A 5404: Relates to the municipal sustainable energy loan program regarding qualifying water improvements, qualifying resiliency improvements and, in a city with a population of one million or more, the use of low carbon intensity building components.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5404 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY February 13, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. STERN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Energy AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to the municipal sustainable energy loan program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 119-ee of the general municipal law, as added by 2 chapter 497 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 119-ee. Legislative findings and declaration. The legislature finds 4 and declares that it is the policy of the state to achieve statewide 5 energy efficiency and renewable energy goals, reduce greenhouse gas 6 emissions and mitigate the effect of global climate change, and advance 7 a clean energy economy; and that to achieve such policy and goals the 8 state must promote the deployment of renewable energy systems [and], 9 energy efficiency measures, qualifying water improvements, and low 10 carbon intensity building components throughout the state; and that 11 municipalities would fulfill an important public purpose by providing 12 loans to property owners for the installation of renewable energy 13 systems [and], energy efficiency measures, qualifying water improve- 14 ments, and the use of low carbon intensity building components. 15 § 2. Subdivisions 5, 6, 7 and 8 of section 119-ff of the general 16 municipal law, as amended by chapter 184 of the laws of 2020, are 17 amended to read as follows: 18 5. "Feasibility study" means a written study, conducted by a contrac- 19 tor certified by the authority, or certified by a certifying entity 20 approved by the authority for purposes of this article, for the purpose 21 of determining the feasibility of installing a renewable energy system 22 or qualifying water improvement. A municipal corporation may, by local 23 law, provide for the certification of such contractors based upon crite- 24 ria at least as stringent as the state-wide criteria for certification 25 adopted by the authority for purposes of this article. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD02166-01-5 
 A. 5404 2 1 6. "Low carbon intensity building component improvement" means any 2 permanently affixed improvement to real property, whether as a component 3 of the new construction of a building or as the renovation or retrofit- 4 ting of an existing building, to reduce the carbon or other greenhouse 5 gas emissions of those components or the improved property. 6 7. "Municipal corporation" means a county, town, city or village. 7 8. "Qualifying water improvement" means any improvement to real prop- 8 erty, whether as a component of the new construction of a building or as 9 the renovation and retrofitting of an existing building, to reduce water 10 consumption, promote water conservation and storage, manage stormwater, 11 resist flooding, and mitigate contamination in potable water systems. 12 [6.] 9. "Real property" means any property, an interest in which is or 13 is eligible to be recorded or registered on municipal land ownership 14 records by the possessor of such interest. 15 [7.] 10. "Renewable energy system" means an energy generating system 16 for the generation of electric or thermal energy, to be used primarily 17 at such property, except when the owner of real property is a commercial 18 entity, by means of solar thermal, solar photovoltaic, wind, geothermal, 19 anaerobic digester gas-to-electricity systems, fuel cell technologies, 20 or other renewable energy technology approved by the authority not 21 including the combustion or pyrolysis of solid waste. 22 [8. "Renewable energy system feasibility study" means a written study, 23 conducted by a contractor certified by the authority, or certified by a 24 certifying entity approved by the authority for purposes of this arti- 25 cle, for the purpose of determining the feasibility of installing a 26 renewable energy system. A municipal corporation may, by local law, 27 provide for the certification of such contractors based upon criteria at 28 least as stringent as the state-wide criteria for certification adopted 29 by the authority for purposes of this article.] 30 § 3. Section 119-gg of the general municipal law, as added by chapter 31 497 of the laws of 2009, subdivisions 1 and 6 as amended by chapter 320 32 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as follows: 33 § 119-gg. Sustainable energy loan program. 1. The legislative body of 34 any municipal corporation may, by local law, establish a sustainable 35 energy loan program using federal grant assistance or federal credit 36 support or monies from the state of New York or any state authority as 37 defined by section two of the public authorities law available for this 38 purpose. 39 2. Such program may make loans to the owners of real property located 40 within the municipal corporation to finance the installation of renewa- 41 ble energy systems [and], energy efficiency improvements, qualifying 42 water improvements, low carbon intensity building components, related 43 energy audits and [renewable energy system] feasibility studies, and the 44 verification of the installation of such systems and improvements. No 45 municipal corporation shall make such a loan to an owner of property 46 that has received a loan from another municipal corporation pursuant to 47 this article. 48 3. Each such local law establishing the sustainable energy loan 49 program shall provide for the criteria for making such loans and the 50 terms and conditions for repayment of such loans. The sustainable energy 51 loan program shall use such lists of cost effective energy efficiency 52 improvements for different building types as are approved by the author- 53 ity. 54 4. The municipal corporation shall verify and report on the installa- 55 tion and performance of renewable energy systems [and], energy efficien- 56 cy improvements, qualifying water improvements, and low carbon intensity 
