On June 22, 2017, both chambers of the New York State Legislature unanimously passed legislation—Senate Bill 5190 and Assembly Bill 6571 (collectively, the “Bill”)—which would require the New York Public Service Commission (“NYPSC”) to commence a proceeding to establish an Energy Storage Deployment Program for the State of New York within ninety days of the Bill’s effective date.  The Bill would also require that, no later than January 1, 2018, the NYPSC establish a target for the installation of energy storage systems through 2030, and programs that will enable the State of New York to meet those targets.  The Bill now heads to Governor Andrew Cuomo for signature.

The stated purpose of the Energy Storage Deployment Program is to “encourage the installation of Qualified Energy Storage Systems,” which are broadly defined as “commercially-available technology that is capable of absorbing energy, storing it for a period of time, and thereafter dispatching the energy.”  The Bill specifies that Qualified Energy Storage Systems must do one or more of the following: (i) use mechanical, chemical, or thermal processes to store energy that was generated at one time for use at a later time; (ii) store thermal energy for direct use for heating or cooling at a later time in a manner that avoids the need to use electricity at that later time; (iii) use mechanical, chemical, or thermal processes to store energy generated from renewable resources for use at a later time; or (iv) use mechanical, chemical, or thermal processes to store energy generated from mechanical processes that would otherwise be wasted for delivery at a later time.

The Bill specifies that the NYPSC’s determination regarding the target for the installation of Qualified Energy Storage Systems through 2030 must include the following: (i) the creation of the Energy Storage Deployment Program to be administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (“NYSERDA”), and the Long Island Power Authority (“LIPA”); (ii) estimated annual expenditures associated with the program for each year, beginning in 2018 and continuing through 2030; (iii) program designs that consider avoided or deferred costs associated with transmission, distribution, and/or capacity; minimization of peak load in constrained areas; and systems that are connected to customer facilities and systems that are directly connected to transmission and distribution facilities; (iv) annual reports on the achievements and effectiveness of the program to the Governor and Legislature; and (v) “such other issues deemed appropriate” by the NYPSC.

A copy of the Bill may be found here.