Senate Bill S9031

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S9031

SPONSOR: OBERACKER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to allowing custom-
ers of a utility to call for an independent audit of the utility's
records

 
PURPOSE:

This bill allows ratepayers access to class action rights for a forensic
audit of the records and operations of the utility.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Section 25 of the public service law is amended by adding a
new subdivision 8 to read as follows - (8) in the event that a public
utility, corporation or person and the officers, agents and employees
thereof knowingly fails or neglects to obey or comply with a provision
of this chapter or an order adopted under authority of this chapter for
a period of ninety days or longer, the commission at the request of one
              

hundred or more current customers of the entity aggrieved by the enti-
ty's failure to comply, shall conduct a forensic audit of the records
and operations of the entity. This audit shall be in addition to any
other audit authorized under this chapter. The audit shall be completed
within one hundred eighty days of the date of the customer request. The
results of the audit shall be made public on the commission's website.

Section 2: Sets forth the effective date.

 
EXISTING LAW:

New Bill

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Utility customers rely on the Public Service Commission to ensure that
utilities follow the law and operate in accordance with approved stand-
ards. When a utility fails to comply with legal or regulatory require-
ments for an extended period, customers currently have little to no
options to request further review.

This bill provides a clear process for ratepayers to request a forensic
audit when a utility has failed to comply with state law or commission
orders for 90 days or longer. This directly impacts customers; there-
fore, this allows them to initiate an audit which will ensure that
potential issues are reviewed in a timely and structured manner.

A forensic audit allows for a detailed examination of a utility's
records and operations. This can identify whether bad practices or fail-
ures have occurred. Further, requiring the results of the audit to be
public promotes transparency.

This legislation strengthens accountability while ensuring that custom-
ers have a way to seek review when compliance concerns are unresolved.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

None

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become law