Establishes the clean fuel standard of 2025; provides such standard is intended to reduce greenhouse gas intensity from the on-road transportation sector, with further reductions to be implemented based upon advances in technology.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A472
SPONSOR: Woerner TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
establishing the "clean fuel standard of 2025"
PURPOSE:
This legislation amends the environmental conservation law to require
the development of a clean fuel standard in New York State to reduce
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the transportation sector to achieve
the goals set forth in the climate leadership and community protection
act.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Legislative findings and declarations
Section 2. Establishes the title of the legislation.
Section 3. Amends the environmental conservation law to create a new
section 19-0333 to require the Department of Environmental Conservation
(DEC), in consultation with the New York State Energy, Research and
Development Authority, to promulgate regulations to create a clean fuel
standard in New York State. Other than aviation fuels which are
preempted by federal law, the standard will apply to all providers of
transportation fuels, including electricity, and is intended to reduce
greenhouse gas intensity from the on-road transportation sector by at
least twenty percent by 2032. The legislation further requires the regu-
lations to consider the low carbon fuel standard adopted in other
states, include coordination with other northeastern states to promote
regional solutions to reduce GHG emissions, and include fees for regis-
tering providers to offset implementation costs. To ensure program
integrity and environmental protection, the bill requires DEC to impose
strict accounting and reporting requirements for determining lifecycle
emissions, including consideration for indirect emissions and environ-
mental consequences. The legislation requires electric utilities, state
agencies, and authorities, in consultation with the climate justice
working group and climate action council, to invest or direct, to the
extent practicable, forty percent of the entity's earned credit value to
electrified transportation programs, projects or investments to directly
benefit disadvantaged communities. This program is intended to be simi-
lar to low carbon fuel standards in states such as California, by
promoting reductions in GHG emissions in the transportation sector by
assigning greenhouse gas intensity values to all fuels, taking into
account the entire lifecycle of the fuel, and requiring high greenhouse
gas fuels to promote low greenhouse gas fuels through a credit mech-
anism. The commissioner shall report to the legislature within twenty-
four months following adoption of the regulations.
This section also grants DEC the power to defer the program in the event
of emergency or forecasted conditions.
Section 4. Makes the legislation effective immediately.
JUSTIFICATION:
Greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions pose a serious threat to the health of
New York's citizens and the quality of the environment, and New York's
transportation sector is the leading source of GHG emissions in the
state, contributing over 34 percent of the state's annual GHG emissions.
New York's transportation economy currently relies almost entirely on
petroleum-based fuels to meet a substantial percent of its transporta-
tion needs, particularly the transportation needs for medium and large
trucks. Increased concentrations of ground-level ozone - directly
related to GHG emissions - can promote respiratory illness in children
and the elderly and exacerbate pre-existing respiratory illnesses. This
can result in significant hospitalization costs and mortality rates,
both of which are higher in New York State than the national average. In
recent years, the total cost of asthma-related hospitalization in New
York State was approximately six hundred and sixty million dollars; a
number of New York residents die each year from asthma alone.
Global warming may have adverse impacts on human health and the environ-
ment. These impacts include increased heat illnesses and mortality,
respiratory illnesses from increased formation of ground-level ozone,
and the introduction or spread of vector-born illnesses. Global warming
may adversely impact New York State shoreline, drinking water sources,
agriculture, forests and wildlife diversity. While New York State
continues to follow California regarding low emission vehicle standards,
these efforts are not enough to address the transportation sector
threats.
Greater fuel diversity and innovation towards low emissions solutions in
the transportation sector also provides significant economic benefit.
New York's existing dependence on a single type of transportation fuel -
whose price is highly volatile - imperils our economic security, endan-
gers our jobs, and jeopardizes our industries. Diversifying the sources
of transportation fuel helps to protect our jobs and economy from the
consequences of oil price shocks. In addition, alternative fuels can
provide economic development opportunities and reduce emissions of
greenhouse gases, criteria pollutants, and toxic air contaminants from
transportation and other sectors.
Although New York State has adopted the California standards for vehicle
emissions and is making strides to promote electrification in certain
transportation sectors, these efforts do not go far enough, nor do they
promote new, innovative technologies that account for the full lifecycle
of transportation fuels.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023/2024: A.964/5.1292 -Referred to Environmental Conservation/PASSED
SENATE.
