S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9444
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              March 14, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M. of A. CRUZ -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Energy
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to call centers  for
   gas and electric corporations
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 13 of section  65  of
 the  public  service  law,  paragraph (a) as added by chapter 330 of the
 laws of 2010 and paragraph (b) as amended by chapter 520 of the laws  of
 2014, are amended to read as follows:
   (a)  Every  gas corporation or electric corporation furnishing utility
 services shall provide the following  call  center  customer  assistance
 receiving inquiries AND ASSOCIATED OFFICE TASKS BY PHONE, IN WRITING, OR
 ANY  ELECTRONIC  COMMUNICATION,  INCLUDING  BUT  NOT  LIMITED TO EMAILS,
 TEXTS, AND CHATS on: customer financial responsibility; receiving APPLI-
 CATION requests to initiate or terminate service; receiving requests for
 emergency services; SHARED METERING;  determining  deposit  required  or
 billing  rate;  receiving  meter  and service orders and access to meter
 requests; explaining company rates, regulations,  policies,  procedures,
 and  common  practices;  initiating  trouble  order  forms and high bill
 investigations; INBOUND AND/OR OUTBOUND handling OF  payment  and  other
 credit arrangements such as obtaining deposits, financial statements and
 payment  plans;  COLLECTION ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES and referring customers
 to social service agencies and other assistance programs.
   (b) (I) No gas or electric corporation shall close a  call  center  or
 other  facility providing the customer assistance set forth in paragraph
 (a) of this subdivision or [relocate] SEND such customer assistance  [to
 another  area  of]  OUTSIDE  SUCH GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S New York
 state SERVICE TERRITORY or outside of  New  York  state  without  notice
 [and], A hearing AND APPROVAL before the commission. Upon receipt of the
 notice required pursuant to this paragraph, the commission shall provide
 notice of the proceeding to interested parties and the public; and shall
 promptly fix a date for the commencement of a public hearing thereon not
 less than sixty days after such receipt. The testimony presented at such
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD13564-04-4
 A. 9444                             2
 
 hearing may be presented in writing or orally, provided that the commis-
 sion  may make rules designed to exclude repetitive, redundant or irrel-
 evant testimony while giving all interested parties the  opportunity  to
 present  their  documentary  and/or testimonial evidence. The commission
 shall make a record of all testimony  in  all  contested  hearings.  THE
 COMMISSION  WITHIN  THIRTY  DAYS  SHALL APPROVE OR DENY THE CLOSURE OF A
 CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER SERVICE  OR  THE  RELO-
 CATION  OF  CUSTOMER  SERVICE ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES. For purposes of this
 section "public hearing" means a public forum at  a  physical  location,
 attended  by commission members or their designees, where oral testimony
 is accepted and written testimony may be submitted for inclusion in  the
 record.  Such  forum  shall be open to parties to the proceeding and the
 general public for the presentation of comments that shall be limited to
 relevant facts directly related to  the  proceeding  in  question.  Such
 hearing  shall  be  commenced  upon  proper notice to the parties to the
 proceeding and the public at least thirty days prior  to  the  scheduled
 date.  SUCH  HEARING  SHALL  BE  CLOSED AFTER THE COMMISSION APPROVES OR
 DENIES THE CLOSURE OF A CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER
 SERVICE OR THE RELOCATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANCE  INQUIRIES.  IT
 SHALL  BE  PERMISSIBLE FOR A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION AND A BONA FIDE
 LABOR ORGANIZATION REPRESENTING CALL CENTER EMPLOYEES THROUGH A  COLLEC-
 TIVE  BARGAINING  AGREEMENT  TO  INITIATE A WORK FLEXIBILITY ARRANGEMENT
 THAT ALLOWS A MEMBER OF SUCH BONA FIDE LABOR ORGANIZATION TO  WORK  FROM
 AN  APPROVED  ALTERNATIVE  WORKSITE  OTHER  THAN A CALL CENTER LOCATION;
 PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT NO INQUIRY PROVIDED TO A CALL CENTER SUBJECT  TO
 SUCH  AGREEMENT  SHALL  BE  RECEIVED  BY  ANY OTHER EMPLOYEE THAT IS NOT
 COVERED BY SUCH AGREEMENT AND MEMBERS OF SUCH BONA FIDE LABOR  ORGANIZA-
 TION  SHALL  RESIDE  WITHIN  THE  BORDERS OF NEW YORK STATE. ANY AND ALL
 MEMBERS OF SUCH BONA FIDE LABOR ORGANIZATION, AFTER THE  EFFECTIVE  DATE
 OF THE CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-FOUR THAT AMENDED THIS
 PARAGRAPH, RECEIVING AND/OR HANDLING CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRIES RESIDING
 OUTSIDE  THE  BORDERS  OF  NEW  YORK STATE SHALL BE EXEMPT FROM RESIDING
 INSIDE THE BORDERS OF NEW YORK STATE; HOWEVER ALL  NEW  EMPLOYEES  HIRED
 AFTER  THE  EFFECTIVE  DATE  OF  THE CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND
 TWENTY-FOUR THAT AMENDED THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL RESIDE WITHIN  THE  BORDER
 OF  NEW  YORK  STATE.  IF SUCH AN ARRANGEMENT IS REACHED BY BOTH PARTIES
 THROUGH A COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT, SUCH  ARRANGEMENT  SHALL  NOT
 VIOLATE THIS SECTION.
