Directs the public service commission to study the feasibility and the costs of burying all or most of the electrical, telephone and internet transmission lines in New York state and to publish and deliver a report of its findings to the governor and the legislature, and requires new electrical, telephone and internet transmission lines to be buried underground.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2330--A
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2021
___________
Introduced by M. of A. JACOBSON, DICKENS, SIMON, REYES, THIELE, GALEF,
GOTTFRIED, STERN, ZEBROWSKI, COLTON, ENGLEBRIGHT, MAGNARELLI,
L. ROSENTHAL, BRABENEC, GUNTHER, LAVINE, RAMOS, SEAWRIGHT, HUNTER,
AUBRY, BARRETT, DINOWITZ, LUNSFORD -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT directing the public service commission to study the feasibility
and the costs of burying all or most of the electrical, telephone and
internet transmission lines in New York state and to publish and
deliver a report of its findings to the governor and the legislature,
and requiring new electrical, telephone and internet transmission
lines to be buried underground
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. 1. The public service commission shall conduct a study to
2 analyze the feasibility and the costs of burying underground all or most
3 of the existing electrical, telephone and internet transmission lines in
4 New York state. Such study shall include an analysis of:
5 (a) the economic and environmental benefits from burying such existing
6 lines; and
7 (b) the economic cost burden of doing so, if any, including an esti-
8 mate of what the cost per utility customer would be, the number of jobs
9 to be created to complete the project and a timeline for completion of
10 the project.
11 2. In analyzing costs and benefits for the purposes of this study, the
12 commission shall consider the varying geographical areas of the state
13 and report separately on the impact particular areas might have on the
14 project. The study shall also quantify the economic costs and benefits
15 of burying existing electrical, telephone and internet transmission
16 lines to utility customers and shall disaggregate the results by utili-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05957-02-1
A. 2330--A 2
1 ty. The study shall calculate the cost per customer of the entire cost
2 of the project statewide, regardless of where the customer lives, for
3 the life of the project on a monthly basis.
4 3. Within one year of the effective date of this act, the commission
5 shall:
6 (a) publish the report of its findings on its website in a location
7 accessible to the public; and
8 (b) deliver a copy of the report to the governor, the temporary presi-
9 dent of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the chair of the senate
10 energy and telecommunications committee and the chair of the assembly
11 energy committee.
12 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
