S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8519
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
October 3, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. MAY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to certain reforms
for ORES oversight of siting of major renewable energy facilities and
major electric transmission facilities
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 3-c of the public service law is
amended by adding a new paragraph (g) to read as follows:
(G) ORES SHALL MAINTAIN A CENTRALIZED, PUBLICLY ACCESSIBLE ONLINE
DASHBOARD THAT SHALL CONTAIN UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION ON ALL PROJECTS
PURSUANT TO SITING PERMITS PENDING OR APPROVED UNDER ARTICLE EIGHT OF
THIS CHAPTER. SUCH DASHBOARD SHALL INCLUDE, AT A MINIMUM, FOR EACH SUCH
PROJECT:
(I) NAME, LOCATION, AND MEGAWATT CAPACITY;
(II) CURRENT STATUS OF SUCH PROJECT;
(III) DATES AND STATUS OF ALL PUBLIC COMMENT PERIODS AND HEARINGS;
(IV) LINKS TO RELEVANT PUBLIC DOCUMENTS, INCLUDING APPLICATION MATERI-
ALS, DEFICIENCY LETTERS, RESPONSES, AND DETERMINATIONS;
(V) A SUMMARY OF PROCEDURAL MILESTONES AND ANTICIPATED TIMELINES; AND
(VI) A TRACKER FOR THE STATUS OF APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED PURSUANT TO
SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION ONE HUNDRED FORTY-TWO AND SUBDIVISION ONE OF
SECTION ONE HUNDRED FORTY-THREE OF THIS CHAPTER, WHICH SHALL INCLUDE,
BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:
(1) THE DATE OF SUBMISSION;
(2) THE DATE OF DETERMINATION OF COMPLETENESS; AND
(3) IF APPLICABLE, ANY NOTICES AND COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN ORES AND THE
APPLICANT, INCLUDING EXTENSIONS OF THE TIME PERIOD FOR A DETERMINATION
OF APPLICATION COMPLETENESS.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13519-04-5
S. 8519 2
§ 2. Subdivisions 1, 5 and 6 of section 142 of the public service law,
as added by section 11 of part O of chapter 58 of the laws of 2024, are
amended to read as follows:
1. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, ORES shall, within [sixty]
NINETY days of its receipt of an application for a siting permit with
respect to a major renewable energy facility subject to this article
determine whether the application is complete and notify the applicant
of its determination. If ORES does not deem the application complete,
ORES shall set forth in writing delivered to the applicant the reasons
why it has determined the application to be incomplete. If ORES fails to
make a determination within the foregoing [sixty-day] NINETY DAY time
period, the application shall be deemed complete; provided, however,
that the applicant may consent to an extension of the [sixty-day] NINETY
DAY time period for determining application completeness. Provided,
further, that no application may be complete without proof of consulta-
tion with the municipality or political subdivision where the project is
proposed to be located, or an agency thereof, prior to submission of an
application to ORES, related to procedural and substantive requirements
of local law.
5. (A) Following the expiration of the public comment period set forth
in this section, and following the conclusion of a hearing undertaken
pursuant to subdivision four of this section, ORES shall, in the case of
a public comment period, issue a written summary of public comments and
an assessment of comments received, and in the case of an adjudicatory
hearing, the executive director or any person to whom the executive
director has delegated such authority shall issue a final written hear-
ing report. A final siting permit may only be issued if ORES makes a
finding that the proposed project, together with any applicable uniform
and site-specific standards and conditions, would comply with applicable
laws and regulations. In making a final siting permit determination with
respect to a major renewable energy facility, ORES may elect not to
apply, in whole or in part, any local law or ordinance that would other-
wise be applicable if it makes a finding that, as applied to the
proposed facility, it is unreasonably burdensome in view of the CLCPA
targets, and the environmental benefits.
(B) ORES MAY FIND A LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE UNREASONABLY BURDENSOME IN
VIEW OF THE CLCPA TARGETS AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS UNDER PARAGRAPH
(A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION ONLY IF ORES MAKES A WRITTEN DETERMINATION,
SUPPORTED BY SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE, THAT:
(I) SUCH LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE WOULD MATERIALLY PREVENT OR SUBSTAN-
TIALLY IMPAIR THE STATE'S ABILITY TO MEET ITS RENEWABLE ENERGY AND
CLIMATE TARGETS UNDER THE CLCPA; AND
(II) THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY OBJECTIVES SERVED BY SUCH LOCAL LAW
OR ORDINANCE CANNOT BE REASONABLY ADDRESSED THROUGH ALTERNATIVE PROJECT
DESIGNS, SITE-SPECIFIC PERMIT CONDITIONS, OR MITIGATION MEASURES.