   (II)  THE COMMISSION SHALL MAKE AVAILABLE A FORM ALLOWING AN ENTITY TO
 TAKE AN ACTION AGAINST A GAS  OR  ELECTRIC  CORPORATION  THAT  KNOWINGLY
 FAILED OR NEGLECTED TO OBEY OR COMPLY WITH THIS SECTION. UPON RECEIPT OF
 SUCH  FORM, IT SHALL COMMENCE A PROCEEDING TO DETERMINE IF A CALL CENTER
 OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE WAS CLOSED  OR  CUSTOMER
 SERVICE ASSISTANCE INQUIRIES WERE RELOCATED OUTSIDE NEW YORK STATE WITH-
 OUT  NOTICE,  HEARING,  AND  APPROVAL BEFORE THE COMMISSION. PURSUANT TO
 THIS PARAGRAPH, THE COMMISSION SHALL PROVIDE NOTICE OF  SUCH  PROCEEDING
 TO  INTERESTED  PARTIES AND THE PUBLIC AND SHALL PROMPTLY FIX A DATE FOR
 THE COMMENCEMENT OF A PUBLIC HEARING THEREON NOT LESS  THAN  SIXTY  DAYS
 AFTER  SUCH  RECEIPT.  THE  TESTIMONY  PRESENTED  AT SUCH HEARING MAY BE
 PRESENTED IN WRITING OR ORALLY, PROVIDED THAT THE  COMMISSION  MAY  MAKE
 RULES  DESIGNED TO EXCLUDE REPETITIVE, REDUNDANT OR IRRELEVANT TESTIMONY
 WHILE GIVING ALL PARTIES THE OPPORTUNITY TO  PRESENT  THEIR  DOCUMENTARY
 AND/OR  TESTIMONIAL  EVIDENCE. THE COMMISSION SHALL A MAKE RECORD OF ALL
 TESTIMONY IN ALL CONTESTED HEARINGS.  THE COMMISSION SHALL WITHIN THIRTY
 DAYS MAKE A DETERMINATION IF SUCH GAS OR  ELECTRIC  CORPORATION  WAS  IN
 VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION.
 A. 9444                             3
 
   §  2.  Section 25 of the public service law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 4-a to read as follows:
   4-A.  NOTWITHSTANDING  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  SUBDIVISION  TWO  OF  THIS
 SECTION, ANY SUCH PUBLIC UTILITY COMPANY, CORPORATION OR PERSON AND  THE
 OFFICERS,  AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES THEREOF THAT KNOWINGLY FAILS OR NEGLECTS
 TO OBEY OR COMPLY WITH SECTION SIXTY-FIVE OF THIS CHAPTER, OR  AN  ORDER
 OR REGULATION ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION SIXTY-FIVE OF THIS CHAPTER, OR
 SUCH  PUBLIC  UTILITY  COMPANY,  CORPORATION OR PERSON AND THE OFFICERS,
 AGENTS AND EMPLOYEES  THEREOF  KNOWINGLY  SENDS  A  CUSTOMER  ASSISTANCE
 INQUIRY  OUTSIDE  A GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION'S NEW YORK STATE SERVICE
 TERRITORY OR OUTSIDE THE STATE OF NEW YORK WITHOUT NOTICE, A HEARING AND
 APPROVAL BEFORE THE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO SECTION  SIXTY-FIVE  OF  THIS
 CHAPTER,  SHALL FORFEIT TO THE STATE OF NEW YORK A SUM NOT TO EXCEED THE
 GREATER OF:
   (A) FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS CONSTITUTING A CIVIL PENALTY FOR EACH SEPA-
 RATE AND DISTINCT CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRY SENT OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK  AND
 ONE HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS CONSTITUTING A CIVIL PENALTY FOR EACH
 DAY A CALL CENTER OR OTHER FACILITY PROVIDING THE CUSTOMER ASSISTANCE IS
 CLOSED; OR
   (B)  THE  MAXIMUM FORFEITURE DETERMINED IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUBDIVISION
 TWO OF THIS SECTION.
   § 3. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
 sion, section or part of this act shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of
 competent  jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
 its  operation  to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
 the  legislature that this act would  have  been  enacted  even  if such
 invalid provisions had not been included herein.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately and  shall  apply  to  all
 actions  or proceedings commenced on or after the effective date of this
 act.