Assembly Bill A10604

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  10604

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              June 7, 2012
                               ___________

Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Crespo) --
  read once and referred to the Committee on Energy

AN ACT to amend the public service law,  in  relation  to  incorporating
  environmental  justice  considerations into major utility transmission
  facility siting

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1. Subdivision 1 of section 122 of the public service law, as
added by chapter 272 of the laws of 1970, is amended to read as follows:
  1. An applicant for a certificate shall file with  the  commission  an
application,  in  such  form as the commission may prescribe, containing
the following information: (a) the location of the site or right-of-way;
(b) a description of the transmission facility to be built thereon;  (c)
a  summary  of  any  studies  which  have been made of the environmental
impact of the project, and a description of such studies; (d)  a  state-
ment  explaining  the  need  for  the facility; (e) a description of any
reasonable alternate location or locations for the proposed facility,  a
description  of  the  comparative merits and detriments of each location
submitted, and a statement of  the  reasons  why  the  primary  proposed
location  is  best suited for the facility; (F) IN ACCORDANCE WITH RULES
AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED PURSUANT TO SECTION ONE  HUNDRED  THIRTY-ONE
OF THIS ARTICLE, AN EVALUATION OF ANY SIGNIFICANT AND ADVERSE DISPROPOR-
TIONATE  ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS RESULTING FROM CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATION
OF THE PROPOSED FACILITY ON ANY ENVIRONMENTAL  JUSTICE  AREA,  INCLUDING
ANY STUDIES IDENTIFYING THE AUTHOR AND DATES THEREOF, WHICH WERE USED IN
THE  EVALUATION;  and  [(f)] (G) such other information as the applicant
may consider relevant or  the  commission  may  by  regulation  require.
Copies  of all the studies referred to in PARAGRAPHS (c) [above] AND (F)
OF THIS SUBDIVISION shall be filed with  the  commission  and  shall  be
available for public inspection.
  S 2. Subdivision 1 of section 126 of the public service law is amended
by adding a new paragraph (h) to read as follows:
  (H)  IF  THE COMMISSION FINDS THAT THE FACILITY RESULTS IN OR CONTRIB-
UTES TO A SIGNIFICANT AND ADVERSE DISPROPORTIONATE ENVIRONMENTAL  IMPACT

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD15803-01-2

A. 10604                            2

IN  A  COMMUNITY  IN WHICH AN ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AREA IS LOCATED, THE
APPLICANT WILL AVOID, OFFSET OR  MINIMIZE  THE  IMPACTS  CAUSED  BY  THE
FACILITY  UPON THE LOCAL COMMUNITY FOR THE DURATION THAT THE CERTIFICATE
IS ISSUED TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PRACTICABLE USING VERIFIABLE MEASURES.
  S  3.  Paragraph  (d)  of  subdivision  2 of section 128 of the public
service law, as added by chapter 272 of the laws of 1970, is amended and
a new paragraph (f) is added to read as follows:
  (d) made in accordance with procedures set forth in  this  article  or
established  by  rule or regulation of the commission, OR BY THE DEPART-
MENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION PURSUANT TO SECTION ONE HUNDRED THIR-
TY-ONE OF THIS ARTICLE.
  (F) MADE PURSUANT TO A PROCESS THAT AFFORDED MEANINGFUL INVOLVEMENT OF
CITIZENS AFFECTED BY  THE  FACILITY  REGARDLESS  OF  AGE,  RACE,  COLOR,
NATIONAL ORIGIN OR INCOME.
  S  4. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 131 to
read as follows:
  S 131. ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ISSUES. 1. THE EVALUATION  OF
SIGNIFICANT  AND  ADVERSE  DISPROPORTIONATE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF THE
PROPOSED FACILITY ON ANY ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AREA  PURSUANT  TO  PARA-
GRAPH  (F)  OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-TWO OF THIS
ARTICLE SHALL BE CONDUCTED IN  ACCORDANCE  WITH  RULES  AND  REGULATIONS
PROMULGATED  BY  THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION FOR THE
ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ISSUES.
  2. SUCH RULES AND REGULATIONS SHALL INCLUDE THE DEFINITION  OF  "ENVI-
RONMENTAL  JUSTICE  AREA"  PROMULGATED  BY  THE  DEPARTMENT  PURSUANT TO
SECTION ONE HUNDRED SIXTY-FOUR OF THIS CHAPTER AND SHALL, AT A  MINIMUM,
REQUIRE  A  COMPREHENSIVE DEMOGRAPHIC, ECONOMIC AND PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
OF ANY ENVIRONMENTAL  JUSTICE  AREA  WHICH  WILL  BE  SIGNIFICANTLY  AND
ADVERSELY  IMPACTED  BY  CONSTRUCTION  AND  OPERATION  OF  THE FACILITY,
COMPARED AND CONTRASTED  WITH  THE  COUNTY  IN  WHICH  THE  FACILITY  IS
PROPOSED  AND  WITH  ADJACENT  COMMUNITIES WITHIN SUCH COUNTY, INCLUDING
REASONABLY AVAILABLE DATA ON POPULATION, RACIAL  AND  ETHNIC  CHARACTER-
ISTICS,  INCOME  LEVELS,  OPEN  SPACE, AND PUBLIC HEALTH DATA, INCLUDING
AVAILABLE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH DATA ON INCIDENCE OF ASTHMA  AND  CANCER.
THE DEPARTMENT MAY MAKE APPROPRIATE DISTINCTIONS IN SUCH RULES AND REGU-
LATIONS FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF TRANSMISSION FACILITIES.
  S  5.  On  and  after the three hundred sixty-sixth day after this act
shall have become a law, the public service commission shall not  accept
any  application for a certificate pursuant to section 122 of the public
service law until  the  department  of  environmental  conservation  has
promulgated rules and regulations required by section 131 of such law.
  S  6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that nothing in
this act shall be construed to limit any administrative authority,  with
respect  to  matters included in this act, which authority existed prior
to the effective date of this act. Within twelve months of the effective
date of this act, all rules and regulations required  pursuant  to  this
act shall be adopted.