N.Y.
Public Service Law Section 142
Application, notice, and review relating to major renewable energy facility siting
1.
Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, ORES shall, within sixty days of its receipt of an application for a siting permit with respect to a major renewable energy facility subject to this article determine whether the application is complete and notify the applicant of its determination. If ORES does not deem the application complete, ORES shall set forth in writing delivered to the applicant the reasons why it has determined the application to be incomplete. If ORES fails to make a determination within the foregoing sixty-day time period, the application shall be deemed complete; provided, however, that the applicant may consent to an extension of the sixty-day time period for determining application completeness. Provided, further, that no application may be complete without proof of consultation with the municipality or political subdivision where the project is proposed to be located, or an agency thereof, prior to submission of an application to ORES, related to procedural and substantive requirements of local law.2.
No later than sixty days following the date upon which an application has been deemed complete, and following consultation with any relevant state agency or authority, ORES shall publish for public comment draft permit conditions prepared by the office, which comment period shall be for a minimum of sixty days from public notice thereof, or notice of intent to deny with reasons thereof. Such public notice shall include, but shall not be limited to:(i)
written notice to the municipalities or political subdivisions in which such project is proposed to be located;(ii)
publication in a newspaper or in electronic form, having general circulation in such municipalities or political subdivisions;(iii)
posting the notice on the office of renewable energy siting and electric transmissions and the department’s website; and(iv)
written notice to each member of the legislature through whose district the facility proposed in the application would be located.3.
For any municipality, political subdivision or an agency thereof that has received notice of the filing of an application, pursuant to regulations promulgated in accordance with this article, the municipality or political subdivision or agency thereof shall within the timeframes established by this subdivision submit a statement to ORES indicating whether the proposed project is designed to be sited, constructed and operated in compliance with applicable local laws and regulations, if any, concerning the environment, or public health and safety. In the event that a municipality, political subdivision or an agency thereof submits a statement to ORES that the proposed project is not designed to be sited, constructed or operated in compliance with local laws and regulations and ORES determines not to hold an adjudicatory hearing on the application, ORES shall hold a non-adjudicatory public hearing in or near one or more of the affected municipalities or political subdivisions. In any such adjudicatory hearing, ORES or the department, shall designate members of its staff to represent the public interest, including with respect to the application of local and state laws.4.
If public comments on a draft permit condition published by ORES pursuant to this section, including comments provided by a municipality or political subdivision or agency thereof, landowners, or members of the public, raise a substantive and significant issue, as defined in regulations adopted pursuant to this article, that requires adjudication, ORES shall promptly fix a date for an adjudicatory hearing to hear arguments and consider evidence with respect thereto.5.
Following the expiration of the public comment period set forth in this section, and following the conclusion of a hearing undertaken pursuant to subdivision four of this section, ORES shall, in the case of a public comment period, issue a written summary of public comments and an assessment of comments received, and in the case of an adjudicatory hearing, the executive director or any person to whom the executive director has delegated such authority shall issue a final written hearing report. A final siting permit may only be issued if ORES makes a finding that the proposed project, together with any applicable uniform and site-specific standards and conditions, would comply with applicable laws and regulations. In making a final siting permit determination with respect to a major renewable energy facility, ORES may elect not to apply, in whole or in part, any local law or ordinance that would otherwise be applicable if it makes a finding that, as applied to the proposed facility, it is unreasonably burdensome in view of the CLCPA targets, and the environmental benefits.6.
Notwithstanding any other deadline made applicable by this section, ORES shall make a final decision on a major renewable energy facility siting permit within one year from the date the application was deemed complete, or within six months from the date the application was deemed complete if such application relates to a major renewable energy facility that is proposed to be sited on an existing or abandoned commercial use, including without limitation, brownfields, landfills, former commercial or industrial sites, dormant electric generating sites, and abandoned or otherwise underutilized sites, as further defined by the regulations promulgated by or in effect under this article. Unless ORES and the applicant have agreed to an extension and if a final siting permit decision has not been made by ORES within such time period, then such siting permit shall be deemed to have been automatically granted for all purposes set forth in this article and all uniform conditions or site specific permit conditions issued for public comment shall constitute enforceable provisions of the siting permit; provided, however, any portion of which is to be located on the land of a landowner for which the applicant lacks an existing right-of-way agreement or valid and enforceable lease or easement for use of such relevant property, no such permit shall be automatically granted. The final siting permit related to a major renewable energy facility shall include a provision requiring the permittee to provide a host community benefit, which may be a host community benefit as determined by the commission pursuant to section eight of part JJJ of chapter fifty-eight of the laws of two thousand twenty or such other project as determined by ORES or as subsequently agreed to between the applicant and the host community. * NB Repealed December 31, 2040
Source:
Section 142 — Application, notice, and review relating to major renewable energy facility siting, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBS/142 (updated Jun. 21, 2024; accessed Oct. 26, 2024).
