Assembly Bill A11433

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   11433
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 15, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Simon, Shim-
   sky) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Energy
 
 AN  ACT  in  relation  to enacting the "NYS ratepayer protection nuclear
   moratorium act"; and providing for the repeal of such provisions  upon
   expiration thereof
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may  be  cited  as
 the "NYS ratepayer protection nuclear moratorium act".
   § 2. Legislative findings. The legislature hereby finds and declares:
   1.  It  is  the policy of New York state to protect natural resources,
 public health, and  economic  well-being  by  preventing  pollution  and
 advancing safe, clean and affordable energy systems.
   2.  The  proposed development of nuclear power facilities represents a
 fundamental shift in state energy policy that is inconsistent  with  the
 Climate  Leadership  and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) mandate for an
 affordable, clean, and renewable energy transition.
   3. New York's own experience, including the Shoreham facility,  illus-
 trates  the  financial risks of nuclear power facilities, which resulted
 in substantial and lasting costs to ratepayers without delivering energy
 benefits.
   4. Historical and recent  evidence  demonstrates  that  nuclear  power
 facilities  are  among  the most expensive and slowest energy sources to
 deploy, with significant cost overruns and delays. Recent U.S. projects,
 including the Vogtle nuclear power  facilities,  far  exceeded  original
 budgets and imposed long-term financial burdens on ratepayers.
   5. Five gigawatts, the equivalent of five nuclear power facilities-es-
 timated at $100 billion total-are being advanced without a financial and
 environmental  assessment,  sufficient  legislative oversight, or public
 transparency, contrary to principles of fiscal responsibility  and  good
 governance.
   6.  Given  the  availability  of  faster-to-deploy,  more flexible and
 affordable renewable energy, efficiency and grid modernization  alterna-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD15562-01-6
              

 A. 11433                            2
 
 tives, nuclear power facilities present major opportunity costs that can
 delay and undermine achievement of the CLCPA's mandates.
   7.  The  Climate Action Council's 2022 Scoping Plan calls for a rigor-
 ous, comprehensive evaluation of nuclear power facilities, including its
 costs, safety, environmental and health  impacts,  waste  disposal,  and
 alternatives. Such an evaluation has not been done.
   8.  No  comprehensive,  independent, and publicly available financial,
 environmental, or health assessment of new nuclear power  facilities  in
 New  York  has been conducted, despite recommendations and evidence that
 such projects may impose major costs and risks to ratepayers and taxpay-
 ers.
   9. Nuclear power facilities pose  inherent  safety  and  environmental
 risks, including potential catastrophic accidents, long-term radioactive
 waste with no permanent disposal solution, and significant public health
 concerns for surrounding communities.
   10.  Federal  liability limits under the Price-Anderson Act expose New
 York residents and taxpayers to potentially enormous financial risks  in
 the event of an accident at a nuclear power facility.
   11.  Long-term  radioactive  waste  management presents unresolved and
 costly challenges, with existing waste in  New  York  already  requiring
 perpetual storage and significant ongoing expense.
   12. Scientific research indicates potential adverse health impacts for
 communities  located near nuclear facilities, including increased cancer
 mortality and radioactive contamination of indoor dust and soil in homes
 near nuclear power facilities,  warranting  further  public  health  and
 environmental investigation.
   Therefore,  the legislature of the state of New York adopts a two-year
 and six-month moratorium on funding,  subsidies,  tax  credits,  bonding
 authority,  or other financial commitments for new nuclear power facili-
 ties by state agencies, authorities, or  commissions.  A  comprehensive,
 evidence-based  assessment will be conducted during this time to analyze
 the expense, health,  safety,  security,  opportunity  costs,  community
 impact  and environmental impacts of nuclear power facilities, including
 but not limited to, mining and fuel production, construction, operation,
 nuclear waste long-term management, site and off-site remediation, and a
 comparison to alternative energy sources.
   § 3. Definitions. For the purposes of this act,  the  following  terms
 shall have the following meanings:
   1.  "Nuclear  power  facility"  shall  mean any electricity generating
 plant that uses nuclear fission or related nuclear technology to produce
 electricity.
   2. "State agency" shall mean any state board,  body,  bureau,  commis-
 sion,  council,  department, public authority, public corporation, divi-
 sion, office or other governmental entity performing a  governmental  or
 proprietary function for the state.
   3.  "Subsidy"  shall  mean any expenditure funded by ratepayers and/or
 taxpayers, including, but not limited to, a fee, surcharge, credit, loan
 guarantees or premium charge  added  to  customer  bills  or  any  state
 expenditure designed to plan, promote, underwrite, construct or increase
 the revenue of a nuclear power facility.
   §  4. Prohibition of subsidies. Notwithstanding any other provision of
 law, for a period commencing on the  effective  date  of  this  act  and
 ending  thirty  months thereafter, no state agency shall approve, imple-
 ment, or authorize  any  program  that  provides  financial  assistance,
 including but not limited to, zero-emission credits, clean energy stand-
 ard credits, bond proceeds, ratepayer-funded surcharges or subsidies, or
 A. 11433                            3
 