 A. 5404 3 1 building component improvements financed by the loan program in such 2 form and manner as the authority may establish. 3 5. Every loan made under the sustainable energy loan program shall be 4 repaid over a term not to exceed the [weighted average of the useful 5 life of such systems and improvements] the longest lived system or 6 improvement as determined by the municipal corporation. The municipal 7 corporation shall [set] approve a fixed rate of interest for the repay- 8 ment of the principal amount of each loan at the time the loan is made. 9 6. a. For loans made to an owner of real property that is a commercial 10 entity, not-for-profit organization, or entity other than an individual, 11 the municipal corporation, governing body or its duly assigned agent 12 shall have the authority to impose requirements on the maximum amount 13 that may be borrowed through such loan, which may consider factors 14 including but not limited to the property value, projected savings, 15 project cost, and existing indebtedness secured by such property. 16 b. For loans made to an owner of real property who is an individual, 17 the principal amount of each such loan, excluding interest, shall not 18 exceed the lesser of ten percent of the appraised real property value or 19 the actual cost of installing the renewable energy system [and], energy 20 efficiency [improvements] improvement, qualifying water improvement, or 21 low carbon intensity building component improvement, including the costs 22 of necessary equipment, materials, and labor, the costs of each related 23 energy audit and renewable energy system feasibility study, and the cost 24 of verification of such renewable energy system and energy efficiency 25 improvements. 26 7. No such loan shall be made for energy efficiency improvements 27 unless determined to be appropriate through an energy audit, and no such 28 loan shall be made for a renewable energy system or qualifying water 29 improvement unless determined to be feasible through a [renewable energy 30 system] feasibility study. 31 8. An energy audit may document improvements and related costs that 32 are required for the energy efficiency improvements to proceed and 33 further may document expected energy savings, any expected reductions in 34 greenhouse gas emissions, and any other environmental, economic and 35 public health benefits expected from the installation of the improve- 36 ments, including those enumerated in the scoping plans and related 37 values created pursuant to article seventy-five of the environmental 38 conservation law. 39 9. A feasibility study may document improvements and related costs 40 that are required for the renewable energy system or qualifying water 41 improvements to proceed and further may document expected energy 42 savings, any expected reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, and any 43 other environmental, economic and public health benefits expected from 44 the installation of the improvements, including those enumerated in the 45 scoping plans and related values created pursuant to article seventy- 46 five of the environmental conservation law. 47 10. The loan made under the sustainable energy loan program shall 48 constitute a lien upon the real property benefitted by such loan. 49 [9.] 11. The municipal corporation may require the loan made under the 50 sustainable energy loan program to be repaid by the property owner 51 through a charge on the real property benefitted by such loan. Such 52 charge shall be on the real property, shall be payable by the property 53 owner regardless of tax-paying or tax-exempt status, and shall be levied 54 and collected at the same time and in [the same] a manner [as] consist- 55 ent with the manner generally applied to municipal taxes (and regardless 56 of whether municipal taxes are actually payable for such real property), 
 A. 5404 4 1 provided that such charge shall be separately listed on the tax bill, 2 and provided further that in the event such charge should not be paid in 3 a timely manner, no other municipal corporation shall be required to 4 credit or otherwise guarantee the amount of such unpaid charge to the 5 municipal corporation which authorized the loan, notwithstanding any 6 provision of law to the contrary. 7 12. To the extent any such charge is not paid when due (and regardless 8 of the tax payment status for the real property and the satisfaction or 9 non-satisfaction of other municipal taxes), the delinquent charge may be 10 enforced or foreclosed under article thirteen of the real property 11 actions and proceedings law to the extent of any unpaid installment 12 payments. In any event of enforcement, including foreclosure, the 13 balance of the lien shall not accelerate and shall survive judgment. The 14 proceeds received in an action to enforce an unpaid or delinquent charge 15 shall be paid first to outstanding real property taxes, municipal charg- 16 es, or other municipal liens. 17 13. The municipal corporation may assign the enforcement or foreclo- 18 sure of a delinquent charge or charges, in which event the assignee 19 shall have and possess the same powers and rights at law or in equity as 20 the municipal corporation would have had it not been assigned with 21 regard to the precedence and priority of such delinquent charges, the 22 accrual of interest and the fees and expenses of collection. In addi- 23 tion, such assignee shall have the same rights to enforce such delin- 24 quent charge or charges as any private party holding a lien on real 25 property, including, but not limited to, foreclosure and a suit on the 26 debt. 27 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.