Add Art 8 Title 9-B §§1900 - 1905, Pub Auth L; add §99-y, St Fin L
Requires the public service commission and NYSERDA to implement a low carbon portfolio standard; creates zero carbon emission investment program and fund.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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6476--A
IN SENATE
January 19, 2016
___________
Introduced by Sen. RITCHIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommuni-
cations -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to require the public service commission and the New York state
energy research and development authority to implement a low carbon
portfolio standard; and to amend the public authorities law and the
state finance law, in relation to creating the zero carbon emission
investment program and zero carbon emission investment program fund
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public service commission, hereafter referred to as the
2 commission, is hereby directed to establish parameters for the creation
3 of a low carbon portfolio standard in New York state, and to replace the
4 renewable portfolio standard with the newly created standard. The
5 commission will consider new targets for the purchase of low carbon-em-
6 itting electricity sources, including no less than seventeen percent of
7 electricity derived from nuclear generating facilities.
8 § 2. The New York state energy research and development authority,
9 hereafter referred to as the authority, shall act as the central
10 procurement agency to promote low carbon emissions energy development in
11 the state. The authority shall provide incentives for low carbon gener-
12 ation; and shall hold all rights and claims to low carbon attributes of
13 electricity generated to meet the state's low carbon goals.
14 § 3. The renewable portfolio standard charge shall now be referred to
15 as the low carbon portfolio standard charge. The authority shall manage
16 any funds gathered through such surcharge on each kilowatt-hour sold by
17 the state's investor-owned utilities. The surcharge shall be kept sepa-
18 rate from any other state funds. Any customers exempt from contributing
19 to the SBC are also exempt from the low carbon portfolio standard
20 charge.
21 § 4. Article 8 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a
22 new title 9-B to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13260-05-6
S. 6476--A 2
1 TITLE 9-B
2 ZERO CARBON EMISSION INVESTMENT PROGRAM
3 Section 1900. Short title.
4 1901. Definitions.
5 1902. Administration by the authority.
6 1903. Calculation of awards.
7 1904. Annual reporting.
8 1905. Funds administration.
9 § 1900. Short title. This title shall be known and may be cited as the
10 "zero carbon emission investment program".
11 § 1901. Definitions. As used in this title, the following terms shall
12 have the following meanings:
13 1. "Avoided emissions" means the estimate of co2 emissions, as calcu-
14 lated by the authority, that would have been released if a zero carbon
15 emitter had not existed.
16 2. "Authority" shall have the same meaning as in subdivision two of
17 section eighteen hundred fifty-one of this article.
18 3. "Zero carbon emitter" means a facility that uses atomic energy to
19 generate electricity.
20 4. "Atomic energy" means all forms of energy released in the course of
21 nuclear fission or nuclear transformation.
22 5. "Clearing price" means the average of the quarterly Regional Green-
23 house Gas Initiative auction clearing prices for the current year.
24 § 1902. Administration by the authority. Within six months of the
25 effective date of this title, the authority is hereby authorized and
26 directed to establish and administer the zero carbon emission investment
27 program. The authority shall implement the program in consultation with
28 the department of public service, the power authority of the state of
29 New York, and the department of environmental conservation. The authori-
30 ty is authorized and directed to:
31 1. use monies made available for the program pursuant to section nine-
32 teen hundred five of this title to achieve the purposes of the program,
33 specifically to award zero carbon emitters for avoided emissions;
34 2. ensure monies are made available to qualifying zero carbon emitters
35 no less than sixty days after the final quarterly auction of that year;
36 and
37 3. exercise such other powers as are necessary for the proper adminis-
38 tration of the program.
39 § 1903. Calculation of awards. The authority shall calculate and issue
40 an award to each zero carbon emitter in the following manner: the
41 authority shall take the average of the four quarterly auction clearing
42 prices of the most recent year multiplied by fifty percent of the zero
43 carbon emitter's avoided emissions to determine such award. The authori-
44 ty shall calculate the annual avoided emissions for each facility.
45 § 1904. Annual reporting. No later than October first, two thousand
46 seventeen and October first of each year thereafter, the president of
47 the authority shall issue an annual report to the governor, the tempo-
48 rary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, the minority
49 leader of the senate and the minority leader of the assembly concerning
50 the authority's activities related to the zero carbon emission invest-
51 ment program created pursuant to this title.
52 § 1905. Funds administration. The authority shall ensure that not less
53 than the total awards issued to qualifying zero carbon emitters is made
54 available for the purpose of funding the zero carbon emission investment
55 program. The zero carbon emission investment program fund established
56 pursuant to section ninety-nine-y of the state finance law shall consist
S. 6476--A 3
1 of monies collected by auctions administered under the regional green-
2 house gas initiative.
3 § 5. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-y to
4 read as follows:
5 § 99-y. Zero carbon emission investment program fund. 1. There is
6 hereby established in the joint custody of the state comptroller and the
7 commissioner of taxation and finance a special fund to be known as the
8 "zero carbon emission investment program fund". The monies in such fund
9 shall be available for the zero-carbon emission investment program
10 pursuant to title nine-B of article eight of the public authorities law.
11 2. Monies in the zero carbon emission investment program fund shall be
12 kept separately from and shall not be commingled with any other monies
13 in the joint or sole custody of the state comptroller or the commission-
14 er of taxation and finance. Any interest received by the comptroller on
15 moneys deposited in the zero carbon emission investment program fund
16 shall be retained in and become a part of such fund.
17 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
