S 4198: Requires a public engagement process to guide the investment of resources under the New York state climate leadership and community protection act to maximize the involvement of disadvantaged community members in the development of local clean energy and energy efficiency programs.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4198 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 3, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GOUNARDES, COMRIE, SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Environmental Conservation AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the New York state climate action council The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 75-0117 of the environmental conservation law, as 2 added by chapter 106 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 75-0117. Investment of funds. 4 1. State agencies, authorities and entities, in consultation with the 5 environmental justice working group and the climate action council, 6 shall, to the extent practicable, invest or direct available and rele- 7 vant programmatic resources in a manner designed to achieve a goal for 8 disadvantaged communities to receive forty percent of overall benefits 9 of spending on clean energy and energy efficiency programs, projects or 10 investments in the areas of housing, workforce development, pollution 11 reduction, low income energy assistance, energy, transportation and 12 economic development, provided however, that disadvantaged communities 13 shall receive no less than thirty-five percent of the overall benefits 14 of spending on clean energy and energy efficiency programs, projects or 15 investments [and], provided; further that this section shall not alter 16 funds already contracted or committed as of the effective date of this 17 section, and provided, further that no resources described in this 18 section shall be invested or directed before undergoing the public 19 engagement process described in subdivision two of this section. 20 2. State agencies, authorities, and entities shall design and imple- 21 ment a public engagement process to guide the investment of available 22 and relevant programmatic resources as described in subdivision one of 23 this section. Such process shall be designed with the goal of maximizing 24 the involvement of disadvantaged community members in the development of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD06563-02-5 
 S. 4198 2 1 local clean energy and energy efficiency programs, projects, and invest- 2 ments, including in the permitting, planning, and budgeting processes 3 needed to implement such program, project, and investment decisions. 4 Such public engagement process shall include, but not be limited to: 5 (a) Coordination with local community-based organizations for the 6 planning, execution, and advertisement of meetings, forums, surveys, and 7 other opportunities for public input; 8 (b) Sufficient lead time to advertise opportunities for public input 9 before such opportunities occur; 10 (c) Fair compensation for community-based organizations and individ- 11 uals who help design, advertise, and execute on such opportunities, to 12 the extent practicable; 13 (d) A language access plan to engage non-English proficient members of 14 a disadvantaged community in the public engagement process, including 15 dedication of bilingual agency staff; 16 (e) A plan to engage and accommodate individuals with disabilities by 17 using tools such as, but not limited to, visual aids, open or closed 18 captioning, large print and Braille transcriptions, audio descriptions, 19 sign language interpretation, assistive listening devices, and wheel- 20 chair accessible entrances, exits, and spaces, wherever practicable; 21 (f) A plan to describe potential clean energy and energy efficiency 22 programs in clear and accessible language that is easily understood by 23 lay-persons; and 24 (g) Integration of the principles of cultural competence and racial, 25 ethnic, and social justice into every aspect of such public engagement 26 process. 27 3. State agencies, authorities, and entities may refer to the report 28 drafted pursuant to section six of chapter one hundred six of the laws 29 of two thousand nineteen in the design of the public engagement process 30 described in subdivision two of this section. 31 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninety-first day after it shall 32 have become a law.