A 1694: Relates to the protection of public health from exposure to radon in natural gas; requires continuous monitoring of the level of radon in the natural gas delivered; relates to a compliance assurance system; requires public reporting.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1694 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY January 14, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL, OTIS, PAULIN, DINOWITZ, STECK -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COLTON, COOK, GLICK -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law and the public service law, in relation to the protection of public health from exposure to radon in natural gas The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature finds that 2 radon and its radioactive progeny are a major cause of lung cancer, and 3 that there is no safe exposure level for public health protection. New 4 York State has benefited from low levels of those elements in natural 5 gas delivered to consumers, due to the low levels of radioactivity 6 occurring in the gas from the sources upon which New York has primarily 7 relied. However, there is now concern that natural gas may be coming to 8 New York State from sources with high levels of radioactivity from those 9 elements. It is the intent of this act to prevent levels of radon and 10 its radioactive progeny from exceeding current levels in gas distributed 11 to residential and other consumers, mindful of internationally-recog- 12 nized mitigation action levels. It is the intent of this act to only 13 regulate the distribution of gas within the state. 14 § 2. The public health law is amended by adding a new article 35-B to 15 read as follows: 16 ARTICLE 35-B 17 RADON 18 Section 3560. Definitions. 19 3561. Protection from radon. 20 3562. Gas corporation requirements. 21 § 3560. Definitions. As used in this article, unless the context 22 clearly requires otherwise: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD04150-01-5 
 A. 1694 2 1 1. "Bq/m{3}" means Becquerel per cubic meter, where 1 Bq corresponds 2 to one radioactive disintegration per second. 100 Bq/m{3} is equal to 3 2.7 pCi/l. 4 2. "Curie" is a unit of radioactivity. One Curie is equal to 3.7 x 5 10{10} radioactive decays per second. One pico Curie (pCi) is 1x10{-12} 6 Curies. 7 3. "Delivery point" means, as determined by the commissioner under 8 this article, a point in a gas corporation's distribution system. 9 4. "Gas" and "gas corporation" shall have the same meanings as they 10 are defined and used in the public service law. 11 § 3561. Protection from radon. 1. It is the responsibility of the 12 commissioner to minimize, through the application of the ALARA (as low 13 as reasonably achievable) principle, the risk to members of the public 14 posed by exposure to radon and its radioactive progeny. To achieve this 15 goal, the commissioner may call for the assistance of the department of 16 environmental conservation and the public service commission as neces- 17 sary to support permitting, monitoring, compliance auditing and enforce- 18 ment action as directed by the commissioner. 19 2. The commissioner shall establish a system for determining, and 20 (where the commissioner deems it appropriate) designating, delivery 21 points where gas from a pipeline is transferred to a gas corporation's 22 distribution system that are appropriate and practicable for monitoring 23 levels of radon and its radioactive progeny to achieve the purposes of 24 this article. 25 3. In order to achieve the goals established in this section, every 26 gas corporation selling or otherwise providing gas to customers in New 27 York shall, consistent with this article, establish and maintain a 28 program to continuously monitor the level of radon and its radioactive 29 progeny, measured as gross alpha activity, in the natural gas delivered 30 to the gas corporation at each delivery point, reporting such levels 31 through a publicly-accessible website on a real time basis. The program 32 shall include provision for generating alerts to the gas corporation 33 relating to the monitored levels and appropriate responses. 34 4. The commissioner shall establish a compliance assurance system for 35 the monitoring systems required pursuant to subdivision two of this 36 section, including a periodic physical inspection and measurement 37 program to be implemented by the department at the various delivery 38 points. This program shall be designed so that each delivery point is 39 inspected and sampled at least twice per year by the department. 40 5. (a) The commissioner shall make regulations and establish a program 41 to implement and enforce this article. The commissioner shall comply 42 with this paragraph within one year after this article shall become a 43 law. 44 (b) As part of this enforcement program, whenever the commissioner 45 determines that a gas corporation is not in compliance with the require- 46 ments of this article, such commissioner shall issue an order requiring 47 such gas corporation to comply, including the development and implemen- 48 tation of a plan of correction. Where necessary, the commissioner may 49 order the flow of natural gas at any delivery point that is not in 50 compliance with the requirements of this article be shut off until a gas 51 corporation brings that delivery point into compliance with this arti- 52 cle. The commissioner may impose a civil fine of up to twenty-five thou- 53 sand dollars per day per delivery point on the gas corporation until the 54 radon and its radioactive progeny levels at each delivery point that is 55 out of compliance have been brought into compliance with this article. 56 The commissioner may commence a civil action or proceeding whenever a 
