New York State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle and Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. announced that Governor Cuomo has signed their bill which would enable the Town of East Hampton to create “Underground Utility Improvement Districts” into law. This new law, Chapter 389 of the Laws of 2016, would permit the Town of East Hampton to create districts that would be able enter into agreements with public utility companies to construct underground utility facilities or convert existing above ground utilities to underground. Such facilities could include electric transmission and distribution lines, cable television lines, and telephone lines.

The State Legislators introduced this legislation after recent dealings with the expansion of above-ground transmission lines in both Southampton and East Hampton Towns.

Thiele stated, “New York, in general, needs to build an electric grid that is stronger, more resilient, and smarter. Long Island, and more specifically, the Town of East Hampton, is particularly susceptible to nor’easters, tropical storms, and hurricanes. We need to protect our energy system, and a great way to do that is by selectively undergrounding our utility infrastructure.”

Senator Ken LaValle said, “This legislation would provide the Town of East Hampton with another tool to safeguard their electrical infrastructure from future storm damage with the opportunity to share costs or spread them out over time.”

Under the new law, East Hampton would have the authority to create an “underground utility improvement district”, utilizing the same process and procedures that currently exist for the creation of other special districts such as water or sewer districts. The creation of a district would be subject to a permissive referendum. After an underground utility improvement district has been established, the Town Board may enter into a contract with a public utility company, municipality, or public authority in order to construct underground new public utility facilities or convert existing overhead public utility facilities to underground facilities.