2021/2022: A.862B/S.2962B -Referred to Environmental
Conservation/Committed to Rules.
2019/2020: A.5262A/S.4003A -Referred to Environmental Conservation.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The legislation authorizes registration fees for the providers of fuels,
which is intended to offset the cost of administering the program.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
472
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER, SAYEGH, WILLIAMS, MAGNARELLI, STIRPE,
R. CARROLL, RIVERA, SIMON, HEVESI, VANEL, DINOWITZ, HUNTER, BARRETT,
SEAWRIGHT, HYNDMAN, BENEDETTO, JACKSON, BURDICK, LUNSFORD, BRAUNSTEIN,
CLARK, BRONSON, SIMPSON, RA, K. BROWN, DURSO, KIM, BICHOTTE HERMELYN,
DeSTEFANO, GIBBS, BORES, RAGA, DE LOS SANTOS, GANDOLFO, EPSTEIN, LEE,
SIMONE, ROSENTHAL, FORREST, EACHUS, LEVENBERG, MEEKS, PHEFFER AMATO,
DAVILA, SLATER, TAPIA, WALSH, SHIMSKY, COLTON, STERN, REYES, JONES,
LUPARDO, WEPRIN, ROZIC, SANTABARBARA, WALKER, COOK, JACOBSON, McMAHON,
BURKE, ANDERSON, PEOPLES-STOKES, RAJKUMAR, CRUZ, FALL, TAYLOR, DILAN,
BUTTENSCHON, CONRAD, MIKULIN, STECK, LAVINE, CUNNINGHAM, NOVAKHOV,
ZINERMAN, SEPTIMO, ZACCARO, BENDETT, ALVAREZ, CHANDLER-WATERMAN,
BLUMENCRANZ, McDONOUGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on
Environmental Conservation
AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
establishing the "clean fuel standard of 2025"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Legislative findings and declarations:
2 1. The transportation sector in New York is a leading source of crite-
3 ria pollutants and the leading source of greenhouse gas emissions that
4 endanger public health and welfare by causing and contributing to
5 increased air pollution and dangerous climate change. Meeting the
6 pollution reduction requirements of the Climate Leadership and Community
7 Protection Act will require sharp decreases in transportation-related
8 emissions.
9 2. Shifting from today's petroleum-based transportation fuels to
10 alternative fuels has the potential to significantly reduce transporta-
11 tion emissions of air pollutants and greenhouse gases and is recommended
12 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as an important pathway
13 for holding global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01966-01-5
A. 472 2
1 3. The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act directs the
2 Department of Environmental Protection to promulgate regulations that
3 will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including from on-road vehicles.
4 4. New York signed a 15-state MOU to develop an action plan to reduce
5 toxic diesel emissions from medium and heavy-duty vehicles by 2050.
6 5. A clean fuels standard regulation would promote innovation
7 production and use of non-petroleum fuels that reduce vehicle and fuel-
8 related air pollution that endangers public health and welfare and
9 disproportionately impacts disadvantaged communities.
10 § 2. Short title. This act may be known and may be cited as the "clean
11 fuel standard of 2025".
12 § 3. The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a new
13 section 19-0333 to read as follows:
14 § 19-0333. Clean fuel standard.
15 1. A clean fuel standard is hereby established. The clean fuel stand-
16 ard is intended to reduce greenhouse gas intensity from the on-road
17 transportation sector by twenty percent by two thousand thirty-two. In
18 advance of two thousand thirty-two and every five years thereafter, the
19 department shall promulgate regulations determining the minimum addi-
20 tional greenhouse gas intensity reduction to be achieved over the
21 following five years, with further reductions to be implemented based
22 upon advances in technology and to support achieving the requirements of
23 the New York state climate leadership and community protection act and
24 the goals of the scoping plan established pursuant to section 75-0103 of
25 this chapter, as determined by the commissioner. Fuels which provide
26 net human health benefits through overall air quality improvements rela-
27 tive to diesel and gasoline usage shall be eligible. Aviation fuels
28 shall be exempted from the clean fuel standard due to federal
29 preemption, but sustainable aviation fuel shall be eligible to generate
30 credits on an opt-in basis to help encourage development of a viable
31 sustainable aviation fuel market.
