N.Y.
Public Service Law Section 5
Jurisdiction, powers and duties of public service commission
1.
The jurisdiction, supervision, powers and duties of the public service commission shall extend under this chapter:b.
To the manufacture, conveying, transportation, sale or distribution of gas (natural or manufactured or mixture of both) and electricity for light, heat or power, to gas plants and to electric plants and to the persons or corporations owning, leasing or operating the same.c.
To the manufacture, holding, distribution, transmission, sale or furnishing of steam for heat or power, to steam plants and to the persons or corporations owning, leasing or operating the same.d.
To every telephone line which lies wholly within the state and that part within the state of New York of every telephone line which lies partly within and partly without the state and to the persons or corporations owning, leasing or operating any such telephone line.e.
To every telegraph line which lies wholly within the state and that part within the state of New York of every telegraph line which lies partly within and partly without the state and to the persons or corporations owning, leasing or operating any such telegraph line.f.
To the furnishing or distribution of water for domestic, commercial or public uses and to water systems and to the persons or corporations owning, leasing or operating the same.g.
To every stock yard within the state and to the stock yard company owning, leasing or operating the same, to the same extent and in respect to the same objects and purposes as such jurisdiction extends, under this chapter, to depots, freight houses and shipping stations of a common carrier, including the duty of such stock yard company to submit reports and be subjected to investigation as if it were a common carrier, and the powers and duties of such commission to fix charges and make and enforce orders relating to adequate service by such company.h.
A corporation or person owning or holding a majority of the stock of a common carrier, gas corporation or electrical corporation subject to the jurisdiction of the public service commission shall be subject to the supervision of the public service commission in respect of the relations between such common carrier, gas corporation or electrical corporation and such owners or holders of a majority of the stock thereof in so far as such relations arise from or by reason of such ownership or holding of stock thereof or the receipt or holding of any money or property thereof or from or by reason of any contract between them; and in respect of such relations shall in like manner and to the same extent as such common carrier, gas corporation or electrical corporation be subject to examination of accounts, records and memoranda, and shall furnish such reports and information as the public service commission shall from time to time direct and require, and shall be subject to like penalties for default therein.i.
To thermal energy provided by gas corporations, electric corporations, or combination gas and electric corporations.2.
The commission shall encourage all persons and corporations subject to its jurisdiction to formulate and carry out long-range programs, individually or cooperatively, for the performance of their public service responsibilities with economy, efficiency, and care for the public safety, the preservation of environmental values and the conservation of natural resources.3.
Application of the provisions of this chapter to one-way paging or two-way mobile radio telephone service with the exception of such services provided by means of cellular radio communication is suspended unless the commission, no sooner than one year after the effective date of this subdivision, makes a determination, after notice and hearing, that regulation of such services should be reinstituted to the extent found necessary to protect the public interest because of a lack of effective competition.4.
Upon finding that it is in the public interest to do so, the commission may exempt from any or all of the provisions of this chapter, for such period of time as it deems appropriate, an association of homeowners owning and operating any water plant or water-works and distributing water only to customers having an interest and voice in its operation.5.
The commission shall develop a plan to maximize the use of telecommuting to conserve energy otherwise used by the personnel of the department in commuting to their assigned workplace. Within one year of the effective date of this subdivision, the commission shall submit a report to the governor and the legislature on the impact of such plan to include, but not be limited to, energy conservation, air quality, workforce acceptance, office costs and potential cost savings.6.
a. Application of the provisions of this chapter to cellular telephone services is suspended unless the commission, no sooner than one year after the effective date of this subdivision, makes a determination, after notice and hearing, that suspension of the application of the provisions of this chapter shall cease to the extent found necessary to protect the public interest.b.
For the purpose of determining whether a cellular provider is subject to taxation under Tax Law § 186-A (Tax on the furnishing of utility services)section one hundred eighty-six-a of the tax law on a gross income or gross operating income basis, during a period of suspension prescribed pursuant to this section, the tax status of such provider shall be determined on the day previous to the day such suspension commenced and such status shall continue during the period of such suspension.c.
Notwithstanding paragraph a of this subdivision, the commission may designate any commercial mobile radio or cellular telephone service providers as an eligible telecommunications carrier for purposes of providing lifeline service, in addition to any commercial mobile radio or cellular telephone service providers designated as such pursuant to 47 U.S.C. § 214(e) and 47 U.S.C. § 214(e)(2), without requiring any such provider to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity pursuant to § 99 (Franchises and privileges)section ninety-nine of this chapter. The commission is authorized and directed to promulgate all rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this paragraph, and to establish standards and safeguards for approval as an eligible telecommunications carrier for purposes of providing lifeline service. Such standards and safeguards shall include, but not be limited to, the provider’s managerial, financial and technical capability and expertise, including whether the provider has forfeited eligible telecommunications carrier designation in another state or been subject to the imposition of substantial monetary penalties by the federal communications commission or another state. Upon adoption by the commission, such standards and safeguards shall apply to new applicants, and shall not apply to previously approved providers or affiliated entities of such providers with common financial, managerial and technical capability and expertise.
Source:
Section 5 — Jurisdiction, powers and duties of public service commission, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBS/5 (updated Jul. 8, 2022; accessed Oct. 26, 2024).
