NY State Senate Bill 2025-S6391

Senate Bill S6391

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Directs the New York state energy research and development authority to take certain actions to increase awareness for geothermal energy systems

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications 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 13, 2025	referred to energy and telecommunications

2025-S6391 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Authorities Law
Laws Affected:: Add §1885, Pub Auth L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7884

2025-S6391 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Directs the New York state energy research and development authority to develop basic consumer education or guidance about geothermal energy systems and develop business models for geothermal projects in the state to match equivalent programming and guidance for solar energy.

2025-S6391 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6391

SPONSOR: HARCKHAM
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to directing the
New York state energy research and development authority to take certain
actions to increase awareness for geothermal energy systems

 
PURPOSE:

Requires New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and
appropriate industries to coordinate for development of basic consumer
education or guidance about geothermal energy systems in a single build-
ing or network of buildings, and development of business models for
geothermal projects within the state.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends the public authorities law to add a new section 1885 to
require the authority, in consultation with appropriate industries, to
develop basic consumer education or guidance about geothermal energy

systems and develop business models for geothermal projects in the state
matching solar energy programs.

Section 2 states the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Both state and federal governments have created sustainability targets
and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions requiring vigorous economy-
wide transitions away from fossil fuels.(1) Common solutions for decar-
bonization focus on wind and solar energy. With the Climate Leadership
and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) requiring a forty-percent emissions
reduction by 2030,(2) New York must utilize--and maximize--all sustaina-
bility options it has available.

Geothermal energy systems provide a solution to radically reduce the
heating and cooling needs for millions of homes and buildings across New
York.(3) This legislation seeks to establish the same consumer education
and business models for geothermal energy systems in New York that solar
energy programs have achieved. By fully utilizing heating and cooling
technology and electricity generation with geothermal energy systems
instead of fossil fuels, New York will become perpetually closer to
realizing its net-zero emissions imperative.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023-2024: S7884 - Died in Energy & Telecommunications

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

TBD

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
1 NYS DEP. OF PUB. SERVICE, Clean Energy Initiatives,
https://dps.ny.gov/clean-energy-initiatives#:~:text=The% 20Climate%20Act
%20requires%20New.in%20the%20clean %20energy%20transition (last visited
Oct. 18, 2023); COUNCIL ON ENV.  QUALITY, Federal Sustainability Plan,
https://www.sustainability.gov/federalsustainabilityplan/ (last visited
Oct. 18, 2023).
2 NYS DEP. OF PUB. SERVICE, supra note 1.
3 CORECHEM, NY-GEO 2023 and How New York is Leading the Way in the Field
of Geothermal Energy, https://corecheminc.com/ny-geo-2023-and- how-new-
york-is-leading-the-way-in-the- field-of-geothermal-energy/ (last visit-
ed Oct. 18, 2023).

2025-S6391 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6391
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 13, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to directing the
   New  York  state  energy  research  and  development authority to take
   certain actions to increase awareness for geothermal energy systems
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The  public  authorities  law  is amended by adding a new
 section 1885 to read as follows:
   § 1885. GEOTHERMAL ENERGY SYSTEMS. 1. THE AUTHORITY,  IN  CONSULTATION
 WITH  APPROPRIATE  INDUSTRIES, SHALL DEVELOP BASIC CONSUMER EDUCATION OR
 GUIDANCE ABOUT GEOTHERMAL ENERGY  SYSTEMS  AND  SHALL  DEVELOP  BUSINESS
 MODELS FOR GEOTHERMAL PROJECTS IN THE STATE TO MATCH EQUIVALENT PROGRAM-
 MING AND GUIDANCE FOR SOLAR ENERGY.
   2.  AS USED IN THIS SECTION, THE TERM "GEOTHERMAL ENERGY SYSTEM" SHALL
 MEAN A SYSTEM THAT USES GEOTHERMAL ENERGY FOR  WATER  HEATING  OR  SPACE
 HEATING OR COOLING IN A SINGLE BUILDING, FOR SPACE HEATING FOR MORE THAN
 ONE BUILDING THROUGH A PIPELINE NETWORK, OR FOR ELECTRICITY GENERATION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10921-01-5

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