NY State Senate Bill 2019-S1266

Senate Bill S1266

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Expands the scope of management and operations audits of gas and electric corporations conducted by the public service commission

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to energy and telecommunications
Jan 11, 2019	referred to energy and telecommunications

2019-S1266 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §66, Pub Serv L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S1980
2013-2014: S584
2015-2016: S2390
2017-2018: S2475
2021-2022: S101
2023-2024: S1702

2019-S1266 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Expands the scope of management and operations audits of gas and electric corporations conducted by the public service commission; requires copies of such audits to be provided to the governor and various legislative leaders.

2019-S1266 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S1266

SPONSOR: GIANARIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to the management
and operations audits of certain utilities

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

In its January 2007 report, the Assembly Queens Power Outage Task Force
recommended several measures to improve oversight of utilities and
prevent future blackouts. This bill strengthens the requirements for
management and operations audits of gas and electric corporations, in
order to ensure timely awareness of areas where improvements in utility
operations may be needed.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one amends paragraphs (a) and (c) of subdivision 19 of § 66 of
the Public Service Law to make the following revisions to the statutori-

ly required process for management and operations audits of electric and
gas corporations:

*the audit schedule - currently at least once every 5 years - could be
accelerated by the Public Service Commission (PSC), but must occur at
least annually;

*audits would be expanded to include not only construction program plan-
ning, but also "maintenance operations";

*upon completion, copies of audits must be provided to the Governor and
Legislature; and

*auditors shall independently verify information provided by the utili-
ty. Section two provides the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In the Summer of 2006, the western part of Queens suffered a massive
power outage that lasted 9 days. The Assembly Queens Power Outage Task
Force studied the outage's causes and the inadequate responses by the
company responsible for the transmission and distribution system,
Consolidated Edison, and by the Public Service Commission.  One underly-
ing cause of this debacle was found to be the reliance by New York's
utility regulators on antiquated laws, regulations and policies that let
companies engaged in energy transmission and distribution operate with-
out effective oversight.

The Task Force found that the legislatively-required schedule for PSC
audits of the management and operations of certain utilities was not
being met. This bill strengthens the current audit provisions by includ-
ing review of a utility's maintenance and security programs and inde-
pendent verification of information provided by the company, allows the
PSC to order audits more frequently than every 5 years, and requires
copies of completed audits to be filed with the Governor and Legisla-
ture.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2018: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2017: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2016: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2015: Died in Energy and Telecommunications
2014: Senate Bill 584-A (Gianaris)-Died in Senate Energy Telecommuni-
cations Committee
2012: Senate Bill 1980 (Gianaris)-Died in Assembly Corporations,
2013: Assembly Bill 667 (Hevesi)Authorities and Commissions Committee
2012: Assembly Bill 2366 (Hevesi)- Died in Assembly Corporations,
Authorities and Commissions Committee
2010: Assembly Bill 1554 (Gianaris) - Died in Assembly Corporations,
Authorities and Commissions Committee
2008: Assembly Bill 8620-A (Gianaris) - Died in Assembly Corporations,
Authorities and Commissions Committee

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
The 120th day after becoming law. Provided, that the Public Service
Commission is immediately authorized and directed to take any and all
actions, including but not limited to promulgation of any necessary
rules, necessary to fully implement the provisions of this act on its
effective date.

2019-S1266 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1266
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GIANARIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the public service law, in relation to the management
   and operations audits of certain utilities

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subdivision 19 of section 66 of
 the public service law, as amended by section 4 of part X of chapter  57
 of the laws of 2013, are amended to read as follows:
   (a)  The  commission  shall  have  power to provide for management and
 operations audits of gas corporations and  electric  corporations.  Such
 audits  shall be performed AT SUCH TIMES AS THE COMMISSION SHALL DIRECT,
 BUT AN AUDIT SHALL BE PERFORMED at least once every  [five  years]  YEAR
 for  combination  gas and electric corporations, as well as for straight
 gas corporations having annual gross revenues in excess of  two  hundred
 million dollars.  WHEN ANY SUCH CORPORATION ALSO OPERATES A STEAM CORPO-
 RATION  PURSUANT TO ARTICLE FOUR-A OF THIS CHAPTER, THE COMMISSION SHALL
 PROVIDE FOR A MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS AUDIT OF THE  STEAM  CORPORATION
 IN  THE  TIME  AND  MANNER  SPECIFIED  IN  THIS SECTION. The audit shall
 include, but not be  limited  to,  an  investigation  of  the  company's
 construction  program,  planning [in relation], SECURITY AND MAINTENANCE
 OPERATIONS AS THEY RELATE to the needs of  its  customers  for  reliable
 service,  an  evaluation  of the efficiency of the company's operations,
 recommendations with respect to same, and the timing with respect to the
 implementation of such recommendations.  THE AUDIT SHALL  INCLUDE  INDE-
 PENDENT VERIFICATION OF THE INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE CORPORATION. The
 commission  shall  have  discretion to have such audits performed by its
 staff, or by independent auditors.    UPON  COMPLETION,  COPIES  OF  THE
 AUDITS  SHALL  BE PROVIDED TO THE GOVERNOR, SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY, THE
 TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE,  THE  CHAIR  OF  THE  SENATE  FINANCE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD04469-01-9

 S. 1266                             2
 
 COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR OF THE ASSEMBLY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR
 OF  THE ASSEMBLY ENERGY COMMITTEE AND THE CHAIR OF THE SENATE ENERGY AND
 TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE.
   In  every  case  in  which  the  commission  chooses to have the audit
 provided for in this subdivision or pursuant to subdivision fourteen  of
 section sixty-five of this article performed by independent auditors, it
 shall  have authority to select the auditors, and to require the company
 being audited to enter into a contract with the auditors  providing  for
 their  payment  by the company. Such contract shall provide further that
 the auditors shall work for and under the direction  of  the  commission
 according  to  such  terms as the commission may determine are necessary
 and reasonable.
   (c) Upon the application of a gas or electric corporation for a  major
 change in rates as defined in subdivision twelve of this section OR OF A
 STEAM  CORPORATION FOR A MAJOR CHANGE IN RATES AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION
 TEN OF SECTION EIGHTY OF THIS CHAPTER, the commission shall review  that
 corporation's  compliance  with  the directions and recommendations made
 previously by the commission, as a result of the most recently completed
 management and operations audit.  The commission shall  incorporate  the
 findings of such review in its opinion or order, and such findings shall
 be enforceable by the commission.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law. Provided, that the public service commission
 is  immediately  authorized  and  directed  to take any and all actions,
 including but not limited to the promulgation of  any  necessary  rules,
 necessary to fully implement the provisions of this act on its effective
 date.

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