers of the long island power authority, established under title
18 one-A of this article, and the long island power authority is authorized
19 to purchase this power.
20 36. All new renewable energy projects subject to this section shall be
21 considered public work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor
22 law and shall utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this
23 subdivision, "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective
24 bargaining agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf
25 of the authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor
26 organization establishing the labor organization as the collective
27 bargaining representative for all persons who will perform work on a
28 public work project, and which provides that only contractors and
29 subcontractors who sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organ-
30 ization can perform project work. All contractors and subcontractors
31 associated with this work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship
32 agreements as defined by article twenty-three of the labor law.
33 37. The authority, in consultation with labor organizations, shall
34 develop a comprehensive plan to transition, train, or retrain employees
35 that are impacted by the New York state build public renewables act, and
36 shall establish and contribute to a just transition fund that shall make
37 funding available for worker transition and retraining.
38 38. The authority shall include requirements in any procurement or
39 development of a renewable energy project, as defined in subdivision
40 thirty of this section, that the components and parts shall be supplied
41 with equipment produced or made in whole or substantial part in the
42 United States, its territories or possessions. The authority's trustees,
43 in consultation with the New York state energy research and development
44 authority, may waive the procurement and development requirements set
45 forth in this subdivision if the trustees determine that: the require-
46 ments would not be in the public interest; the requirements would result
47 in unreasonable costs; obtaining such infrastructure components and
48 parts in the United States would increase the cost of a renewable energy
49 project by an unreasonable amount; or such components or parts cannot be
50 produced, made, or assembled in the United States in sufficient and
51 reasonably available quantities or of satisfactory quality. Such deter-
52 mination must be made on an annual basis no later than December thirty-
53 first after providing notice and an opportunity for public comment, and
54 be made publicly available, in writing, on the authority's website with
55 a detailed explanation of the findings leading to such determination. If
56 the authority's trustees have issued determinations for three consec-
S. 6453--C 7
1 utive years that no such waiver is warranted pursuant to this subdivi-
2 sion, then the authority shall no longer be required to provide the
3 annual determination required by this subdivision.
4 39. The authority shall work with existing workforce development
5 programs, union apprenticeship programs, and regional community energy
6 hubs to publish a report on the ways that the construction of renewable
7 projects can best support the development of skilled, well paid local
8 workforces in the renewable energy sector, and shall provide financial
9 support through the just transition fund established pursuant to subdi-
10 vision thirty-seven of this section for pre-apprenticeship programs
11 through local community based organizations that work with disadvantaged
12 communities and union run workforce development institutions, where
13 this support is found to be necessary to the effective development of
14 this workforce according to the report.
15 40. For energy projects that the authority builds on properties of the
16 New York city housing authority, including heat pump installations,
17 retrofits, weatherization measures, and lead, mold, and asbestos remedi-
18 ation, both the authority and its contractors shall prioritize hiring
19 residents of these properties, provided that residents meet consider-
20 ations of availability, interest, skill level and training. No
21 provisions of this subdivision shall alter the status of any Section 9
22 housing. The authority shall consult the residents or occupants of all
23 public buildings where the authority is building projects to assess
24 their needs and minimize disruption, nuisance, public health risks, and
25 displacement during any remediation, retrofit, weatherization, heat pump
26 installations, or other construction the authority or its contractors
27 perform. All work subject to this subdivision shall be considered
28 public work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor law, and
29 shall utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this subdivi-
30 sion, "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective
31 bargaining agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf
32 of the authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor
33 organization establishing the labor organization as the collective
34 bargaining representative for all persons who will perform work on a
35 public work project, and which provides that only contractors and
36 subcontractors who sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organ-
37 ization can perform project work. All contractors and subcontractors
38 associated with this work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship
39 agreements as defined by article twenty-three of the labor law.
40 41. (a) Nothing in the New York state build public renewables act
41 shall alter the rights or benefits, and privileges, including, but not
42 limited to terms and conditions of employment, civil service status, and
43 collective bargaining unit membership, of any current employees of the
44 authority.
45 (b) Nothing in the New York state build public renewables act shall
46 result in: (i) the discharge, displacement, or loss of position, includ-
47 ing partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-over-
48 time work, wages, or employment benefits; (ii) the impairment of exist-
49 ing collective bargaining agreements; (iii) the transfer of existing
50 duties and functions; or (iv) the transfer of future duties and func-
51 tions, of any currently employed worker impacted by this act who agrees
52 to be retrained.
53 42. The authority shall enter into a memorandum of understanding for
54 the operation and maintenance of a renewable energy project developed
55 pursuant to the New York state build public renewables act with a bona
56 fide labor organization of jurisdiction that is actively engaged in
S. 6453--C 8
1 representing transitioning employees from non-renewable generation
2 facilities. Such memorandum shall be entered into prior to the
3 completion date of a renewable energy project and shall be an ongoing
4 material condition of authorization to operate and maintain a renewable
5 energy project developed pursuant to the New York state build public
6 renewables act. The memorandum shall only apply to the employees neces-
7 sary for the maintenance and operation of such renewable energy gener-
8 ation projects. Such memorandum shall contain but not be limited to
9 safety and training standards, disaster response measures, guaranteed
10 hours, staffing levels, pay rate protection and retraining programs. The
11 employees eligible for these positions shall first be selected from and
12 offered to a pool of transitioning workers who have lost their employ-
13 ment or will be losing their employment in the non-renewable energy
14 generation sector. Such list of potential employees will be provided by
15 affected unions and provided to the department of labor. The department
16 of labor shall update and provide such list to the authority ninety days
17 prior to purchase, acquisition, and/or construction of any project under
18 the New York state build public renewables act.
