BILL NUMBER: S7899
SPONSOR: HINCHEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public authorities law and the public service law,
in relation to giving preference to certain sites when developing renew-
able energy generating projects and to the definition of agrivoltaics
 
PURPOSE:
To clarify and strengthen requirements promoting renewable energy devel-
opment in certain sites, and to define "agrivoltaics."
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one:
* Amends section 1005 of the public authorities law (powers and duties
of the New York Power Authority) to state that in developing renewable
energy projects the authority shall give preference "within its primary
scoring criteria" to sites such as parking tots, warehouses, correction-
al facilities, large retail establishments, rest areas, and brownfields;
and
* Cross-references an existing reference of "agrivoltaics" to a new
definition added later in the bill.
Section two amends section 1902 of the public authorities law (powers
and duties of the New York State Energy Research and Development Author-
ity) to make similar amendments giving preference within primary scoring
criteria to the list of priority sites, and cross-referencing a new
definition of agrivoltaics.
Section three amends section 138 of the public service law (general
provisions of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting related to standards
for siting renewable energy facilities) to make similar amendments
giving preference within primary scoring criteria to the list of priori-
ty sites.
Section four amends section 138 of the public service law (general
provisions of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting related to standards
for siting major electric transmission facilities) to make similar
amendments giving preference within primary scoring criteria to the list
of priority sites.
Section five adds a new section 1885 to public authorities law defining
"agrivoltaics." Section six is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York farmland is under threat. According to a 2024 report by the
Comptroller, the State lost 14% of its farms and 9% of its farmland to
other uses between 2012 and 2022. New York has taken important steps to
balance our solar and renewable energy priorities with farmland
protection, including review standards intended to protect the highest
quality soil. However, further work is needed to ensure that farmland
and food security are maintained as we expand renewable generation
capacity.
Existing laws related to solar siting give "priority" to siting on a
variety of non-farm locations, such as previously-developed sites or
brownfields. This bill expands and clarifies the intent by listing addi-
tional non-farm locations such as parking tots, warehouses, and other
locations.
Further, while the current project review and scoring models have been
improved by recent laws protecting prime soil groups, project scoring is
still primarily about price. While the law currently gives "priority" to
previously developed sites, protection of farmland and/or siting on
existing development is still an extremely small factor in the actual
project scoring process. Therefore this bill replaces the broad "priori-
ty" language given to such sites with more specific language to require
"preference...within primary scoring criteria."
Current project siting law also makes several references to "agrivolta-
ics." This is the emerging practice of dual-siting solar generation with
working agricultural production, such as placement of solar panels over
croplands or at a height sufficient for cattle to walk under. The State
has funded a small pilot program at Cornett for such projects pursuant
to Agriculture and Markets Law section 151-j, but lacks a statutory
definition of the term. The vagueness of existing law may allow for
projects that actually reduce agricultural production to be considered
agrivoltaics, such as if cropland is taken out of use for solar panels
but the developer puts bee boxes on the panels and calls it "agricul-
ture." Therefore this bill adds a clear definition of "agrivoltaics"
that has been crafted in partnership with farmland protection organiza-
tions and solar developers to represent best practices in this cutting
edge field.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediate

Statutes affected:
S7899: 1902 public authorities law, 1902(1) public authorities law, 138 public service law, 138(4) public service law, 139 public service law, 139(1) public service law