 A. 1694 3 1 gas corporation fails to comply with an order issued by the commissioner 2 under this article. 3 6. Any person may commence a civil action or proceeding against: 4 (a) any gas corporation that is not in compliance with the require- 5 ments of this article, and 6 (b) the commissioner if such commissioner fails to enforce the 7 requirements of this article, provided that the commissioner has 8 received notice of the intent to commence such civil action or proceed- 9 ing and has failed within thirty days of receiving such notice to take 10 enforcement action against a gas corporation that is not in compliance 11 with this article. The court in such action or proceeding may issue an 12 injunction or other order compelling compliance and shall enter an order 13 requiring a gas corporation or the commissioner, as the case may be, to 14 pay the reasonable legal fees and expenses incurred by the individual or 15 organization that commenced the civil action or proceeding. 16 § 3562. Gas corporation requirements. 1. Each gas corporation shall 17 establish and implement a radon mitigation response program to ensure 18 that the level of radon and its radioactive progeny at any delivery 19 point shall not exceed: 100 Bq/m{3} (equivalent to 2.7 pCi/l) averaged 20 over any one hour period, 75 Bq/m{3} (equivalent to 2.02 pCi/l) averaged 21 over any 24 hour period, 50 Bq/m{3} (equivalent to 1.37 pCi/l) averaged 22 over any seven day period. 23 2. Gas corporations are prohibited from building new or additional 24 storage facilities to mitigate radon levels. 25 3. It is unlawful for any gas corporation to pass harmful effects of 26 mitigation to other regions in the state. 27 4. No gas corporation shall distribute gas unless it is reasonably 28 certain that the level of radon and its radioactive progeny in the gas 29 when it is received by residential or other consumers will be at or 30 below the level of 100 Bq/m{3} (equivalent to 2.7 pCi/l) averaged over 31 any one hour period. 32 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 18-a of the public service law, as 33 amended by section 2 of part NN of chapter 59 of the laws of 2009, is 34 amended to read as follows: 35 1. All costs and expenses of the department and commission shall be 36 paid pursuant to appropriation on the certification of the [chairman] 37 chair of the department and upon the audit and warrant of the comp- 38 troller. The costs and expenses of the department and commission shall 39 include an amount to be suballocated to the department of health for the 40 costs and expenses of administering article thirty-five-B of the public 41 health law. The state treasury shall be reimbursed [therefore] therefor 42 by payments to be made thereto from all moneys collected pursuant to 43 this chapter. The total of such costs and expenses shall be borne by the 44 public utility companies (including for the purposes of this section 45 municipalities other than municipalities as defined in section eighty- 46 nine-l of this chapter), corporations (including the power authority of 47 the state of New York), and persons subject to the commission's regu- 48 lation, to be assessed in the manner provided in subdivisions two, three 49 and four of this section and section two hundred seventeen of this chap- 50 ter. 51 § 4. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 18-a of the public 52 service law, as amended by section 2 of part A of chapter 173 of the 53 laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows: 54 (a) The [chairman] chair of the department shall estimate prior to the 55 start of each state fiscal year the total costs and expenses, including 56 the compensation and expenses of the commission and the department, 
 A. 1694 4 1 their officers, agents and employees, and including the cost of retire- 2 ment contributions, social security, health and dental insurance, survi- 3 vor's benefits, workers' compensation, unemployment insurance and other 4 fringe benefits required to be paid by the state for the personnel of 5 the commission and the department, and including all other items of 6 maintenance and operation expenses, and all other direct and indirect 7 costs. The estimate by the chair of the department relating to the 8 costs and expenses of the department of health of administering article 9 thirty-five-B of the public health law shall be made in agreement with 10 the commissioner of health and the director of the budget. Based on such 11 estimates, the [chairman] chair shall determine the amount to be paid by 12 each assessed public utility company and the Long Island power authority 13 and a bill shall be rendered to each such public utility company and 14 authority. 15 § 5. If any provision of this act, or any application of any provision 16 of this act, is held to be invalid, or to violate or be inconsistent 17 with any federal law or regulation, that shall not affect the validity 18 or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, or of any other 19 application of any provision of this act, which can be given effect 20 without that provision or application; and to that end, the provisions 21 and applications of this act are severable. 22 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that 23 section two of this act shall take effect sixty days after it shall have 24 become a law. Effective immediately, the commissioner of health, the 25 chair of the public service commission, the comptroller, and the direc- 26 tor of the budget are authorized to make regulations and take any other 27 measures necessary to implement this act on its effective date.