NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1451A
SPONSOR: Santabarbara TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to author-
izing the delivery of liquefied petroleum gas in times of emergency
PURPOSE:
To allow homeowners leasing LPG containers to receive emergency deliv-
eries from any suppliers during times of urgent need and periods of high
demand when their regular suppliers could not fulfill the request.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Defines:
(i) liquefied petroleum gas tank as storing LPG for residential heating
or electric generation;
(ii) qualifying emergency as:
(a) a declared federal, state or local state of emergency or a federal
or state waiver from hours-of-operation for LPG deliveries; or
(b) severe weather or similar circumstances placing an individual in
imminent danger of death or injury of their residence at risk of signif-
icant damage if their residence lacks heat because of insufficient
propane supply.
(iii) regular supplier as a propane supplier that owns the customer's
tank and has an exclusive contract to supply propane; and
(iv) temporary emergency supplier as a propane supplier that supplies
propane to a customer's tank it does not own.
The bill provides, during a qualifying emergency, that a customer
running low on propane who reasonably believes their supply is insuffi-
cient to meet their heating needs may purchase propane from any tempo-
rary emergency supplier if the customer makes a good faith effort to
purchase the propane from their regular supplier, but the regular
supplier cannot or will not make a delivery and does not send a tempo-
rary supplier to make the delivery within.24 hours. All regular safety
inspections and testing would need to be done before any refilling
occurred.
The bill specifies that neither the regular or temporary emergency
supplier may charge additional fees or penalties during qualifying emer-
gencies that they don't charge when qualifying emergencies are not in
effect.
Customers who own their own propane tank would continue to have the
right to have it filled by any supplier.
After the bill becomes law, new contracts for supplying propane must
include provisions related to this bill.
The bill would require the Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets and
the Attorney General to develop a propane consumer bill of rights to
explain the requirements of this law and the bill of rights would be
provided to customers who sign contracts and would be posted on the
Department of Agriculture and Markets website.
Section 2 requires that the Commissioner develop regulations for imple-
mentation including the responsibilities of temporary and regular
suppliers for safe inspection, testing and filling of tanks.
Section 3: Effective Date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Most propane gas companies own all equipment, including the tanks and
regulators, and simply lease to the homeowners as.a cost savings and as
part of that agreement they are the only supplier permitted to deliver
gas to the tanks. Customers that own their tanks are able to choose from
multiple suppliers and can change each delivery. This also allows them
to also get better prices. Unfortunately, during storms or other
catastrophic events, homeowners are at the mercy of their propane
providers' schedule for refills. Some propane companies do not always
work during these times and have to decide whether to place their resi-
dential customers' needs before their commercial customers.
This new legislation will allow homeowners leasing tanks to choose from
multiple suppliers if their contracted supplier cannot meet their good
faith request for gas delivery in a timely manner during times of urgent
need and periods of high demand that could result in imminent danger of
death or injury or damage to their residence due to exposure to such
extreme temperatures without the delivery of propane.
To fill an LPG tank, all required inspections and certifications must be
complete and up to date. According to state law, an LPG tank must be
inspected 12 years after it is manufactured and then every 5 years after
that.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2017-18: A8940A.- passed Assembly / S7986 - referred to agriculture
2019-20: A1334B - passed Assembly / S6111A - passed Senate
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect in 120 days provided, however, if there is a
federal, state or local qualifying emergency before that date the bill
would. take effect immediately for the region where the emergency was
declared.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1451--A
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2021
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SANTABARBARA, STECK, J. RIVERA, BRONSON -- read
once and referred to the Committee on Agriculture -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to author-
izing the delivery of liquefied petroleum gas in times of emergency
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 192-e of the agriculture and markets law is amended
2 by adding two new subdivisions 6-a and 6-b to read as follows:
3 6-a. a. Definitions. For the purposes of this subdivision:
4 (i) "liquefied petroleum gas tank" shall mean a cylinder, container or
5 receptacle, fixed in place, that is intended to be used to store lique-
6 fied petroleum gas for the purpose of heating, or generating electric
7 power, for a residential customer;
8 (ii) "qualifying emergency" shall mean:
9 (A) a federal, state or local state of emergency has been declared, or
10 federal or state authorities have granted a waiver from hours-of-opera-
11 tions limitations affecting liquefied petroleum gas deliveries; or
12 (B) severe weather or any other similar circumstance exist that may
13 result in an individual being placed in imminent danger of death or
14 injury, or may result in a building structure and/or its fixtures being
15 at risk of significant damage due to lack of residential heat caused by
16 the lack of sufficient liquified petroleum gas to produce residential
17 heat;
18 (iii) "regular supplier" shall mean a person, firm, limited liability
19 company or corporation that owns a liquefied petroleum gas tank and
20 that, pursuant to a current contract, has agreed to supply liquefied
21 petroleum gas to such tank for use by a residential customer or the
22 customer's agent or agents; and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03938-03-1
A. 1451--A 2
1 (iv) "temporary emergency supplier" shall mean a person, firm, limited
2 liability company or corporation that fills, refills or otherwise deliv-
3 ers liquefied petroleum gas into a liquefied petroleum gas tank it does
4 not own, where such tank is subject to an existing contract between a
5 regular supplier and their customer.