 taxpayer-funded  appropriations, to plan, promote, underwrite, construct
 any new nuclear power facility or related entity. Funding  for  existing
 planning,  promotion,  underwriting,  construction  or  any state-funded
 activity  on  new  nuclear  power facilities shall be placed on hold for
 thirty months beginning on the effective date of this act.
   § 5. Prohibition of  renewable  energy  funds  for  nuclear  projects.
 Notwithstanding  any  other provision of law, for a period commencing on
 the effective date of this act and ending thirty months  thereafter,  no
 funds  dedicated  to  supporting renewable energy projects, energy effi-
 ciency programs, climate mitigation,  or  grid  modernization  shall  be
 diverted   to   support   the  new  or  continued  planning,  promotion,
 construction or operation of new nuclear power facilities.
   § 6. Nuclear assessment task force. 1. (a) (i) There is hereby  estab-
 lished  a  task  force  on  nuclear  assessment,  which shall consist of
 fifteen members to be appointed as follows: (1) six members appointed by
 the temporary president of the senate; (2) six members appointed by  the
 speaker  of the assembly; (3) two members appointed by the office of the
 state comptroller; and (4) one member appointed by the attorney general.
   (ii) No member of the task force  shall  be  appointed  who  holds  or
 retains  any  past  or  current  relation to or financial interest in an
 electric utility corporation or nuclear power corporation.
   (iii) For the purposes of this act, the term "task force"  shall  mean
 the  task  force  on nuclear assessment established pursuant to subpara-
 graph (i) of this paragraph.
   (b) At a minimum, nine of  the  fifteen  members  of  the  task  force
 appointed  pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision shall be repre-
 sentatives impacted by nuclear power  facilities  as  follows:  (i)  six
 representatives from non-profit environmental organizations and communi-
 ty organizations; and (ii) three tribal nation representatives.
   (c) Each member of the task force shall have demonstrated expertise in
 at least one of the following areas: grid modernization, renewable ener-
 gy, environmental sciences, security, toxicology, medicine, particularly
 in pediatrics, public health, or economics.
   (d) The task force shall meet at least every two months at the call of
 the chair, who shall be elected by the members of the task force.  Meet-
 ings  may  be held via teleconference. Special meetings may be called by
 the chair at the request of a majority of the members of the task force.
   (e) The task force shall create an environmental justice  subcommittee
 of  no less than five of its members to examine, evaluate and assess any
 and all  environmental  justice  issues  that  may  be  related  to  the
 construction  of new nuclear power facilities, including issues relating
 to mining for uranium, the placement of potential nuclear power  facili-
 ties in or near low income areas, the potential impact to the ecosystem,
 and  the  impact of exposure to radioactive and toxic emissions on local
 populations including any disproportionate impacts based on gender,  age
 or ethnicity.
   (f)  Each  member  of  the  task  force  shall receive the sum of four
 hundred dollars for each day in which such  member  is  engaged  in  the
 performance  of  their  duties  in  accordance  with this section. Every
 member shall be entitled to receive reimbursement  for  the  actual  and
 necessary  expenses  incurred  by such member in the performance of such
 duties.
   (g) The task force shall have the  authority  to  engage  consultants,
 engineers,  scientists,  economists,  doctors, non-profit organizations,
 and universities as such task force may deem necessary to carry out  the
 duties and responsibilities of this act.
 A. 11433                            4
 
