NY Pub Serv L § 32 (2021)
2021 New York Laws PBS - Public Service Article 2 - Residential Gas, Electric and Steam Utility Service 32 - Termination of Service.

§ 32. Termination   of  service.  1.  Generally.  Any  termination  of residential utility service by utility  corporations  or  municipalities shall be in accordance with all relevant provisions of this article.   2.  Utility service may be terminated, except as otherwise provided in this section, if any person supplied with electric or gas service  to  a residence:  (a) fails to pay charges for any service rendered during the preceding twelve  months,  provided however that the commission by regulations may permit the termination of service for bills  due  for  service  rendered during  periods in excess of twelve months where (i) there was a dispute between  such  person  and  the  utility  corporation  or   municipality concerning  the  bill  during  the  twelve  month period, (ii) delays in termination are not the fault of the utility or were due to the culpable conduct of such person, or (iii) such  bills  are  necessary  to  adjust estimated bills; or  (b) fails to pay amounts due under a deferred payment plan; or  (c) fails to pay or agree in writing to pay equipment and installation charges relating to initiation of service; and  (d)  is  sent  a final notice of termination no less than fifteen days before the termination date shown on the notice. Any such notice  shall, at  a  minimum, clearly state the reason for termination of service; how termination may be avoided; that the utility corporation or municipality has available procedures for  handling  complaints;  a  summary  of  the protections available under this article; that any customer eligible for such protections should contact the utility corporation or municipality; and  such  other  provisions  as  the  commission may require. A utility corporation or municipality may not issue a final notice of  termination unless  at least twenty days have elapsed from the date payment was due. The commission may increase the number of  days  before  which  a  final notice of termination may be sent.   3.  The  commission  shall  safeguard  from  termination,  or  require restoration of service to,  those  residents  who  will  suffer  serious impairments  to  health  or  safety  as  a result of such termination or failure to restore services. The regulations shall include, but  not  be limited to:  (a) Medical emergencies. The commission shall require the continuation or  restoration  of  utility  service  to a customer's residence where a medical emergency exists.  The  commission  shall  provide  for  written certification  by a medical doctor, nurse practitioner or local board of health that termination of service or failure to  restore  service  will aggravate  an  existing  medical  emergency  at  a customer's residence, provided that the commission may authorize an initial  certification  by telephone  if  written  certification  is  provided within five business days. The commission shall provide for the duration, form,  content  and renewal  of written certificates. With respect to the renewal of written certificates, the commission may require the customer to demonstrate  an inability   to  pay  charges  for  service.  The  commission  shall,  in consultation with the departments of health and social services and  the office for the aging, establish criteria to be used by a medical doctor, nurse  practitioner  or  local board of health in making a determination that a medical emergency exists or that  the  absence  of  service  will aggravate an existing medical emergency.  (b)  Customers  who  are  elderly,  blind, or disabled. The commission shall provide  special  procedures  to  be  followed  by  a  utility  or municipality  with  respect to the termination or restoration of service to a residence where the customer is  known  to  or  identified  to  the utility  to  be  blind,  disabled,  or  sixty-two years of age or older; provided that all the remaining residents of the household are sixty-two  years of age or older, eighteen years of  age  or  under,  or  blind  or disabled. The commission shall afford reasonable protections to elderly, blind  or  disabled  customers, including a requirement that the utility corporation  or  municipality  make  a  diligent  effort  to  contact by telephone or in person an adult resident at the customer's  premises  at least  seventy-two hours prior to termination of service. The commission shall also establish reasonable  procedures  for  identifying  customers eligible for the protections of this section.  (c)  Special  procedures  for cold weather periods. (i) The commission shall establish procedures to be followed by a utility  or  municipality supplying  heat related service in cold weather periods. Such procedures shall be designed to  identify  and  assist,  prior  to  termination  of service,  those residents who may suffer serious impairment to health or safety as a  result  of  any  such  termination.  The  commission  shall establish  the  applicable  cold  weather  periods; specify criteria for identifying residents who are likely to suffer serious impairments,  and require  that  such service not be terminated unless a representative of the utility or municipality  makes  a  diligent  effort  to  contact  by telephone  or  in person an adult resident of the customer's premises at least seventy-two hours prior to termination, makes a personal visit  at the  time  of  termination  and  provides  the customer with information regarding the protections available under this article.  The  commission shall  provide for the manner in which such contacts and personal visits are  made.  (ii)  The  commission  shall  also  require  a  utility   or municipality  supplying service to continue service to customers where a serious impairment  to  health  or  safety  is  likely  to  result  from termination  of  service  and  the  person supplied is unable because of mental or physical problems to manage his or her  own  resources  or  to protect  himself or herself from neglect or hazardous situations without the assistance of others. Doubts shall be resolved in favor of continued service. Continuations of service shall be for a period of  time  to  be established  by  the  commission.  The commission shall consult with the department of social services and the state  office  for  the  aging  in implementing the provisions of this paragraph.   4.  