6 b. Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary,
7 when a qualifying emergency is in effect, a residential customer who has
8 a contract with a regular supplier to fill a liquefied petroleum gas
9 tank reasonably believes the amount of liquefied petroleum gas in their
10 tank will be insufficient to meet the customer's heating needs, the
11 customer shall make a good faith effort to procure delivery of liquefied
12 petroleum gas from such regular supplier. If the regular supplier is
13 unable to make a scheduled delivery or fulfill the customer's good faith
14 request, directly or through another supplier, for delivery within twen-
15 ty-four hours, the customer may arrange to have a temporary emergency
16 supplier fill, refill or otherwise deliver liquefied petroleum gas into
17 such liquefied petroleum gas tank, provided that the temporary emergency
18 supplier ensures that such tank, and the devices and pipelines operated
19 in connection with such tank, have been inspected and certified as
20 required by law and all applicable regulations.
21 c. When a temporary emergency supplier delivers liquefied petroleum
22 gas to a residential customer pursuant to this subdivision, neither such
23 temporary emergency supplier nor such customer's regular supplier may
24 charge any penalty or fee in addition to any filling, refilling or
25 delivery fees that are usually charged to other customers in the course
26 of business under circumstances when paragraph b of this subdivision is
27 not applicable.
28 d. Any contract executed subsequent to the effective date of this
29 subdivision for the supply of liquefied petroleum gas to a residential
30 customer shall include provisions relating to delivery and fees pursuant
31 to paragraphs b and c of this subdivision if applicable.
32 e. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to restrict a liquefied
33 petroleum gas customer who owns a liquefied petroleum gas tank from
34 procuring such gas from any supplier.
35 6-b. The commissioner, in cooperation with the department of law,
36 shall develop a "propane consumer bill of rights" consistent with this
37 section to address the rights of consumers who enter into contracts for
38 the provision and delivery of liquefied petroleum gas, including the
39 right of customers to purchase liquefied petroleum gas from temporary
40 suppliers pursuant to subdivision six-a of this section. Such bill of
41 rights shall be provided by every regular supplier of liquefied petrole-
42 um gas to the consumer when a contract is executed, and then annually
43 while a contract remains in effect and the department shall post such
44 bill of rights on its website.
45 § 2. The commissioner of agriculture and markets shall develop regu-
46 lations consistent with subdivisions six-a and six-b of section 192-e of
47 the agriculture and markets law for the implementation thereof includ-
48 ing, but not limited to, the responsibilities of temporary emergency
49 suppliers and regular suppliers for the safe inspection, testing and
50 filling of liquefied petroleum gas tanks, and any devices and pipelines
51 operated in connection with such tanks, pursuant to such subdivisions
52 and the need for appropriate liability insurance coverage for such
53 suppliers.
54 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
55 it shall have become a law; provided, however that the provisions of
56 this act shall take effect immediately upon the occurrence of a qualify-
A. 1451--A 3
1 ing emergency for any customer residing within the geographic limits of
2 such qualifying emergency as declared by federal, state or local author-
3 ities or as otherwise determined by federal or state authorities or the
4 commissioner; and provided that the commissioner of agriculture and
5 markets shall notify the legislative bill drafting commission upon the
6 occurrence of a qualifying emergency, if such qualifying emergency
7 occurs within the first 120 days after this act shall have become a law,
8 in order that the commission may maintain an accurate and timely effec-
9 tive data base of the official text of the laws of the state of New York
10 in furtherance of effectuating the provisions of section 44 of the
11 legislative law and section 70-b of the public officers law. Effective
12 immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regu-
13 lation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective
14 date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.
