Senate Bill S10381

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10381
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 15, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. KAVANAGH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the energy law, the environmental conservation law and
   the public authorities law, in relation to requiring  publicly  funded
   ferries  to  be  zero-emission and directing the New York state energy
   research and development authority  to  conduct  a  feasibility  study
   related to transitioning certain workboats to be zero-emission
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The energy law is amended by adding a new section 5-109  to
 read as follows:
   §  5-109.  PURCHASE OF ZERO-EMISSION FERRIES. THE PRESIDENT OF THE NEW
 YORK STATE ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT  AUTHORITY  SHALL  PROMULGATE
 RULES  AND REGULATIONS WHICH SHALL REQUIRE THAT ALL FERRIES PURCHASED BY
 OR FOR THE STATE OR ANY AGENCY  OR  PUBLIC  AUTHORITY  THEREOF,  IN  ANY
 FISCAL  YEAR WHICH COMMENCES ON OR AFTER APRIL FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWEN-
 TY-EIGHT,  PRODUCE  ZERO  EMISSIONS.  PRIVATELY  LICENSED  FERRIES  THAT
 RECEIVE  FUNDING FROM THE STATE OR ANY AGENCY OR PUBLIC AUTHORITY THERE-
 OF, WHERE SUCH FUNDS ARE  PROVIDED  TO  SUBSIDIZE  A  PARTICULAR  ROUTE,
 SHALL,  IN  ANY FISCAL YEAR WHICH COMMENCES ON OR AFTER APRIL FIRST, TWO
 THOUSAND TWENTY-EIGHT, PURCHASE ZERO OR NEAR-ZERO  EMISSION  FERRIES  TO
 SERVICE THAT PARTICULAR ROUTE.
   §  2.  The  environmental  conservation law is amended by adding a new
 section 19-0306-c to read as follows:
 § 19-0306-C. FERRY EMISSIONS REGULATIONS.
   1. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS WHICH SHALL
 REQUIRE THAT ALL FERRIES PURCHASED BY OR FOR THE STATE OR ANY AGENCY  OR
 PUBLIC  AUTHORITY,  AND  PRIVATELY LICENSED FERRIES THAT RECEIVE FUNDING
 FROM THE STATE OR ANY AGENCY OR PUBLIC  AUTHORITY  THEREOF,  WHERE  SUCH
 FUNDS  ARE  PROVIDED  TO  SUBSIDIZE A PARTICULAR ROUTE, OPERATING IN THE
 NAVIGABLE WATERS OF THE STATE SHALL PRODUCE ZERO EMISSIONS BY TWO  THOU-
 SAND  FORTY-TWO. SUCH FERRIES MAY ONLY UTILIZE FOSSIL FUEL-BASED ENGINES
 AS RANGE EXTENDERS.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD15766-01-6
 S. 10381                            2
 
