Provides that, prior to granting a certificate for the construction of an electric transmission line facility, the public service commission must find that the facility conforms to the most recent state energy plan and consider whether approval of the facility would cause adverse impacts on the state's environmental quality due to electric generation.

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S699-2013 Actions

• Jan 9, 2013: REFERRED TO ENERGY AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS

S699-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S699

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the public service law, in relation to approval of electric
transmission line facilities

PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to require the  Public Service
Commission (PSC), to consult the most recent State Energy Plan (SEP)
before issuing a certificate of environmental compatibility and
public need ("certificate") for an electric transmission line.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
This bill amends paragraph (d) of subsection
(1) of section 126 of the public service law.

JUSTIFICATION:
This bill requires that in an Article VII proceeding on
an electric transmission line, the PSC must determine whether or not
the proposed facility, if built, would correspond with the most
recent energy plan, while considering the prospect of additional
environmental impacts that may be caused by increased electrical
generation as a result of such facility was improved. The legislation
is intended to prevent the approval of projects which may directly
result in increased electrical generation produced from dirty
sources, including coal that would impact the state's environment.

In September 2010, the PSC granted a certificate for the construction
of the Hudson Transmission Project. The eight-mile underground
transmission cable is intended to connect the New York Power
Authority's (NYPA) governmental customers to the PJM Interconnection,
the 13-state wholesale electrical market that serves, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware and the District of Columbia. The PSC approved
the certificate despite testimony from various participants who
argued that the facility was unnecessary due to existing electrical
capacity in the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO)
wholesale electrical market. Additionally, the New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) testified that HTP
would result in additional coal-fired in PJM.
Nearly half of PJM is produced in from coal fire generator, many of
which are located in Pennsylvania, a state upwind of New York. The
DEC testified that only 13 percent of NYISO power was generated from
coal.

The 2009 State Energy Plan included energy and transportation
strategies that would reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, including
the need to increase the amount energy produced by cleaner burning
and renewable resources. The PSC's decision regarding HTP appears to
be contradict policies enumerated in the Energy Plan.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2011-12: S.5626/A.7399 - Passed the Assembly - Held in Energy
and Telecomm

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:


To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

S699-2013 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                     699

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                                 (PREFILED)

                               January 9, 2013
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- 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 service law, in relation to approval of elec-
    tric transmission line facilities

    THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 1 of section 126 of the public
  service law, as added by chapter 272 of the laws of 1970, is amended  to
  read as follows:

    (d)  in  the  case of an electric transmission line, (1) what part, if
  any, of the line shall be located underground; (2)  that  such  facility
  conforms  to [a long-range plan for expansion of the electric power grid
  of the electric systems serving this state  and  interconnected  utility
  systems,  which  will serve the interests of electric system economy and
  reliability] THE MOST RECENT STATE ENERGY PLAN AS  ESTABLISHED  PURSUANT
  TO  ARTICLE  SIX  OF THE ENERGY   LAW, WITH CONSIDERATION OF WHETHER THE
  APPROVAL OF SUCH FACILITY WOULD CAUSE ADVERSE  IMPACTS  ON  THE  STATE'S
  ENVIRONMENTAL  QUALITY  DUE  TO  AN INCREASE IN IN-STATE OR OUT-OF-STATE
  ELECTRIC GENERATION;
    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.




   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD02772-01-3