The  commission  shall  preclude terminations for nonpayment other than between the hours of eight  a.m.  and  four  p.m.,  Monday  through Thursday,  provided  that  such day or the following day is not a public holiday as defined in the general construction law.   5. (a) In the event the service to a residential  customer  terminated pursuant  to  this  section or the service to a multiple-family dwelling pursuant to  section  thirty-three  of  this  article  or  a  two-family dwelling pursuant to section thirty-four of this article consists of the provision  of  gas  or electricity commodity only, the utility providing distribution services to such customer shall suspend  the  provision  of such  distribution  services  and  the  provision  of  any other related services to such customer if:  (i) The utility providing distribution services to  such  customer  is notified  of  the  termination in such manner and form as the commission shall,  by  regulation,  prescribe;  which  notification  shall  include documentation  sufficient  to  confirm that such termination was, in all respects, in compliance with this article and that  the  conditions  set forth in this subdivision have been met;  (ii)  Except  in the case of a service to a multiple dwelling pursuant to section thirty-three of this article, such customer was billed  using a  billing  system  in  which  all charges for service were present on a single bill;  (iii) Such  utility  providing  distribution  services  provided  such services to the customer at the time of the termination;  (iv) The utility implementing the termination confirms that it is able to  and will take all actions within its control necessary to resume the provision of electric or gas commodity to such  customer  in  accordance with  the  agreement  for  such  service  between  such utility and such customer,  if  the  customer makes full payment of the amount of arrears that were the basis for the termination of service;  (v) The utility implementing the  termination  has  not  assigned  its right  to  obtain  payment  of  the  arrears  to an entity that is not a utility for purposes of this article; and  (vi) Less  than  one  year  has  elapsed  since  such  termination  of commodity service has occurred.  (b)  All  notices provided pursuant to this article in connection with such termination shall include notice  of  the  suspension  of  services that,  pursuant  to  this  subdivision, can occur coincidental with such termination and shall state the amount which must be paid to the utility making the termination in order to obtain the resumption of service from such terminating utility and, if different, the  amount  which  must  be paid  to  the  utility  making the termination to end such suspension of services.  (c) The  utility  shall  make  its  best  efforts  to  institute  such suspension of distribution service promptly and shall receive reasonable compensation   from  the  terminating  utility,  as  determined  by  the commission,  for  any  costs  associated   with   such   suspension   of distribution services. Any payments for arrears made by a customer after the  termination  of  service shall be allocated equitably on a pro rata basis between the terminating utility  and  the  utility  that  provided distribution  services,  to  the  extent  arrears  are owed to both such utilities.  (d) Such suspension shall end  upon  the  occurrence  of  any  of  the conditions  identified  in paragraphs (a) through (e) of subdivision one of section thirty-five of this article, upon the expiration of one  year after  such  termination  of  commodity  service, or upon the receipt of payments by or on behalf of the customer to the terminating utility such that the amount paid by such customer to the  terminating  utility  plus the  amount  previously  paid  the  terminating  utility  plus any other charges paid to the utility providing distribution  service  during  the period  when such customer's arrears accrued is equal to or greater than the amount such customer would have paid if the entire  utility  service had  been  obtained  from  the  utility  providing distribution services during such period.   * 6.  No  utility  corporation  or  municipality  shall  terminate  or disconnect  services  to  any  residential  customer or a small business customer with twenty-five or fewer employees that is not a (a)  publicly held  company,  or  a  subsidiary  thereof, (b) seasonal, short-term, or temporary  customer,  (c)  high  energy  customer  as  defined  by   the commission,  or  (d)  customer  that the utility can demonstrate has the resources to pay the bill, provided that the utility notifies the  small business  customer of its reasons and of the customer's right to contest this determination through the commission's  complaint  procedures,  for the  non-payment  of  an  overdue  charge  for the duration of the state disaster emergency declared pursuant to executive order two hundred  two of two thousand twenty (hereinafter "the COVID-19 state of emergency").   Utility  corporations  and municipalities shall have a duty to restore service, to the extent not already required under this chapter,  to  any residential  or small business customer within forty-eight hours if such service has been terminated during the pendency of the COVID-19 state of emergency.   * NB Effective until July 1, 2022    * 6. Implementation of the provisions of this section shall not  limit the  contractual  remedies  for  damages which might be available to the terminating utility provided that  an  award  of  such  damages  is  not inconsistent with any of the provisions of this article.   * NB Effective July 1, 2022   * 7. For a period of one hundred eighty days after either the COVID-19 state  of  emergency  is lifted or expires or December thirty-first, two thousand twenty-one, whichever is earlier,  no  utility  corporation  or municipality  shall terminate or disconnect the service of a residential or  small  business  customer  because  of  defaulted  deferred  payment agreements  or  arrears  owed to the utility corporation or municipality when such customer has experienced a change in  financial  circumstances due  to  the  COVID-19 state of emergency, as defined by the department. The utility corporation or municipality shall provide  such  residential or small business customer with the right to enter into, or restructure, a  deferred payment agreement without the requirement of a down payment, late fees, or penalties, as such is provided for in  this  article  with such prohibition on down payments, late fees, or penalties applicable to all  arrears  incurred  during  the  duration  of  the COVID-19 state of emergency.   * NB Repealed July 1, 2022   * 8. Every utility corporation or municipality shall provide notice to residential and small business customers, in a writing  to  be  included with  a bill statement or, when appropriate, via electronic transmission the provisions of this section and shall further make reasonable efforts to contact  customers  who  have  demonstrated  a  change  in  financial circumstances  due to the COVID-19 state of emergency for the purpose of offering such customers a deferred payment agreement consistent with the provisions of this article.   * NB Repealed July 1, 2022   * 9. Implementation of  the  provisions  of  this  section  shall  not prohibit  a  utility  or  municipality  from recovering lost or deferred revenues after either the lifting or expiration of the COVID-19 state of emergency or December thirty-first, two thousand  twenty-one,  whichever is  earlier,  pursuant to such means for recovery as are provided for in this chapter, and by means not inconsistent with any of  the  provisions of  this  article.  Nothing  in  this  section  shall prohibit a utility corporation or municipality  from  disconnecting  service  necessary  to protect the health and safety of customers and the public.   * NB Repealed July 1, 2022   * 10. Implementation of the provisions of this section shall not limit the  contractual  remedies  for  damages which might be available to the terminating utility provided that  an  award  of  such  damages  is  not inconsistent with any of the provisions of this article.   * NB Repealed July 1, 2022