New York State Public Service Commission - Seeking Public Comments on NY State Utilities' Climate Vulnerability Study Plans

On February 24, 2022, Governor Hochul signed into law an act requiring New York State utility corporations with combined natural gas and electric services to submit a climate change vulnerability study by September 22, 2023.  The studies, conducted by Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation, Consolidated Edison, New York State Electric and Gas Corporation, Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation, Orange and Rockland Utilities, and Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation, evaluated each corporation's infrastructure, design specifications, and procedures to better understand the electric system’s vulnerability to climate-driven risks.

The utility companies were further requested to submit a plan to address the results from their climate vulnerability study. On November 21, 2023, the utilities filed their respective plans with the New York State Public Service Commission (Commission). The New York State Department of Public Service (DPS) is seeking public comments regarding the Electric Utility Climate Vulnerability Study Plans.

To ensure full public participation, the New York State Public Service Commission will hold a series of in-person public statement hearings throughout July and August 2024 to seek input and comments from New York State communities regarding the Electric Utility Climate Vulnerability Study Plans submitted by New York State's major electric utilities.

For Saugerties, the relevant documents are those dealing with Central Hudson Gas & Electric.  

If you are interested in participating in the hearings, the Central Hudson hearing information is:

  Wednesday, July 31, 2024 (11:00 a.m.) - Poughkeepsie Town Hall, 1 Overocker Rd., Poughkeepsie, NY  12603

The Central Hudson Subset of the filings are:

• Central Hudson Climate Change Resilience Plan (11/21/2023)
• Climate Change Vulnerability Study (9/25/2023)

For general Public Service Commission Vulnerability Climate Vulnerability Studies and Plans beyond Central Hudson, please visit https://documents.dps.ny.gov/public/MatterManagement/CaseMaster.aspx?MatterCaseNo=22-E-0222&CaseSearch=Search

Information on how to submit comments is available in the Notice of Public Statement Hearings - https://files.constantcontact.com/3b66bb7e501/40936183-7daf-4fe0-b828-a00609e4ff88.pdf