2023 New York Laws › PBS - Public Service › Article 8 - Siting of Renewable Energy and Electric Transmission › 143 - Application, Notice, and Review Relating to Major Electric Transmission Facility Siting.

* § 143. Application,  notice,  and  review relating to major electric
  transmission  facility  siting.  1.  Notwithstanding  any  law  to   the
  contrary,  ORES  shall, within one hundred twenty days after its receipt
  of an application for a siting permit with respect to a  major  electric
  transmission facility, determine whether the application is complete and
  notify  the  applicant  of  its determination. If ORES does not deem the
  application complete, it 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
  one  hundred  twenty  day  time  period, the application shall be deemed
  complete; provided, however,  that  the  applicant  may  consent  to  an
  extension  of  the  one  hundred  twenty 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.  In  addition  to  addressing uniform standards and conditions, the
  application for a  siting  permit  with  respect  to  a  major  electric
  transmission facility shall include, in such form as ORES may prescribe,
  the following information: (i) the location of the site or right-of-way;
  (ii)  a  description  of  the transmission facility to be built thereon;
  (iii) a summary of any studies which have been made of the environmental
  impact of the project,  and  a  description  of  such  studies;  (iv)  a
  statement explaining the public need for the facility; (v) copies of any
  studies of the electrical performance and system impacts of the facility
  performed  by  the state grid operator pursuant to its tariff; (vi) such
  other information as the applicant may consider relevant or ORES may  by
  regulation   require;   and   (vii)  a  description  of  any  reasonable
  alternative  location  or  locations  for  the  proposed   facility,   a
  description  of  the  comparative merits and detriments of each location
  submitted, and a statement of  the  reasons  why  the  primary  proposed
  location is best suited for the facility.
3. To the greatest extent practicable, each landowner of land on which
  any  portion  of such proposed facility is to be located shall be served
  by first class mail with a notice that such landowner's property may  be
  impacted  by  a  project  and  an explanation of how to file with ORES a
  notice of intent to be a party in the permit application proceedings and
  the timeframe for filing such application.
4. 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 of renewable
  energy siting and electric transmissions, which comment period shall  be
  for  a  minimum  of  sixty  days from public notice thereof. Such public
  notice shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) written notice to
  the municipalities  and  political  subdivisions,  in  which  the  major
  electric   utility  transmission  is  proposed  to  be  located  and  to
  landowners notified of the application pursuant to subdivision three  of
  this  section;  (ii)  publication  in a newspaper or in electronic form,
  having  general  circulation  in  such   municipalities   or   political
  subdivisions;  (iii)  posting  on  the  office's  and  the  department's
  website; and (iv) written notice  to  each  member  of  the  legislature
  through  whose  district  the  facility or any alternate proposed in the
  application would pass and in  the  event  that  such  facility  or  any
  portion  thereof  is located within the Adirondack Park or Tug Hill, the
  Adirondack Park Agency and Tug Hill commission respectively.
5. 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 section or otherwise  in
  effect  on  the  effective  date  of  this  article, the municipality or
  political  subdivision  or  agency  thereof  shall within the timeframes
  established by this act submit a statement to  ORES  indicating  whether
  the  proposed facility 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 facility 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
  the affected municipality or political subdivision.
6.  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;  provided,
  however,  that  with respect to an application for a siting permit for a
  major electric transmission facility, any portion  of  which  is  to  be
  located  on  the  land  of  a  landowner for which the applicant lacks a
  right-of-way agreement,  ORES  shall  provide  such  landowner  with  an
  opportunity  to  challenge  the explanation for the public need given in
  such  application.  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.
7. Following the expiration of the public comment period set forth  in
  this  section,  and  following  the  conclusion  of a hearing undertaken
  pursuant to subdivision six 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  officer  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  or  a  major  electric
  transmission 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, the environmental
  benefits, and in the case of a transmission facility,  the  public  need
  for the proposed project.
8. Notwithstanding any other deadline made applicable by this section,
  ORES shall make a final decision on a siting permit within one year from
  the  date  the  application  was  deemed  complete.  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,  that

  with  respect  to  a  final  siting  permit  decision related to a major
  electric transmission facility, 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  and  in  which  ORES has not made a public need
  determination, no such permit shall be automatically granted.
9.  For  a  major  electric  transmission  facility  that   would   be
  constructed  substantially  within  existing  rights-of-way that possess
  existing major  electric  transmission  infrastructure,  the  office  of
  renewable energy siting and electric transmission may include within its
  regulations  a  framework  that  relieves  certain  requirements of this
  article, provided that such relief is reasonable and does not impair any
  rights  of  municipalities  established  under  this  article  or  limit
  requirements relating to public notice or the finding of public need.
* NB Repealed December 31, 2040