32 2. The clean fuel standard shall apply to all providers of transporta-
33 tion fuels, including electricity, in New York, shall be measured on a
34 full fuels lifecycle basis and may be met through market-based methods
35 by which providers exceeding the performance required by the clean fuel
36 standard shall receive credits that may be applied to future obligations
37 or traded to providers not meeting the clean fuel standard. The gener-
38 ation of credits must use a lifecycle emissions performance-based
39 approach that is technology and feedstock neutral to achieve greenhouse
40 gas reductions. In addition, the department shall consider other envi-
41 ronmental impacts of fuels in determining credits, including but not
42 limited to crop displacement impacts and forms of pollution other than
43 greenhouse gas emissions, whether or not occurring within the United
44 States.
45 3. For purposes of this section the term "providers" shall include,
46 but shall not be limited to, all refiners, blenders, producers or
47 importers of transportation fuels, or enablers of electricity used as
48 transportation fuel, "greenhouse gas intensity" means the quantity of
49 lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions per unit of fuel energy, and "full
50 fuels lifecycle" means the aggregate greenhouse gas emissions, including
51 direct emissions and indirect emissions, such as emissions from direct
52 or indirect land use changes, whether or not such emissions occur within
53 the United States, measured in carbon dioxide equivalents, as such term
54 is defined in subdivision two of section 75-0101 of this chapter, with
55 aggregate per unit fuel energy emissions determined by the commissioner
A. 472 3
1 after consideration of all relevant factors, including as contemplated
2 by subdivision four of this section.
3 4. The full fuels lifecycle shall be assessed annually and such
4 assessment shall include all stages of fuel and feedstock production and
5 distribution, including but not limited to feedstock generation or
6 extraction through the distribution, delivery, and use of the finished
7 fuel by the ultimate consumer.
8 5. a. Within twenty-four months following the effective date of this
9 section, the commissioner, in consultation with the New York state ener-
10 gy research and development authority, shall promulgate regulations
11 establishing a clean fuel standard with performance objectives to imple-
12 ment subdivision one of this section. Such regulations shall include
13 establishment of measures to limit costs and maximize savings.
14 b. The clean fuel standard shall take into consideration the low
15 carbon fuel standard adopted in other states, and the recommendations of
16 the scoping plan, and shall include coordination with other Northeastern
17 states to promote regional reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
18 c. In addition, such regulations shall:
19 (i) require providers to disclose all information material to deter-
20 mine the full fuels lifecycle and impose rigorous standards regarding
21 transparency with respect to information relevant to determining the
22 full fuels lifecycle;
23 (ii) require such disclosure and transparency in order to obtain cred-
24 its; and
25 (iii) impose significant penalties for failure to disclose or report
26 information required by such regulations or as otherwise requested by
27 the department.
28 d. Such regulations shall include fees for the registration of provid-
29 ers to offset the costs associated with implementation of the clean fuel
30 standard.
31 e. Such regulations shall allow for a deferral of the program based on
32 emergency or forecasted conditions.
33 6. Electric utilities, state agencies, and authorities, in consulta-
34 tion with the climate justice working group and the climate action coun-
35 cil established pursuant to section 75-0103 of this chapter, shall, to
36 the extent practicable, invest or direct available and relevant program-
37 matic resources to provide forty percent of such electric utility's,
38 state agency's, or authority's overall credit value on electrified
39 transportation programs, projects, or investments to directly benefit
40 disadvantaged communities, including, but not limited to, electrifica-
41 tion and battery swap programs for school or transit buses; electrifica-
42 tion of drayage trucks; investment in public electric vehicle charging
43 infrastructure and electric vehicle charging infrastructure in multi-fa-
44 mily residences; investment in electric mobility solutions such as elec-
45 tric vehicle sharing and ride hailing programs; multilingual marketing,
46 education, and outreach designed to increase awareness and adoption of
47 electric vehicles; and additional rebates and incentives for low-income
48 individuals beyond existing local, federal, and state rebates and incen-
49 tives.
50 7. Within twenty-four months following the adoption of regulations
51 implementing a clean fuel standard, the commissioner shall report to the
52 legislature regarding the implementation of the program, the reductions
53 in greenhouse gas emissions that have been achieved through the clean
54 fuel standard and targets for future reductions in greenhouse gas emis-
55 sions from the transportation sector.
A. 472 4
1 8. Nothing in this section shall preclude the department from enacting
2 or maintaining other programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from
3 the transportation sector.
4 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
