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Senate Energy and Telecommunications committee advances package of energy bills
Summary
At a committee meeting, senators moved a series of energy-related bills — including measures on low-income discounts, microgrid feasibility studies, consumer reimbursements after prolonged outages, hydrogen feasibility, and EV charging — sending most to third reading or finance with votes recorded for several items.
State Senator Kevin Parker, chair of the Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee, presided over a committee meeting at which members advanced a slate of energy-related bills, moving most to either third reading or the finance committee for further consideration.
The bills on the committee agenda included measures directing state agencies to study or pilot microgrids, establish discounts for low-income and veteran households, require utility reimbursements after prolonged outages, study hydrogen storage feasibility, and expand electric-vehicle charging infrastructure.
Why it matters: The bills would shape how the state studies, pays for and pilots new energy technologies and consumer protections. Several would direct or require action by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) or affect utility regulation and customer costs.
Votes at a glance
- Bill 1047 (sponsor: Sen. Salazar) — An act to amend the Public Authorities Law to direct the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to establish a clean energy rebate/credit program. Outcome: moved to finance. No-vote count recorded: 2; other counts not specified.
- Bill 1326 (sponsor: Sen. Parker) — An act to amend the Public Service Law to establish discount programs for low-income senior citizens and individuals with a disability. Outcome: moved to third reading. No-vote count recorded: 1; other counts not specified.
- Bill 1334 (sponsor: Sen. Parker) — An act to amend the Public Service Law establishing discount programs for veterans. Outcome: moved to third reading. Vote recorded in the meeting: 9 yes, 1 no.
- Bill 1846 (sponsor: Sen. Comrie) — An act to amend the Public Service Law requiring utilities to reimburse consumers in the event of prolonged power outages. Outcome: moved to third reading. No-vote count recorded: 1; other counts not specified.
- Bill 2462 (sponsor: Sen. Drenaris) — An act to amend the Public Authorities Law related to the New York Power Authority's (NYPA) conferral process. Outcome: moved to third reading. No-vote count recorded: 1; other counts not specified.
- Bill 2479 (sponsor: Sen. Parker) — An act directing NYSERDA to study feasibility and efficiency of a microgrid to reduce the carbon footprint at Brooker College. Outcome: moved to third reading. Vote counts not specified.
- Bill 2480 (sponsor: Sen. Parker) — An act directing NYSERDA to establish a pilot microgrid installation at Glenwood Houses. Outcome: moved to finance. No-vote count recorded: 1; other counts not specified.
- Bill 2481 (sponsor: Sen. Parker) — An act directing NYSERDA to study feasibility of creating, storing and transferring hydrogen energy to residential and commercial structures. Outcome: moved to third reading. Vote counts not specified.
- Bill 3247 (sponsor: Sen. Cooney) — An act to amend the Public Authorities Law in relation to electric vehicle charging stations. Outcome: moved to third reading. No-vote count recorded: 1; other counts not specified.
What happened next: After closing the bill votes, Chairman Parker invited Rory Christian, chair of the Public Service Commission and CEO of the Department of Public Service, to brief the committee on current utility issues and to take questions.
Context and next steps: Most bills were moved either to third reading or to the finance committee; the committee did not adopt final passage on any bill during the meeting. Each bill will proceed through the legislative process (third reading and, where applicable, further committee or floor consideration). The committee record shows vote counts for several items but often did not record full tallies in the transcript; where only partial counts were stated, the article notes the counts as “not specified” for any missing values.