   2. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT  APPLY  TO  COMMERCIAL  OR
 SPORTS  FISHING  BOATS,  OCEAN-GOING SHIPS OR OTHER VESSELS TRANSPORTING
 GOODS THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES.
   3.  FOR  PURPOSES  OF THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE
 FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (A) "ZERO EMISSIONS" SHALL MEAN ZERO EXHAUST EMISSIONS OF  ANY  GREEN-
 HOUSE  GAS,  CRITERIA POLLUTANT, OR PRECURSOR POLLUTANT FROM THE ONBOARD
 POWER SOURCE UNDER ANY OPERATIONAL MODES OR CONDITIONS.
   (B) "NEAR-ZERO EMISSION" SHALL MEAN  TECHNOLOGIES  THAT  SIGNIFICANTLY
 REDUCE  GREENHOUSE  GAS, CRITERIA POLLUTANT, OR PRECURSOR POLLUTANT FROM
 THE ONBOARD POWER SOURCE UNDER ANY OPERATIONAL MODES OR  CONDITIONS  AND
 PROVIDE A PATHWAY TO ZERO-EMISSION OPERATIONS.
   (C)  "NAVIGABLE WATERS OF THE STATE" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS IN
 SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SECTION TWO OF THE NAVIGATION LAW.
   (D) "FOSSIL FUEL" SHALL MEAN COAL, PETROLEUM PRODUCTS AND FUEL GASES.
   (E) "RANGE EXTENDER" SHALL MEAN A FUEL-BASED AUXILIARY POWER UNIT THAT
 EXTENDS THE RANGE OF AN ELECTRIC VESSEL BY PROVIDING POWER TO  AN  ELEC-
 TRIC  GENERATOR THAT CHARGES THE VESSEL'S BATTERY, WITHOUT BEING USED AS
 THE MAIN PROPULSION SYSTEM.
   § 3. The public authorities law is amended by  adding  a  new  section
 1886 to read as follows:
   §  1886.  STUDY  ON ZERO-EMISSION TUGBOATS AND OTHER WORKBOATS. 1. THE
 AUTHORITY IS HEREBY AUTHORIZED AND DIRECTED TO CONDUCT  A  COMPREHENSIVE
 STUDY  TO  ANALYZE THE NEED FOR CHARGING STATIONS ALONG THE HUDSON RIVER
 AND THE  NEW  YORK  STATE  CANAL  SYSTEM  TO  ACCOMMODATE  ZERO-EMISSION
 TUGBOATS AND OTHER WORKBOATS. DEPENDING ON APPLICABLE DUTY CYCLES, THESE
 VESSELS MAY INCLUDE RANGE EXTENDERS.
   2. SUCH STUDY SHALL EXAMINE, AT A MINIMUM:
   (A)  THE  CURRENT ZERO-EMISSION TUGBOAT AND OTHER WORKBOAT INFRASTRUC-
 TURE, INCLUDING AN EVALUATION OF REVENUE ALLOCATION OPTIONS TO ASSIST IN
 AN EXPANSION OF SUCH INFRASTRUCTURE;
   (B) THE CURRENT AND PROJECTED FUTURE VOLUME OF COMMERCIAL GOODS  MOVE-
 MENT  AND  OTHER MARINE SERVICES, INCLUDING AN ESTIMATE OF THE NUMBER OF
 CHARGING STATIONS NECESSARY TO SUPPLY SUCH OPERATIONS UPON A  TRANSITION
 OF TUGBOATS AND OTHER WORKBOATS TO BE ZERO-EMISSION;
   (C) ANY SAFETY IMPLICATIONS CONCERNING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ELECTRIC
 VESSEL INFRASTRUCTURE; AND
   (D)  ANY  NEGATIVE  IMPACTS  THAT  MAY RESULT FROM THE INSTALLATION OF
 CHARGING STATIONS.
   3. THE AUTHORITY SHALL REPORT ITS FINDINGS AND ANY RECOMMENDATIONS  TO
 THE  GOVERNOR,  THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF
 THE ASSEMBLY NO LATER THAN TWO YEARS AFTER THE EFFECTIVE  DATE  OF  THIS
 SECTION.
   4.  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO COMMERCIAL OR
 SPORTS FISHING BOATS, OCEAN-GOING SHIPS OR OTHER PUBLIC  VESSELS  TRANS-
 PORTING GOODS THROUGH THE GREAT LAKES.
   5.  FOR  PURPOSES  OF THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE
 FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (A) "WORKBOATS" SHALL MEAN NON-OCEAN-GOING VESSELS USED IN  COMMERCIAL
 TRANSPORTATION  OF GOODS AND SUPPORT PORT, CONSTRUCTION, OR OTHER MARINE
 SERVICE OPERATIONS AND SHALL  INCLUDE  TUGBOATS,  TOWBOATS,  BARGES  AND
 DREDGES.
   (B)  "ZERO-EMISSION" SHALL MEAN ZERO EXHAUST EMISSIONS OF ANY CRITERIA
 POLLUTANT OR GREENHOUSE GAS FROM THE ONBOARD SOURCE OF POWER  UNDER  ANY
 POSSIBLE OPERATIONAL MODES OR CONDITIONS.
 S. 10381                            3
 
   §  4.  Severability.  If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision,
 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 judgment 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.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.