ARTICLE X (POWER PLANT SITING)
2004 Priority Issue

Article X of the Public Service law, which governs the power plant siting process, expired on 1/1/03. This sends the message to the generation and development community that New York's legislative/regulatory environment is NOT conducive to investment in generation.

In 2003, the Governor put forward a Program Bill (S.5536) and the Senate and Assembly proposed widely disparate bills, both of which passed in their respective houses. The Senate bill, introduced by Senator Wright (S.5673-A) was basically an extension of the law that had expired. The Assembly bill (A.6248-B) introduced by Assemblyman Tonko, contained a whole host of provisions desired by the environmental community. The Assembly passed this bill in 2004 as well. The Business Council continues to advocate for a power plant siting law as a way to give the investment community a sense of security. New York is indeed, a good place in which to invest.

Efforts by the NRDC, IPPNY and the Energy Association to draft a bill that would be acceptable to generators, unions, developers, environmental groups and others has not been embraced by the Legislature. Click here for a summary of the bill's provisions. We will continue to work toward an acceptable resolution in order to create more certainty for investors.

For more information, contact Anne Van Buren via e-mail Ken Pokalsky@bcnys.org or phone at (518) 465-7511.