Bill Text: NY A01434 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Authorizes the delivery of liquefied petroleum gas in times of emergency; authorizes delivery by companies who do not own the cylinder, container or receptacle under certain circumstances provided the cylinder, container or receptacle has been inspected and certified as required by law or regulation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-01-08 - ordered to third reading cal.74 [A01434 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A01434-Amended.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         1434--A
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 15, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A. SANTABARBARA, STECK, D'URSO, RIVERA, BRONSON,
          WALSH -- read once and referred to the  Committee  on  Agriculture  --
          committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
          recommitted to said committee
        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to  author-
          izing the delivery of liquefied petroleum gas in times of emergency
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 192-e of the agriculture and markets law is amended
     2  by adding two new subdivisions 6-a and 6-b to read as follows:
     3    6-a. a. Definitions. For the purposes of this subdivision:
     4    (i) "liquefied petroleum gas tank" shall mean a cylinder, container or
     5  receptacle, fixed in place, that is intended to be used to store  lique-
     6  fied  petroleum  gas  for the purpose of heating, or generating electric
     7  power, for a residential customer;
     8    (ii) "qualifying emergency" shall mean:
     9    (A) a federal, state or local state of emergency has been declared, or
    10  federal or state authorities have granted a waiver from  hours-of-opera-
    11  tions limitations affecting liquefied petroleum gas deliveries; or
    12    (B)  severe  weather  or any other similar circumstance exist that may
    13  result in an individual being placed in  imminent  danger  of  death  or
    14  injury,  or may result in a building structure and/or its fixtures being
    15  at risk of significant damage due to lack of residential heat caused  by
    16  the  lack  of  sufficient liquified petroleum gas to produce residential
    17  heat;
    18    (iii) "regular supplier" shall mean a person, firm, limited  liability
    19  company  or  corporation  that  owns  a liquefied petroleum gas tank and
    20  that, pursuant to a current contract, has  agreed  to  supply  liquefied
    21  petroleum  gas  to  such  tank  for use by a residential customer or the
    22  customer's agent or agents; and
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06460-03-9

        A. 1434--A                          2
     1    (iv) "temporary emergency supplier" shall mean a person, firm, limited
     2  liability company or corporation that fills, refills or otherwise deliv-
     3  ers liquefied petroleum gas into a liquefied petroleum gas tank it  does
     4  not  own,  where  such tank is subject to an existing contract between a
     5  regular supplier and their customer.
     6    b.  Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary,
     7  when, in the event of a qualifying emergency, a residential customer who
     8  has a contract with a regular supplier to fill a liquefied petroleum gas
     9  tank reasonably believes the amount of liquefied petroleum  gas  in  the
    10  tank  will  be  insufficient  to  meet the customer's heating needs, the
    11  customer shall make a good faith effort to procure delivery of liquefied
    12  petroleum gas from such regular supplier. If  the  regular  supplier  is
    13  unable to make a scheduled delivery or fulfill the customer's good faith
    14  request  for  delivery  within  twenty-four  hours, the regular supplier
    15  shall engage a temporary emergency supplier to make  such  delivery  and
    16  authorize  the temporary emergency supplier to do so. If no delivery has
    17  been made within twenty-four hours after such customer's initial request
    18  then the regular supplier is deemed to have given any temporary supplier
    19  authorization to fill, refill, or otherwise deliver liquefied  petroleum
    20  gas  into the regular supplier's tank when the qualified emergency is in
    21  effect and the customer  may  arrange  to  have  a  temporary  emergency
    22  supplier  fill, refill or otherwise deliver liquefied petroleum gas into
    23  such liquefied petroleum gas tank, provided  that  such  tank,  and  the
    24  devices  and  pipelines operated in connection with such tank, have been
    25  inspected and certified as required by  law  and  all  applicable  regu-
    26  lations.
    27    c.  When  a  temporary emergency supplier delivers liquefied petroleum
    28  gas to a residential customer pursuant to this subdivision, neither such
    29  temporary emergency supplier nor such customer's  regular  supplier  may
    30  charge  any  penalty  or  fee  in  addition to any filling, refilling or
    31  delivery fees that are usually charged to other customers in the  course
    32  of  business under circumstances when paragraph b of this subdivision is
    33  not applicable.
    34    d. Any contract executed subsequent to  the  effective  date  of  this
    35  subdivision  for  the supply of liquefied petroleum gas to a residential
    36  customer shall include provisions relating to delivery and fees pursuant
    37  to paragraphs b and c of this subdivision if applicable.
    38    e. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to restrict a liquefied
    39  petroleum gas customer who owns a  liquefied  petroleum  gas  tank  from
    40  procuring such gas from any supplier.
    41    6-b.  The  commissioner,  in  cooperation  with the department of law,
    42  shall develop a "propane consumer bill of rights" consistent  with  this
    43  section  to address the rights of consumers who enter into contracts for
    44  the provision and delivery of liquefied  petroleum  gas,  including  the
    45  right  of  customers  to purchase liquefied petroleum gas from temporary
    46  suppliers pursuant to subdivision six-a of this section.  Such  bill  of
    47  rights shall be provided by every regular supplier of liquefied petrole-
    48  um  gas  to  the consumer when a contract is executed, and then annually
    49  while a contract remains in effect and the department  shall  post  such
    50  bill of rights on its website.
    51    §  2.  The commissioner of agriculture and markets shall develop regu-
    52  lations consistent with subdivisions six-a and six-b of section 192-e of
    53  the agriculture and markets law for the implementation  thereof  includ-
    54  ing,  but  not  limited  to, the responsibilities of temporary emergency
    55  suppliers and regular suppliers for the  safe  inspection,  testing  and

        A. 1434--A                          3
     1  filling  of liquefied petroleum gas tanks, and any devices and pipelines
     2  operated in connection with such tanks, pursuant to such subdivisions.
     3    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
     4  it  shall  have  become  a law; provided, however that the provisions of
     5  this act shall take effect immediately upon the occurrence of a qualify-
     6  ing emergency for any customer residing within the geographic limits  of
     7  such qualifying emergency as declared by federal, state or local author-
     8  ities  or as otherwise determined by federal or state authorities or the
     9  commissioner; and provided that  the  commissioner  of  agriculture  and
    10  markets  shall  notify the legislative bill drafting commission upon the
    11  occurrence of a  qualifying  emergency,  if  such  qualifying  emergency
    12  occurs within the first 120 days after this act shall have become a law,
    13  in  order that the commission may maintain an accurate and timely effec-
    14  tive data base of the official text of the laws of the state of New York
    15  in furtherance of effectuating the  provisions  of  section  44  of  the
    16  legislative  law  and section 70-b of the public officers law. Effective
    17  immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule  or  regu-
    18  lation  necessary  for  the  implementation of this act on its effective
    19  date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.
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