Requires utility corporations and municipalities to ensure that bills for service to residential customers include a line item for cost impact measures taken in accordance with the climate action council's final scoping plan; requires the department of public service to establish a formula to enable utility corporations and municipalities to calculate the cost impact on each residential customer's bill attributed to measures taken in accordance with the climate action council's final scoping plan.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7021
SPONSOR: Brown E TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public service law, in relation to providing trans-
parency to residential utility and municipality ratepayers on the cost
impact of the climate action council's scoping plan
PURPOSE:
To require the Department of Public Service to establish a formula for
utility corporations and municipalities to calculate the cost impact of
compliance measures with the CLCPA on ratepayers' utility bills
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Adds a new section 44-a to the public service law, which
requires every utility corporation or municipality to include a separate
line item on residential customers' bills for service that lists the
cost impact of measures taken in accordance with the CLCPA. This
section also details various examples of measures to be listed.
This section further provides that the department shall establish and
provide a formula for every utility corporation and municipality, which
will be used to calculate the new separated line item. Costs incurred by
a utility or municipality that are beneficial for compliance with the
CLCPA as well as general system reliability or gas and electric services
shall be included in the formula.
This section states that the department shall be responsible for updat-
ing the formula annually and notifying the proper stakeholders.
Section 2: Provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
As New York transitions to a "cleaner" energy grid, it is critical that
the transition is managed responsibly and in a manner that does not
burden ratepayers. Further, it is essential that the process is done in
a transparent manner, especially as ratepayers have seen recent spikes
in utility bills.
This bill would provide clarity for New Yorkers and increase transparen-
cy by requiring utility companies to provide a separate line item that
lists costs associated with compliance measures with the CLCPA, such as
monies spent for the purpose of renewable power generation, battery
storage, new transmission or distribution lines, and more. New Yorkers
deserve to know how the state's policies are impacting their budgets.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Provides transparency on fiscal impacts to ratepayers.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7021
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 18, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. E. BROWN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to providing trans-
parency to residential utility and municipality ratepayers on the cost
impact of the climate action council's scoping plan
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public service law is amended by adding a new section
2 44-a to read as follows:
3 § 44-a. Utility bills; cost impact of New York state climate action
4 council's scoping plan. 1. No later than one year after the effective
5 date of this section, every utility corporation or municipality shall
6 ensure that bills for service to residential customers include a sepa-
7 rate line item for the cost impact of measures taken in accordance with
8 the climate action council's final scoping plan pursuant to article
9 seventy-five of the environmental conservation law. Such measures shall
10 include, but not be limited to, monies spent by the utility corporation
11 or municipality for the purpose of renewable power generation, battery
12 storage, new transmission and distribution lines, costs associated with
13 interconnection of renewable energy projects, any costs associated with
14 rebates or subsidies for customer-owned electric heating, cooling, or
15 cooking appliances, or any other purpose related to compliance with
16 article seventy-five of the environmental conservation law.
17 2. (a) No later than one hundred eighty days after the effective date
18 of this section, the department shall establish a formula that enables
19 every utility corporation or municipality to calculate the cost impact
20 on each residential customer's bill attributed to measures taken in
21 accordance with the climate action council's final scoping plan. In any
22 instance where costs are incurred by a utility or municipality, benefi-
23 cial for both compliance with article seventy-five of the environmental
24 conservation law and for general system reliability and safety for the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09971-02-5
A. 7021 2
1 provision of gas or electric service, such costs shall also be included
2 in the formula provided that such costs cannot be reasonably decoupled.
3 (b) The department shall update the formula on an annual basis and
4 notify every utility corporation and municipality within thirty days of
5 such update.
6 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