   2. The task force and its selected contractors shall:
   (a)  Examine,  evaluate  and assess the potential cost of constructing
 new nuclear power facilities in the  state,  taking  into  consideration
 recent  nuclear  power projects undertaken elsewhere in the country, and
 the financial impact of such construction on ratepayers and taxpayers in
 the state, particularly  the  likelihood  of  significant  utility  rate
 increases.    Such examination, evaluation and assessment shall include,
 but not be limited to, the following:
   (i) quantitative and qualitative analysis and modeling of  the  finan-
 cial  costs  to  ratepayers  and  taxpayers  over  sixty  years,  or the
 evidence-based projected life of  nuclear  power  facilities,  including
 small modular reactors;
   (ii)  comparison  of  past cost estimates and actual costs of building
 both existing nuclear  power  facilities  and  cancelled  nuclear  power
 facilities in the U.S. and elsewhere;
   (iii)  the  cost  of  each  of  the existing nuclear power facilities'
 radioactive waste in the state and the estimated  cost  of  new  nuclear
 power  facilities  for  on-site  storage  to isolate such waste from the
 environment for its hazardous life, which shall  be  defined  as  twenty
 times the half-life of the radioactive substances in such waste;
   (iv) the total cost of all past and any ongoing taxpayer and ratepayer
 subsidies,  including  but  not limited to, loans, grants and tax write-
 offs or credits for existing nuclear power facilities in the state,  and
 the  estimated  projected  costs  of  any such subsidies for new nuclear
 power facilities;
   (v) the estimated cost of decommissioning each of the existing nuclear
 power facilities in the state and an  analysis  as  to  whether  current
 decommissioning trust funds will adequately cover such costs;
   (vi)  the  estimated  cost  of fully remediating radioactive and toxic
 contamination at each of the existing nuclear power  facility  sites  in
 accordance with the soil cleanup objective criteria pursuant to §27-1415
 of the environmental conservation law;
   (vii)  if  such  sites are not fully remediated, the estimated cost of
 the loss of use of land in perpetuity for  each  reactor  site  and  the
 negative  impacts  from  such  loss  regionally on economic development,
 agriculture, tourism, real estate and fisheries, any negative impacts to
 the ecosystem of neighboring states;
   (viii) the cost of emergency, resilience and protection programs  from
 extreme  weather  events,  including  flooding,  at each of the existing
 reactor sites over one thousand years, and such costs for nuclear  power
 facility sites for the same time period;
   (ix)  the  socio-economic  costs  incurred by conditions, incidents or
 accidents, including repairs, loss of jobs, health care, and relocation,
 at existing and proposed nuclear power facilities;
   (x) the potential liability and cost to the  state  from  a  range  of
 different plausible worst-case accidents, especially given design inade-
 quacies,  aging  existing  nuclear  power facilities, escalating extreme
 weather conditions, liability caps and possible legal action related  to
 harmful exposure to radioactive releases from nuclear power facilities;
   (xi)  evaluating the consistency with fiscal, environmental and energy
 policy of classifying nuclear power facilities as a low-carbon  or  zero
 emission  technology, taking into account the full life cycle of nuclear
 power facilities; and
   (xii) the potential liability and cost to the state for remediation of
 any nuclear and toxic contamination due to incomplete  site  remediation
 at the existing nuclear power facilities;
 A. 11433                            5
 
