Senate Bill S3058

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3058
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 27, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. HELMING, GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and  when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Tele-
   communications
 
 AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to setting the  rate
   of  credit  per  kilowatt  hour  for  farm  waste generating equipment
   customer-generators, which includes the anaerobic digestion  of  agri-
   cultural waste
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Legislative Intent. It is the intent of  this  Legislature
 to  support  the  ongoing  financial  viability of farm waste generating
 equipment customer-generators--more commonly known as  anaerobic  diges-
 ters--in  New  York state. Anaerobic digesters located on New York dairy
 farms create critical environmental attributes including, but not limit-
 ed to, reducing methane gas releases and abating nutrient  contamination
 of  nearby  water sources.   The Legislature also recognizes that legacy
 anaerobic digesters are not financially viable under the current compen-
 sation methodology; as such, legacy anaerobic digesters are at  risk  of
 closure.  Any  closures  would undo the significant financial investment
 made by the state of New York to install anaerobic digesters  under  the
 Clean  Energy  Fund program.  Closures would also put New York behind on
 meeting greenhouse gas emission reduction goals as set forth  under  the
 State  Energy  Plan, and behind on developing a clean, distributed grid.
 While the New York state  Public  Service  Commission  has  initiated  a
 proceeding  to  transition  to  a  compensation methodology based on the
 value of distributed energy resources, the  implementation  of  the  new
 methodology  will  not address the immediate financial need of existing,
 or legacy, anaerobic digesters, or new digesters installed prior to  the
 finalization of a meaningful value stack methodology that includes envi-
 ronmental  values attributed to the avoided use of electricity generated
 by fossil fuels and the reduction of on-site greenhouse gas emissions.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05378-01-3
              

 S. 3058                             2
 
   The Legislature hereby determines that the public interest requires an
 increase in the rate of compensation for  customer-generators  operating
 legacy  anaerobic  digesters,  and  new digesters installed prior to the
 finalization of a meaningful value stack methodology, which  will  apply
 to  credit  calculations  for  the  customer-generators' bills following
 implementation of this legislation.
   § 2.  Paragraph (b) of subdivision 4 of section  66-j  of  the  public
 service  law,  as amended by chapter 691 of the laws of 2022, is amended
 to read as follows:
   (b) In the event that the amount of electricity produced by a  custom-
 er-generator during the billing period exceeds the amount of electricity
 used  by the customer-generator, the corporation shall apply a credit to
 the next bill for service to the customer-generator for  the  net  elec-
 tricity  provided  at  the  same  rate  per  kilowatt hour applicable to
 service provided to other customers in the same service class  which  do
 not  generate  electricity  onsite,  except  for micro-combined heat and
 power or fuel cell or fuel-flexible linear generator customer-generators
 [or farm waste generating equipment customer-generators as described  in
 subparagraph  (ix) of paragraph (a) of subdivision one of this section],
 who will be credited at the corporation's avoided costs PROVIDED, HOWEV-
 ER, THAT IN THE CASE OF FARM WASTE GENERATING EQUIPMENT  CUSTOMER-GENER-
 ATORS, THE CORPORATION SHALL APPLY A CREDIT TO THE NEXT BILL AT  A  RATE
 OF NO LESS THAN  TWELVE  CENTS PER KILOWATT HOUR. The avoided cost cred-
 it provided to micro-combined heat and power or fuel cell or fuel-flexi-
 ble linear generator customer-generators or farm waste generating equip-
 ment  customer-generators as described in subparagraph (ix) of paragraph
 (a) of subdivision one of this section shall be treated  for  ratemaking
 purposes  as  a purchase of electricity in the market that is includable
 in commodity costs.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.