S 7568: Requires electric companies to provide alternative measures to ensure customers with documented need for essential electricity for medical needs have access to electricity during power outages; requires electric companies to provide generators or lodging for such individuals and transportation for medical devices.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7568 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE April 22, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommuni- cations AN ACT to amend the public service law and the public authorities law, in relation to requiring electric companies to provide alternative measures to ensure customers are able to maintain their health and well-being during power outages The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 21 of 2 section 66 of the public service law, as separately amended by chapters 3 395 and 743 of the laws of 2022 and chapter 38 of the laws of 2023, is 4 amended to read as follows: 5 (iii) identification of and outreach plans to customers who had docu- 6 mented their need for essential electricity for medical needs, which 7 shall include but not be limited to, apnea monitors for infants, cuirass 8 respirators, hemodialysis machines, IV feeding machines, IV medical 9 infusion machines, oxygen concentrators, positive pressure respirators, 10 respirator/ventilators, rocking bed respirators, suction machines, and 11 tank type respirators. Such outreach plans shall include provisions 12 regarding how such customers will be provided with alternative measures 13 to ensure their health and well-being if power cannot adequately be 14 provided. Such provisions shall include providing electric generators or 15 lodging for the individual requiring such essential electricity for 16 medical needs and shall also include transportation of medical devices, 17 as needed. Such provisions shall also specify that any cost incurred by 18 an electric company in providing such alternative measures shall not be 19 borne by rate payers; 20 § 2. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (cc) of section 1020-f of the public 21 authorities law, as separately amended by chapter 395 of the laws of 22 2022 and chapter 38 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD04277-01-5 
 S. 7568 2 1 1. The service provider shall, in consultation with the authority, 2 prepare and maintain an emergency response plan (i) to assure the 3 reasonably prompt restoration of service in the case of an emergency 4 event, defined for purposes of this subdivision as an event where wide- 5 spread outages have occurred in the authority's service territory due to 6 a storm or other causes beyond the control of the authority and the 7 service provider, (ii) consistent with the requirements of paragraph (a) 8 of subdivision twenty-one of section sixty-six of the public service law 9 and any regulations and orders adopted thereto, and (iii) establishing 10 the separate responsibilities of the authority and service provider. 11 Such emergency response plan shall include plans setting forth how the 12 communication and coordination of efforts between the authority, service 13 provider, authority employees, service provider employees, authority 14 company crews, service provider company crews, mutual aid crews, other 15 utilities, local governments and any service provider or other entity 16 performing services to assist the authority shall occur. Such emergency 17 response plan shall include identification of and outreach plans for 18 customers who have documented their need for essential electricity for 19 medical needs, which shall include but not be limited to, apnea monitors 20 for infants, cuirass respirators, hemodialysis machines, intravenous 21 feeding machines, intravenous medical infusion machines, oxygen concen- 22 trators, positive pressure respirators, respirators/ventilators, rocking 23 bed respirators, suction machines, and tank type respirators. Such 24 outreach plans shall also include provisions regarding how customers 25 will be provided with alternative measures to ensure their health and 26 well-being if power cannot adequately be provided. Such provisions shall 27 include providing electric generators or lodging for any individual 28 requiring essential electricity for medical needs and shall also include 29 transportation of medical devices, as needed. 30 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.