NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8730

Senate Bill S8730

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Relates to providing water utilities with access to water quality infrastructure improvement funding

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Corporations, Authorities And Commissions 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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 05, 2024	referred to corporations, authorities and commissions

co-Sponsors

2023-S8730 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A7521
Current Committee:: Senate Corporations, Authorities And Commissions
Law Section:: Public Authorities Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §1281, Pub Auth L; amd §1160, Pub Health L; amd Part T §6, Chap 57 of 2017; amd §102, RPT L

2023-S8730 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to providing water utilities with access to water quality infrastructure improvement funding.

2023-S8730 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8730

SPONSOR: HARCKHAM
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public authorities law, the public health law, the
New York State water infrastructure improvement act of 2017, and the
real property tax law,  in relation to providing access to water quality
infrastructure improvement funding to water utilities

 
PURPOSE:

To provide access to water quality infrastructure improvement funding to
water utilities

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Sections 1 and 2 would clarify that a water utility is eligible for
financing through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, so long as
the utility project has a clear and definite public purpose which bene-
fits the customers of the water system.

Section 3 would provide that a water utility is eligible for grant fund-
ing through the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2017, so long as
the utility project has a clear and definite public purpose which bene-
fits the customers of the water system.

Section 4 would provide that water utility infrastructure improvements
funded or financed through the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act of
2017 or the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund shall be exempt from
special franchise taxation, provided that any tax relief realized
through such exemption shall be used to reduce current water rates and
offset future water rate increases

Section 5 would provide for an immediate effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Aging water infrastructure affects all communities in New York, and
substantial investments are needed to maintain water quality, reliabil-
ity and resiliency. However, communities that are served by private
water utilities do not currently have the same access to State and
Federal resources to make needed water infrastructure improvements, as
is currently available to municipal water systems. As a result, custom-
ers of private water systems are left to pay for the costs for infras-
tructure improvements over time through the monthly rates they pay.
Making matters worse, the customers of these private water systems must
then also pay higher special franchise taxes due to the higher assessed
value of the improved infrastructure.

This bill would rectify this discrepancy between municipal and private
water systems, by providing private water utilities the same opportunity
to competitively apply for all available State and Federal water quality
improvement funding on behalf of their customers. In addition, the bill
would also exempt the infrastructure improvements from special franchise
taxation, so long as any tax relief realized through such exemption is
used to reduce current water rates and offset future water rate
increases.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the state.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8730 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8730
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 5, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Corporations,  Authorities
   and Commissions
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the public authorities law, the public health law, the
   New York State water infrastructure improvement act of 2017,  and  the
   real property tax law,  in relation to providing access to water qual-
   ity infrastructure improvement funding to water utilities
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 34 of section 1281 of  the  public  authorities
 law,  as added by chapter 413 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
 follows:
   34. "Recipient"  shall  mean  any  municipality,  public  utility,  or
 person,  including  any individual, firm, partnership, association, not-
 for-profit corporation or other corporation organized and existing under
 the laws of the state or any other state which is empowered to construct
 and operate an eligible project, or any two or  more  of  the  foregoing
 which  are  acting  jointly  in  connection  with  an  eligible project;
 PROVIDED ANY PROJECT BY A WATER UTILITY SHALL HAVE A CLEAR AND  DEFINITE
 PUBLIC PURPOSE AND SHALL BENEFIT THE CUSTOMERS OF THE WATER SYSTEM.
   §  2.    Subdivision  10  of section 1160 of the public health law, as
 added by chapter 413 of the laws  of  1996,    is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   10.  "Recipient"  means  any  municipality, public utility, or person,
 including any individual, firm, partnership, association, not-for-profit
 corporation or other corporation organized and existing under  the  laws
 of  the  state  or  any  other state which is empowered to construct and
 operate an eligible project, or any two or more of the  foregoing  which
 are  acting jointly in connection with an eligible project; PROVIDED ANY
 PROJECT BY A WATER UTILITY  SHALL  HAVE  A  CLEAR  AND  DEFINITE  PUBLIC
 PURPOSE AND SHALL BENEFIT THE CUSTOMERS OF THE WATER SYSTEM.
   § 3. Paragraph a of subdivision 3 of section 6 of part T of chapter 57
 of  the  laws of 2017, constituting the New York State water infrastruc-
 ture improvement act of 2017, is amended to read as follows:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD11508-01-3
 S. 8730                             2
 
   a.  The  environmental  facilities  corporation  shall  undertake  and
 provide state financial assistance payments, from funds appropriated for
 such  purpose,  to  municipalities  AND WATER UTILITIES REGULATED BY THE
 PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION in support  of  water  quality  infrastructure
 projects provided, however, in any such year that funds are appropriated
 for  such  purpose,  no municipality OR WATER UTILITY shall receive more
 than five million dollars of appropriated funds, AND ANY  PROJECT  BY  A
 WATER  UTILITY  SHALL HAVE A CLEAR AND DEFINITE PUBLIC PURPOSE AND SHALL
 BENEFIT THE CUSTOMERS OF THE WATER SYSTEM. Such state financial  assist-
 ance  payments  shall  be  awarded  only to water quality infrastructure
 projects for:
   (i) replacement or repair of infrastructure; or
   (ii) compliance with environmental and public health  laws  and  regu-
 lations related to water quality.
   §  4.  Subdivision  17 of section 102 of the real property tax law, as
 amended by chapter 569 of the laws  of  1996,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   17.  "Special  franchise"  means  the  franchise,  right, authority or
 permission to construct, maintain or operate in, under, above,  upon  or
 through  any  public street, highway, water or other public place mains,
 pipes, tanks, conduits, wires or transformers, with their appurtenances,
 for conducting water, steam, light, power,  electricity,  gas  or  other
 substance.  For  purposes of assessment and taxation a special franchise
 shall include the value of the tangible  property  situated  in,  under,
 above, upon or through any public street, highway, water or other public
 place  in  connection  therewith.  The  term special franchise shall not
 include central office equipment or  station  equipment  (except  public
 telephone  terminal  equipment)  which first appears on assessment rolls
 prepared on the basis of taxable status  dates  occurring  on  or  after
 October  first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-five  and which is owned by a
 telephone company as defined in paragraph (d) of subdivision  twelve  of
 this section, or owned by a telephone corporation as defined in subdivi-
 sion seventeen of section two of the public service law and certified by
 the public service commission under section ninety-nine of such law, nor
 shall  it  include  property  of a municipal corporation, public benefit
 corporation or special district, nor shall it include  a  crossing  less
 than two hundred fifty feet in length of a public street, highway, water
 or other public place outside a city or village, unless such crossing be
 the  continuation  of  an  occupancy  of another public street, highway,
 water or other public place. FOR A WATER UTILITY, THE TERM SPECIAL FRAN-
 CHISE SHALL NOT INCLUDE THE VALUE OF WATER  INFRASTRUCTURE  IMPROVEMENTS
 FUNDED  OR  FINANCED  THROUGH  THE  NEW  YORK STATE WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
 IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2017, OR THE DRINKING WATER REVOLVING  FUND  PURSUANT
 TO  SECTION  1285-M OF THE PUBLIC AUTHORITIES LAW, PROVIDED THAT ANY TAX
 RELIEF REALIZED THROUGH SUCH EXEMPTION SHALL BE USED TO  REDUCE  CURRENT
 WATER RATES AND OFFSET FUTURE WATER RATE INCREASES.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S8730

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Sponsored By

Pete Harckham