Bill Text: NY A00667 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Expands the scope of management and operations audits of gas and electric corporations conducted by the public service commission; requires copies of such audits to be provided to the governor and various legislative leaders.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-16 - print number 667a [A00667 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A00667-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        667--A
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                      (PREFILED)
                                    January 9, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- read once and referred to the Committee
         on  Corporations,  Authorities  and  Commissions -- recommitted to the
         Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions  in  accordance
         with  Assembly  Rule  3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended,
         ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
       AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation  to  the  management
         and operations audits of certain utilities
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subdivision 19 of section  66  of
    2  the  public service law, as amended by section 4 of part X of chapter 57
    3  of the laws of 2013, are amended to read as follows:
    4    (a) The commission shall have power  to  provide  for  management  and
    5  operations  audits  of  gas corporations and electric corporations. Such
    6  audits shall be performed AT SUCH TIMES AS THE COMMISSION SHALL  DIRECT,
    7  BUT  AN  AUDIT  SHALL BE PERFORMED at least once every [five years] YEAR
    8  for combination gas and electric corporations, as well as  for  straight
    9  gas  corporations  having annual gross revenues in excess of two hundred
   10  million dollars.  WHEN ANY SUCH CORPORATION ALSO OPERATES A STEAM CORPO-
   11  RATION PURSUANT TO ARTICLE FOUR-A OF THIS CHAPTER, THE COMMISSION  SHALL
   12  PROVIDE  FOR  A MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS AUDIT OF THE STEAM CORPORATION
   13  IN THE TIME AND MANNER  SPECIFIED  IN  THIS  SECTION.  The  audit  shall
   14  include,  but  not  be  limited  to,  an  investigation of the company's
   15  construction program, planning [in relation], SECURITY  AND  MAINTENANCE
   16  OPERATIONS  AS  THEY  RELATE  to the needs of its customers for reliable
   17  service, an evaluation of the efficiency of  the  company's  operations,
   18  recommendations with respect to same, and the timing with respect to the
   19  implementation  of  such recommendations.  THE AUDIT SHALL INCLUDE INDE-
   20  PENDENT VERIFICATION OF THE INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE CORPORATION. The
   21  commission shall have discretion to have such audits  performed  by  its
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD01530-03-4
       A. 667--A                           2
    1  staff,  or  by  independent  auditors.    UPON COMPLETION, COPIES OF THE
    2  AUDITS SHALL BE PROVIDED TO THE GOVERNOR, SPEAKER OF THE  ASSEMBLY,  THE
    3  TEMPORARY  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  SENATE,  THE  CHAIR OF THE SENATE FINANCE
    4  COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR OF THE ASSEMBLY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR
    5  OF  THE ASSEMBLY ENERGY COMMITTEE AND THE CHAIR OF THE SENATE ENERGY AND
    6  TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE.
    7    In every case in which  the  commission  chooses  to  have  the  audit
    8  provided  for in this subdivision or pursuant to subdivision fourteen of
    9  section sixty-five of this article performed by independent auditors, it
   10  shall have authority to select the auditors, and to require the  company
   11  being  audited  to enter into a contract with the auditors providing for
   12  their payment by the company. Such contract shall provide  further  that
   13  the  auditors  shall  work for and under the direction of the commission
   14  according to such terms as the commission may  determine  are  necessary
   15  and reasonable.
   16    (c)  Upon the application of a gas or electric corporation for a major
   17  change in rates as defined in subdivision twelve of this section OR OF A
   18  STEAM CORPORATION FOR A MAJOR CHANGE IN RATES AS DEFINED IN  SUBDIVISION
   19  TEN  OF SECTION EIGHTY OF THIS CHAPTER, the commission shall review that
   20  corporation's compliance with the directions  and  recommendations  made
   21  previously by the commission, as a result of the most recently completed
   22  management  and  operations audit.  The commission shall incorporate the
   23  findings of such review in its opinion or order, and such findings shall
   24  be enforceable by the commission.
   25    S 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
   26  it shall have become a law. Provided, that the public service commission
   27  is immediately authorized and directed to  take  any  and  all  actions,
   28  including  but  not  limited to the promulgation of any necessary rules,
   29  necessary to fully implement the provisions of this act on its effective
   30  date.