(C) (I) IF ORES DETERMINES TO OVERRIDE A LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE UNDER
THIS SUBDIVISION, THE RELEVANT MUNICIPALITY MAY REQUEST A PUBLIC HEARING
ON SUCH DETERMINATION. SUCH REQUEST SHALL BE MADE WITHIN TWENTY BUSINESS
DAYS OF SUCH MUNICIPALITY'S RECEIPT OF ORES'S PROPOSED FINDINGS UNDER
PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
(II) ORES SHALL RESPOND TO A REQUEST UNDER SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS
PARAGRAPH WITHIN FOURTEEN BUSINESS DAYS OF RECEIPT. ORES SHALL HOLD THE
REQUESTED PUBLIC HEARING UNLESS IT DETERMINES IN WRITING THAT SUCH
PUBLIC HEARING REQUEST RAISES NO MATERIAL ISSUES OF FACT OR LAW.
(III) AFTER HOLDING A PUBLIC HEARING REQUESTED UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH,
OR AFTER DENYING THE REQUEST FOR SUCH PUBLIC HEARING, ORES SHALL ISSUE
S. 8519 3
FINAL WRITTEN FINDINGS ADDRESSING EACH CONCERN RAISED BY THE REQUESTING
MUNICIPALITY.
6. (A) Notwithstanding any other deadline made applicable by this
section, ORES shall make a final decision on a major renewable energy
facility siting permit within one year from the date the application was
deemed complete, or within six months from the date the application was
deemed complete if such application relates to a major renewable energy
facility that is proposed to be sited on an existing or abandoned
commercial use, including without limitation, brownfields, landfills,
former commercial or industrial sites, dormant electric generating
sites, and abandoned or otherwise underutilized sites, as further
defined by the regulations promulgated by or in effect under this arti-
cle. Unless ORES and the applicant have agreed to an extension and if a
final siting permit decision has not been made by ORES within such time
period, then such siting permit shall be deemed to have been automat-
ically granted for all purposes set forth in this article and all
uniform conditions or [site specific] SITE-SPECIFIC permit conditions
issued for public comment shall constitute enforceable provisions of the
siting permit; provided, however, any portion of which is to be located
on the land of a landowner for which the applicant lacks an existing
right-of-way agreement or valid and enforceable lease or easement for
use of such relevant property, no such permit shall be automatically
granted. The final siting permit related to a major renewable energy
facility shall include a provision requiring the permittee to provide a
host community benefit, which may be a host community benefit as deter-
mined by the commission pursuant to section eight of part JJJ of chapter
fifty-eight of the laws of two thousand twenty or such other project as
determined by ORES or as subsequently agreed to between the applicant
and the host community.
(B) WHERE UNIFORM CONDITIONS CONSTITUTE ENFORCEABLE PROVISIONS OF A
SITING PERMIT UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, IF SUCH UNIFORM
CONDITIONS OVERRIDE OR PREEMPT MORE PROTECTIVE LOCAL LAWS OR ORDINANCES,
ORES SHALL PROVIDE A WRITTEN EXPLANATION INCLUDING:
(I) WHY THE LOCAL LAWS OR ORDINANCES CANNOT REASONABLY BE MET; AND
(II) WHETHER A TAILORED SITE-SPECIFIC CONDITION COULD ACHIEVE THE SAME
REGULATOR OBJECTIVE.
(C) ORES SHALL EXPAND ITS FRAMEWORK FOR UNIFORM CONDITIONS AS APPLIED
UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, TO BETTER ACCOMMODATE LOCALLY
SIGNIFICANT CONCERNS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
(I) GROUND AND SURFACE WATER QUALITY, AND IMPACT ON WELLS; AND
(II) GEOLOGICAL CONCERNS INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SEISMIC RISK,
SOIL STABILITY AND EROSION, SUBSURFACE HYDROGEOLOGY, AND LANDSLIDE OR
SUBSIDENCE RISK.
§ 3. Subdivisions 7 and 8 of section 143 of the public service law, as
added by section 11 of part O of chapter 58 of the laws of 2024, are
amended to read as follows:
7. (A) Following the expiration of the public comment period set forth
in this section, and following the conclusion of a hearing undertaken
pursuant to subdivision six of this section, ORES shall, in the case of
a public comment period, issue a written summary of public comments and
an assessment of comments received, and in the case of an adjudicatory
hearing, the executive officer or any person to whom the executive
director has delegated such authority shall issue a final written hear-
ing report. A final siting permit may only be issued if ORES makes a
finding that the proposed project, together with any applicable uniform
and site-specific standards and conditions, would comply with applicable
S. 8519 4
laws and regulations. In making a final siting permit determination with
respect to a major renewable energy facility or a major electric trans-
mission facility, ORES may elect not to apply, in whole or in part, any
local law or ordinance that would otherwise be applicable if it makes a
finding that, as applied to the proposed facility, it is unreasonably
burdensome in view of the CLCPA targets, the environmental benefits, and
in the case of a transmission facility, the public need for the proposed
project.
