Directs the public service commission in consultation with NYSERDA to conduct a full cost benefit analysis of the technical and economic feasibility of renewable energy systems in the state of New York and to compare such directly with other methods of electricity generation within nine months after the effective date and every four years thereafter.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6260
SPONSOR: Palmesano TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public service law, in relation to directing the
public service commission to conduct a full cost benefit analysis of the
technical and economic feasibility of renewable energy systems in the
state of New York and to compare such directly with other methods of
electricity generation
PURPOSE:
This bill directs the Public Service Commission to conduct a full cost-
benefit analysis of the various technical and economic aspects (includ-
ing secondary and tertiary effects) of renewable energy systems in New
York State and the deployment thereof.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends the Public Service Law by adding a new section (66-s)
to direct that a supplemental study of the costs, benefits and technical
& economic feasibility of meeting Climate Leadership and Community
Protection Act (CLCPA) targets be conducted within a specific timeframe.
Subsection 1 describes the timeframe, both initial and recurring, for
this study.
Subsection 2 directs that such study shall include a full cost/benefit
analysis assessing the following, including, but not limited to:
* The current state of technology in place for electric generation as of
the date of the study, as well as new and emerging generation methods;
* The impact of CLCPA renewable energy target compliance on electricity
wholesale prices, delivery rates and total bills that energy consumers
in this state will pay, including indirect energy costs. This analysis
would include the impacts of subsidies to site land-based and offshore
renewable energy projects, the build-out of the electric infrastructure
to receive and transmit renewable power, subsidies of energy storage
projects, and the addition of new loads associated with deep electrifi-
cation efforts in the residential, commercial, industrial and transpor-
tation sectors. This analysis shall address both short-term and longterm
maintenance costs; *Direct and indirect costs associated with the tran-
sition to heating and cooling provided by heat pumps powered by renewa-
ble energy systems;
*The current civilian state of the art in nuclear reactor technology and
the role such technology could play in the transition to a cleaner, more
reliable, and more resilient energy portfolio in New York state;
*The impact of renewable energy systems on the reliability of the elec-
tric system in this state. Among other things, the study shall address
voltage sags and how reliability shall be maintained when solar and wind
resources are not generating power. Such study also shall address how
reliability will be maintained if fast-ramping gas-fired generation is
phased out;
*Costs and logistical issues associated with end-of-life disposal of
renewable energy system components;
*Costs (both short-term and long-term) associated with building-out and
maintaining adequate energy storage/battery capacity for periods when
renewable energy systems are intermittent;
*Direct and indirect transportation costs associated with such matters
as charging station infrastructure, a moratorium on gas pipeline
construction, and over-the-road transport of goods, such as perishable
agricultural products;
*The impact of CLCPA compliance on natural gas market prices, delivery
rates and total bills that energy consumers in this state will pay. The
analysis shall address both short-term and longterm maintenance costs;
*The impact of CLCPA compliance on the reliability of the natural gas
system in this state and especially its ability to support manufacturing
processes for which today there are no known replacement fuels. Among
other scenarios, the study shall examine the extent to which: many
manufacturers utilize and depend upon natural gas for process purposes;
restaurant and food service industries rely extensively on natural gas
service for cooking, due to the ability of gas ranges and ovens to heat
foods more evenly than their electric counterparts; natural gas is used
for heating in 46% of households in the Northeast; and reliable and
affordable heating and other services supplied by natural gas will be
maintained for all of these energy consumers if natural gas use is
phased-out in New York;
*Clarification of the impact of CLCPA compliance on industrial use of
fossil fuels; and *Examination of the land use implications of major
renewable electric generating facilities in the State, both from the
standpoint of tourism and this state's tourism-based economic sectors,
and potential effects on the viability of agriculture in this state.
Subsection 3 directs that the study be built upon expertise already at
the disposal of the PSC, DPS and Climate Action Council.
Subsection 4 directs the Department of Public Service to contract with
an independent, competitively selected consultant to undertake the
study.
Subsection 5 directs the Department to consult with any outside entities
necessary to assist with the study.
Subsection 6 directs that a report be published containing the study's
findings, and directs that said report be transmitted to Legislative
leadership within a specific timeframe.
Subsection 7 authorizes the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) and the
New York Power Authority (NYPA) to make voluntary contributions to the
study, if desired.