19 43. The authority shall comply with the objectives and goals of certi-
20 fied minority and women-owned business enterprises pursuant to article
21 fifteen-A of the executive law and certified service-disabled veteran-
22 owned businesses pursuant to article three of the veterans' services
23 law. The authority, in consultation with the commissioner of the divi-
24 sion of minority and women's business development and the director of
25 the division of service-disabled veterans' business development shall
26 make training and resources available to assist minority and women-owned
27 business enterprises and service-disabled veteran-owned business enter-
28 prises on renewable energy projects to achieve and maintain compliance
29 with prevailing wage requirements. The authority shall make such train-
30 ing and resources available online and shall afford minority and women-
31 owned business enterprises and service-disabled veteran-owned business
32 enterprises an opportunity to submit comments on such training.
33 § 3. Section 1003 of the public authorities law, as amended by chapter
34 766 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
35 § 1003. Trustees. 1. The authority shall consist of [seven] seventeen
36 trustees, five of whom shall serve respectively for terms of one, two,
37 three, four and five years, to be appointed by the governor, by and with
38 the advice and consent of the senate. The sixth and seventh trustees
39 shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent
40 of the senate, and shall serve initial terms of one and two years
41 respectively. All other trustees shall be appointed as follows: two by
42 the governor, four by the temporary president of the senate, and four by
43 the speaker of the assembly, and shall proportionally be selected from
44 labor union representatives that represent both employees of the author-
45 ity and employees of construction contractors of the authority, environ-
46 mental justice advocates, community renewable energy advocates, consumer
47 advocates, and building electrification and energy efficiency experts.
48 For any appointment and vacant trustee position, the New York state
49 energy research and development authority's clean energy hubs shall
50 select qualified candidates that shall be given reasonable consideration
51 for an appointment as trustee by the governor, senate, and assembly.
52 Each trustee shall hold office until a successor has been appointed and
53 qualified or until removed by a majority vote of the legislature or the
54 governor. At the expiration of the term of each trustee and of each
55 succeeding trustee [the governor shall, by and with the advice and
56 consent of the senate, appoint a successor, who shall hold office for a
S. 6453--C 9
1 term of five years, or until a successor has been appointed and quali-
2 fied. In the event of a vacancy occurring in the office of the trustee
3 by death, resignation or otherwise, the governor shall, by and with the
4 advice and consent of the senate, appoint a successor, who shall hold
5 office for the unexpired term. Four trustees shall constitute a quorum
6 for the purpose of organizing the authority and conducting the business
7 thereof.], or the event of a vacancy occurring in the office of the
8 trustee by death, resignation or otherwise, the original entities who
9 appointed that trustee shall appoint a successor, after consideration of
10 clean energy hub candidates, who shall hold office for the unexpired
11 term. Nine trustees shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of organ-
12 izing the authority and conducting the business thereof. Any authority
13 trustee or board member may be terminated by either a majority vote of
14 the senate or assembly, or by the governor. Reasons for termination may
15 include, but are not limited to: failure to meet the renewable energy
16 targets outlined in this bill; conflicts of interest; failure to prior-
17 itize climate justice, environmental justice, or economic justice in the
18 authority's operations; sexual assault or harassment; or corruption.
19 2. The trustee chosen as chairman as provided in section one thousand
20 four of this title, shall receive an annual salary which shall be set by
21 the trustees of the authority, and which shall not exceed the salary
22 prescribed for the positions listed in paragraph (f) of subdivision one
23 of section one hundred sixty-nine of the executive law. [Each other
24 trustee shall not receive a salary or other compensation.] Each trustee
25 shall receive his or her reasonable expenses in the performance of his
26 or her duties hereunder. The trustee chosen as chairman may elect to
27 become a member of the New York state and local employees' retirement
28 system on the basis of such compensation to which he or she shall be
29 entitled as herein provided notwithstanding the provisions of any gener-
30 al, special or local law, municipal charter, or ordinance.
31 § 4. Nothing in this act shall impact the power authority of the state
32 of New York's existing recharge New York power program, existing hydro-
33 power allocations to any municipal and cooperative electric utility
34 customers, or any other power allocation program managed by such author-
35 ity.
36 § 5. Nothing in this act is intended to limit, impair, or affect the
37 legal authority of the power authority of the state of New York under
38 any other provision of title 1 of article 5 of the public authorities
39 law.
40 § 6. No section of this act or any action required to be taken under
41 this act shall be delayed or made contingent upon the completion of the
42 plan required by subdivision 33 of section 1005 of the public authori-
43 ties law, as added by section two of this act.
44 § 7. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdi-
45 vision, or section of this act shall be adjudged by any court of compe-
46 tent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair,
47 or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its opera-
48 tion to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or section thereof
49 directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have
50 been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature
51 that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions
52 had not been included herein.
53 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.