(B) ORES MAY FIND A LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE UNREASONABLY BURDENSOME IN
VIEW OF THE CLCPA TARGETS AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS UNDER PARAGRAPH
(A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION ONLY IF ORES MAKES A WRITTEN DETERMINATION,
SUPPORTED BY SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE, THAT:
(I) SUCH LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE WOULD MATERIALLY PREVENT OR SUBSTAN-
TIALLY IMPAIR THE STATE'S ABILITY TO MEET ITS RENEWABLE ENERGY AND
CLIMATE TARGETS UNDER THE CLCPA; AND
(II) THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY SERVED BY SUCH LOCAL LAW OR ORDI-
NANCE CANNOT BE REASONABLY ADDRESSED THROUGH ALTERNATIVE PROJECT
DESIGNS, SITE-SPECIFIC PERMIT CONDITIONS, OR MITIGATION MEASURES.
(C) (I) IF ORES DETERMINES TO OVERRIDE A LOCAL LAW OR ORDINANCE UNDER
THIS SUBDIVISION, THE RELEVANT MUNICIPALITY MAY REQUEST A PUBLIC HEARING
ON SUCH DETERMINATION. SUCH REQUEST SHALL BE MADE WITHIN TWENTY BUSINESS
DAYS OF SUCH MUNICIPALITY'S RECEIPT OF ORES'S PROPOSED FINDINGS UNDER
PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
(II) ORES SHALL RESPOND TO A REQUEST UNDER SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF THIS
PARAGRAPH WITHIN FOURTEEN BUSINESS DAYS OF RECEIPT. ORES SHALL HOLD THE
REQUESTED PUBLIC HEARING UNLESS IT DETERMINES IN WRITING THAT SUCH
PUBLIC HEARING REQUEST RAISES NO MATERIAL ISSUES OF FACT OR LAW.
(III) AFTER HOLDING A PUBLIC HEARING REQUESTED UNDER THIS PARAGRAPH,
OR AFTER DENYING THE REQUEST FOR SUCH PUBLIC HEARING, ORES SHALL ISSUE
FINAL WRITTEN FINDINGS ADDRESSING EACH CONCERN RAISED BY THE REQUESTING
MUNICIPALITY.
8. (A) Notwithstanding any other deadline made applicable by this
section, ORES shall make a final decision on a siting permit within one
year from the date the application was deemed complete. Unless ORES and
the applicant have agreed to an extension and if a final siting permit
decision has not been made by ORES within such time period, then such
siting permit shall be deemed to have been automatically granted for all
purposes set forth in this article and all uniform conditions or [site
specific] SITE-SPECIFIC permit conditions issued for public comment
shall constitute enforceable provisions of the siting permit; provided,
however, that with respect to a final siting permit decision related to
a major electric transmission facility, any portion of which is to be
located on the land of a landowner for which the applicant lacks an
existing right-of-way agreement and in which ORES has not made a public
need determination, no such permit shall be automatically granted.
(B) WHERE UNIFORM CONDITIONS CONSTITUTE ENFORCEABLE PROVISIONS OF A
SITING PERMIT UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, IF SUCH UNIFORM
CONDITIONS OVERRIDE OR PREEMPT MORE PROTECTIVE LOCAL LAWS OR ORDINANCES,
ORES SHALL PROVIDE A WRITTEN EXPLANATION INCLUDING:
(I) WHY THE LOCAL LAWS OR ORDINANCES CANNOT REASONABLY BE MET; AND
(II) WHETHER A TAILORED SITE-SPECIFIC CONDITION COULD ACHIEVE THE SAME
REGULATOR OBJECTIVE.
(C) ORES SHALL EXPAND ITS FRAMEWORK FOR UNIFORM CONDITIONS AS APPLIED
UNDER PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION, TO BETTER ACCOMMODATE LOCALLY
SIGNIFICANT CONCERNS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
(I) GROUND AND SURFACE WATER QUALITY, AND IMPACT ON WELLS; AND
S. 8519 5
(II) GEOLOGICAL CONCERNS INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SEISMIC RISK,
SOIL STABILITY AND EROSION, SUBSURFACE HYDROGEOLOGY, AND LANDSLIDE OR
SUBSIDENCE RISK.
§ 4. Section 3-c of the public service law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 3 to read as follows:
3. FOR ANY PUBLIC COMMENT HEARING OPERATED BY ORES:
(A) ANYONE WHO PRE-REGISTERS TO SPEAK DURING THE PUBLIC COMMENT
PORTION SHALL BE GIVEN AT LEAST TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK; AND
(B) THE TRANSCRIPT OF PUBLIC COMMENTS SHALL BE PART OF THE ADMINISTRA-
TIVE RECORD.
§ 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law; provided, however that the amendments made
to sections 3-c, 142 and 143 of the public service law made by sections
one, two, three and four of this act shall not affect the repeal of such
sections and shall expire and be deemed repealed therewith. Effective
immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regu-
lation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective
date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective
date.
