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Bill

S 10316

Requires the results of any outage management system stress test conducted in the state by a utility company to be posted online

2025 Regular Session Introduced by James Skoufis

Public posting of outage management system stress test results by utilities and authorities to boost transparency and oversight of readiness for major outages.

PRINT NUMBER 10316A
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WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · S 10316

Overview

S.10316 (2025-2026) from New York Sen. Skoufis proposes requiring public posting of outage management system (OMS) stress test results for utilities and related authorities. The bill aims to enhance transparency around a utility’s preparedness for large-scale weather events or natural disasters that could disrupt service.

Purpose and intent

  • Establish a formal requirement that OMS stress test results be publicly posted.
  • Improve public visibility into how utilities and authorities assess and respond to major outages.
  • Ensure timely reporting of test outcomes to state legislative leadership.

Key provisions

Public utility stress test results (Public Service Law)

  • Definition: “Outage management system stress test” means a test to evaluate a utility’s ability to handle and respond to large-scale weather events or disasters causing service loss.
  • Posting requirement: The Department of Public Service must post the results on its website as soon as available.
  • Reporting requirement: The Commissioner must transmit the test results to:
    • Temporary President of the Senate
    • Speaker of the Assembly
    • Chairs of the Senate and Assembly standing committees on energy

Applicable entities: utility corporations, water municipalities, and local publicly owned electric or gas corporations operating within New York.

Public authorities stress testing (Public Authorities Law)

  • Addition of new section 1020-nn to Title 1-A.
  • Definition: “Outage management system stress test” for the authority or its service provider to gauge capacity to handle large-scale outages due to weather or disasters.
  • Posting requirement: The authority must post the results on its website as soon as available.
  • Reporting requirement: The board must transmit the results to the same legislative recipients as above (temporary president, speaker, and energy committee chairs).

Affected entities

  • Utilities subject to the New York Department of Public Service (including utility corporations, water municipalities, and local publicly owned electric or gas corporations).
  • State authorities and their service providers responsible for outage management (e.g., public authorities delivering or coordinating electric/gas services).

Timelines and procedural notes

  • Effective date: The act takes effect immediately upon enactment.
  • Transparency cadence: Results must be posted “as soon as such results become available.”
  • Oversight and communication: Annual-type or ad hoc sharing of results with senior legislative leadership and energy committee leadership, ensuring ongoing legislative visibility.

Potential impact

  • Increased public access to performance data related to resilience planning and outage response.
  • Enhanced accountability for utilities and authorities in testing their systems before and during extreme events.
  • Potential influence on policy discussions, rate cases, and resilience investments driven by demonstrated preparedness.

Practical considerations

  • Clarity on what constitutes “results” (e.g., test scope, methodologies, performance metrics, thresholds, and remediation timelines) could affect comparability across entities.
  • The bill mandates online posting but does not specify redaction or handling of sensitive operational details; agencies may need to balance transparency with security concerns.
  • Requires coordination among multiple agencies and governing boards to ensure timely publication and accurate reporting to legislative leaders.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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