Subsection 8 provides the authority for, and a timeframe for, the
promulgation of regulations based upon recommendations contained within
the report.
Section 2 provides the effective date for this legislation.
JUSTIFICATION:
As the Climate Action Council (CAC) continues its work on the impleMen-
tation of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA)
there have been many projections regarding the significant economic and
fiscal implications of full CLCPA implementation; some estimates show it
will cost individuals, families, farmers and businesses billions of
dollars per year through increased taxes, utility/electric rates/ bills
and home and business conversion and retrofit costs.
History has shown us time and again that attempts to capitalize upon
and/or mandate the use of emergent technologies always results in belat-
ed realizations that such technological developments aren't the unal-
loyed goods they were originally purported to be; Mandating technolog-
ical transitions based upon soundbites and the 24/7 news cycle (and,
substantially, little else) is shortsighted and unwise. Green technolo-
gies are anything but green in teinis of the materials, costs, and meth-
odS used in construction and production, but currently any discussion of
adverse economic, environmental and societal impacts from these technol-
ogies is met with derision and/or the attempted personal & professional
destruction of those who bring these issues forward.
Given the wide-ranging impact the CLCPA will have on families and busi-
nesses, it has become clear that a full, transparent, and detailed proc-
ess must take place to provide the public with a full accounting of the
true and actual financial costs the full implementation of the CLCPA
will have on state residents and businesses.
While the objective of cleaner air, cleaner water and a more healthful
environment is laudable, such objectives must be balanced with the ener-
gy needs of a stable, thriving first-world economy, which is and will
remain dependent upon both a diverse energy mix and a guaranteed,
affordable and reliable supply of on-demand electrical power. The need
for, and maintenance of, a reliable electrical grid and the sources to
supply it are only going to increase over time, and heretofore insuffi-
cient attention has been paid to how reliance upon renewables (specif-
ically wind- and solar-powered generation facilities) will affect the
reliability and cost of the electrical grid as well as land use across
the state, in addition to many other factors at play. With these
concerns in mind, it is essential that the State require that the total-
ity of its efforts to comply with CLCPA mandates undergo a complete
cost/benefit analysis, undertaken by a third-party independent consult-
ant, before recommendations to implement the CLCPA mandates take effect.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-2024: S2030 defeated in Energy and Telecommunications; A5198
referred to Energy
2022/2021: S7321 referred to Energy and Telecommunications; A7524
referred to Energy
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Minimal administrative costs to the State pursuant to contracting for a
third party consultant to undertake the study.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6260
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 27, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PALMESANO, BARCLAY, TAGUE, ANGELINO, BLANKENBUSH,
BOLOGNA, BRABENEC, K. BROWN, DeSTEFANO, DURSO, FITZPATRICK, FRIEND,
GALLAHAN, GANDOLFO, GIGLIO, CHANG, GRAY, HAWLEY, JENSEN, LEMONDES,
MANKTELOW, McDONOUGH, MIKULIN, MILLER, MORINELLO, RA, REILLY, SIMPSON,
SLATER, SMULLEN, SMITH, TANNOUSIS, WALSH -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Energy
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to directing the
public service commission to conduct a full cost benefit analysis of
the technical and economic feasibility of renewable energy systems in
the state of New York and to compare such directly with other methods
of electricity generation
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public service law is amended by adding a new section
2 66-x to read as follows:
3 § 66-x. Supplemental study of the costs, benefits, technical and
4 economic feasibility of meeting the New York state climate leadership
5 and community protection act renewable energy targets. 1. Not later than
6 nine months after the effective date of this section, and every four
7 years thereafter, the commission, on behalf of the climate action coun-
8 cil established by section 75-0103 of the environmental conservation
9 law, and in consultation with the president of the New York state energy
10 research and development authority and the presiding officer of the
11 federally designated electric bulk system operator, shall publish and
12 update a comprehensive study to determine the costs, benefits and over-
13 all economic feasibility of meeting the climate leadership and community
14 protection act ("CLCPA") targets for renewable energy systems in New
15 York state.
16 2. Such study shall include a full cost benefit analysis assessing the
17 following, including, but not limited to:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04496-01-5
A. 6260 2
1 (a) The current state of technology in place for electric generation
2 as of the date of the study, as well as new and emerging generation
3 methods;
4 (b) The impact of CLCPA renewable energy target compliance on elec-
5 tricity wholesale prices, delivery rates and total bills that energy
6 consumers in this state will pay, including indirect energy costs. This
7 analysis would include the impacts of subsidies to site land-based and
8 offshore renewable energy projects, the build-out of the electric
9 infrastructure to receive and transmit renewable power, subsidies of
10 energy storage projects, and the addition of new loads associated with
11 deep electrification efforts in the residential, commercial, industrial
12 and transportation sectors. This analysis shall address both short-term
13 and long-term maintenance costs;
14 (c) Direct and indirect costs associated with the transition to heat-
15 ing and cooling provided by heat pumps powered by renewable energy
16 systems;
17 (d) The current civilian state of the art in nuclear reactor technolo-
18 gy and the role such technology could play in the transition to a clean-
19 er, more reliable, and more resilient energy portfolio in New York
20 state;
21 (e) The impact of renewable energy systems on the reliability of the
22 electric system in this state, including but not limited to, voltage
23 sags and how reliability shall be maintained when solar and wind
24 resources are not generating power, and shall also address how reliabil-
25 ity will be maintained if fast-ramping gas-fired generation is phased
26 out;
27 (f) Costs and logistical issues associated with end-of-life disposal
28 of renewable energy system components;
29 (g) Short-term and long-term costs associated with building-out and
30 maintaining adequate energy storage and/or battery capacity for periods
31 when renewable energy systems are intermittent;
32 (h) Direct and indirect transportation costs associated with such
33 matters as charging station infrastructure, a moratorium on gas pipeline
34 construction, and over-the-road transport of goods, such as perishable
35 agricultural products;
36 (i) The impact of CLCPA compliance on natural gas market prices,
37 delivery rates and total bills that energy consumers in this state will
38 pay including but not limited to short-term and long-term maintenance
39 costs;
40 (j) The impact CLCPA compliance has on the reliability of the natural
41 gas system in this state and its ability to support manufacturing proc-
42 esses for which today there are no known replacement fuels. Consider-
43 ation shall be given to the following: the utilization and dependence
44 upon natural gas by manufacturers for process purposes; the utilization
45 and dependence on natural gas service for cooking by the restaurant and
46 food-service industry, due to the ability of gas ranges and ovens to
47 heat foods more evenly than their electric counterparts; the use of
48 natural gas for heating in forty-six percent of households in the North-
49 east; and reliable and affordable alternatives for heating and other
50 services currently supplied by natural gas;
51 (k) Clarification of the impact of CLCPA compliance on industrial use
52 of fossil fuels; and
53 (l) An examination of the land use implications of major renewable
54 electric generating facilities in the state, both from the standpoint of
55 tourism and this state's tourism-based economic sectors, and potential
56 effects on the viability of agriculture in this state.
A. 6260 3
1 3. Such study shall build upon relevant expertise already at the
2 commission's disposal, along with that of the climate action council.
3 4. The department, on behalf of the commission, shall contract with an
4 independent and competitively-selected consultant to undertake such
5 study.
6 5. The department, and any contractors it may retain for such
7 purposes, shall consult with entities that have resources and expertise
8 to assist in such study, including, but not limited to, academic part-
9 ners, electric corporations, electricity generating companies, trade
10 organizations, environmental justice groups, and other stakeholders.
11 6. Upon completion of the initial study and each updated study
12 conducted pursuant to subdivision one of this section, the department
13 shall prepare a report on such study's findings, including recommenda-
14 tions for future courses of action and/or those issues requiring further
15 investigation. The commission shall transmit such report along with the
16 study to the governor, the speaker of the assembly, the minority leader
17 of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate, the minority
18 leader of the senate, the chair of the assembly energy committee, the
19 ranking member of the assembly energy committee, the chair of the senate
20 energy and telecommunications committee, and the ranking member of the
21 senate energy and telecommunications committee no later than thirty days
22 after the study's completion.
23 7. The Long Island power authority and the power authority of the
24 state of New York are authorized, as deemed feasible and advisable by
25 their respective boards, to make a voluntary contribution toward this
26 study.
27 8. Upon receipt of the report of the study's findings, the commission
28 shall, within ninety days, promulgate rules and regulations necessary
29 for effectuating the intent of the recommendations made by the report.
30 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
