Add §89-q, Pub Serv L; add §15-0319, En Con L; amd §8, St Fin L
Establishes the "small water utility transparency act"; requires the public service commission and the department of environmental conservation to conduct audits of certain private water companies; requires certain private water companies which are under certain investigations to file public updates on the status of compliance with such orders.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
597--A
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sens. HINCHEY, MAY, SKOUFIS, WEBB -- read twice and
ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
Energy and Telecommunications -- recommitted to the Committee on Ener-
gy and Telecommunications in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to reporting
requirements and audits of private water companies
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "small
2 water utility transparency act".
3 § 2. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 89-q
4 to read as follows:
5 § 89-q. Powers of the commission with respect to private water compa-
6 nies. 1. The commission shall conduct full audits of regulated private
7 water companies with gross annual revenues below two hundred fifty thou-
8 sand dollars on a three- to five-year cycle, as determined by the
9 commission. Such audits shall focus on capital investment in the private
10 water company, compliance with state and federal water safety regu-
11 lations and laws, financial capacity of the private water company,
12 management ability and function of the private water company, and water
13 quality, adequacy, and affordability of the private water system. The
14 commission shall coordinate with the department of environmental conser-
15 vation to the extent necessary to perform such audits and consistent
16 with subdivision three of this section.
17 2. The commission shall require that any regulated private water
18 company with gross annual revenues below two hundred fifty thousand
19 dollars which is under investigation either by motion of the commission,
20 pursuant to section eighty-nine-i of this article, or pursuant to an
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01751-02-6
S. 597--A 2
1 order to show cause shall file regular public updates on the status of
2 compliance with such order. The commission shall promulgate rules and
3 regulations regarding such requirement including, but not limited to,
4 determining how often such public updates shall be provided and the
5 manner in which such public updates shall be provided to the public.
6 The commission shall be authorized to establish and collect fines for
7 non-compliance with this subdivision. Such fines may be set at
8 increased rates for repeated non-compliance.
9 3. The department of environmental conservation shall cooperate with
10 the commission for purposes of carrying out audits pursuant to subdivi-
11 sion one of this section and shall provide any information or data
12 compiled by or in the possession of the department for such purpose,
13 including but not limited to information related to applicable state and
14 federal water safety regulations and laws.
15 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