   (b)   Examine,  evaluate  and  assess  the  human  health  impacts  of
 constructing and operating new nuclear power facilities  in  the  state,
 including  the  mining  of  raw nuclear materials and the impact of such
 mining on local populations near mining sites; the potential exposure of
 residents living in proximity to nuclear facilities to known carcinogen-
 ic,  radioactive  and  toxic  materials;  the  risk of human exposure to
 nuclear waste materials, including the risks associated with  transport-
 ing  such  waste to remote locations; the risks of releasing radioactive
 water into local water sources which may be used by other communities as
 a source of drinking water; and  the  risks  of  explosions,  meltdowns,
 unintentional  releases,  and  other accidents on local and remote popu-
 lations;
   (c) Examine, evaluate and assess the environmental impacts of  operat-
 ing  new  nuclear power facilities in the state, particularly the poten-
 tial impacts on ecosystems, including habitat destruction, soil,  ground
 water,  surface  water  and air contamination from radioactive and toxic
 chemical emissions and  releases,  thermal  pollution,  impingement  and
 entrainment, and food web contamination;
   (d)  Examine,  evaluate  and  assess  the realistic time frame for the
 construction of new nuclear power facilities, taking into  consideration
 the  time  required  to  construct new nuclear power facilities recently
 completed elsewhere in the country;
   (e) Examine, evaluate and assess the security risks of  nuclear  power
 facilities,  including but not limited to the impact of weakened federal
 regulations, climate-related weather  events,  and  potential  terrorist
 attacks using advanced technology;
   (f)  Examine,  evaluate  and assess the cost, environmental and health
 impacts of alternative renewable energy sources and energy efficiencies,
 including solar and wind power, geothermal energy and heat pumps,  stor-
 age  and  other energy-related measures that are affordable and environ-
 mentally beneficial; and
   (g) Examine, evaluate and assess the legal and liability risks to  the
 state  from  any  pursuit of nuclear power facilities, including but not
 limited to, the New York state energy research and development  authori-
 ty,  the public service commission, the New York power authority and the
 department of economic development. Such assessment  shall  include  the
 following analyses:
   (i)  whether  it is the role of state government to promote and invest
 in nuclear power facilities;
   (ii) whether state  law  or  the  state  constitution  sanctions  such
 promotion and investment or designates this role to private industry;
   (iii)  whether the state's past promotion and pursuit of nuclear power
 facilities resulted in negative environmental, public health, equity and
 economic impacts;
   (iv) whether nuclear power protects the  ratepayer  and  is  the  most
 affordable energy option available;
   (v) how the state's development of nuclear power facilities may under-
 mine  the  state's  legal  requirement  to transition to safe affordable
 renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy storage to meet the goals
 of the New York state climate leadership and community  protection  act,
 pursuant  to  chapter  one hundred six of the laws of two thousand nine-
 teen;
   (vi) the consistency with environmental and energy policy of classify-
 ing nuclear power facilities as a  low-carbon  technology,  taking  into
 account  the  full  life  cycle of nuclear power facilities, routine and
 A. 11433                            6
 
 accidental release of radioactive substances, and impact on communities,
 including tribal nations; and
   (vii)  whether  the  state's  development and/or investment in nuclear
 power facilities creates an unacceptable  liability  risk,  and  whether
 such  investment  creates a burden that reduces the government's ability
 to respond to vital needs of the citizens  of  the  state  and  unfairly
 transfers costs and hazards to future generations.
   3.  To effectuate the purposes of this act, the task force may request
 and shall receive from any state agency  such  assistance,  information,
 data,  studies  and  analyses  as will enable the task force to properly
 carry out its powers and duties hereunder. All such agencies shall coop-
 erate with and otherwise assist the task force in a timely manner.
   4. The task force is authorized, subject to amounts made available  by
 appropriation  by  the  legislature, to retain the services of organiza-
 tions, contractors, consultants,  universities,  non-profits  and  other
 entities  as the task force may deem necessary to fulfill the assessment
 obligations of this section.
   5. The task force shall submit a draft report of its findings, conclu-
 sions, recommendations and activities to the public,  the  governor  and
 the  legislature  no later than thirteen months after the effective date
 of this act. After the submission of such draft report, the  task  force
 shall  hold  no less than six public hearings throughout the state. Each
 such hearing shall allow for a  minimum  of  fifteen  minutes  for  each
 person  testifying,  a  question-and-answer  discussion  of at least one
 hour, and a public comment period of no less  than  one  hundred  twenty
 days.  No later than thirty months after the effective date of this act,
 the task force shall submit a final report of its findings, conclusions,
 recommendations, including any legislative proposals it deems necessary,
 and activities to the public, the governor and the legislature.
   § 7. This act shall take effect immediately and shall  expire  and  be
 deemed repealed sixty days after transmission of the final report of the
 task  force to the public, the governor and the legislature, as provided
 in section six of this act. Provided, however, that the president of the
 New York state energy research and development  authority  shall  notify
 the  legislative  bill  drafting commission upon the transmission of the
 final report of the task force, as provided in section six of this  act,
 in  order that the commission may maintain an accurate and timely effec-
 tive data base of the official text of the laws of the state of New York
 in furtherance of effectuating the  provisions  of  section  44  of  the
 legislative law and section 70-b of the public officers law.