STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

279

2023-2024 Regular Sessions

IN ASSEMBLY

January 4, 2023 ___________

Introduced by M. of A. CARROLL, COLTON, DINOWITZ, KIM, COOK, DICKENS, SIMON, STIRPE, CRUZ, L. ROSENTHAL, WEPRIN, ROZIC, MAMDANI, FORREST, GALLAGHER, ANDERSON, EPSTEIN, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, MITAYNES, JACKSON, BURDICK, WALKER, SILLITTI, LAVINE, THIELE, STECK, CLARK, SEAWRIGHT, DAVILA, RAMOS, BURGOS, KELLES, SEPTIMO, GLICK, BURKE, OTIS, DILAN, JACOBSON, GIBBS, DE LOS SANTOS, CUNNINGHAM, REYES, TAPIA, ZINERMAN, MEEKS, LUPARDO, RAJKUMAR, DARLING -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. HEVESI, HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Corpo- rations, Authorities and Commissions

AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to implementing the "New York State Build Public Renewables Act"

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "New York State Build Public Renewables Act". 3 § 2. Section 1005 of the public authorities law is amended by adding 4 fourteen new subdivisions 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 5 41, 42, and 43 to read as follows: 6 30. (a) The authority is authorized and directed to purchase, acquire, 7 plan, design, engineer, finance, construct, operate, manage, improve 8 and/or maintain any renewable energy project. 9 (b) For the purposes of this subdivision and subdivisions thirty-one, 10 thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty- 11 seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty, forty-one, forty-two and 12 forty-three of this section, the following terms shall have the follow- 13 ing meanings: 14 (i) "renewable energy" shall have the same meaning as renewable energy 15 systems as set forth in section sixty-six-p of the public service law. 16 (ii) "renewable energy project" shall be defined as all infrastructure 17 which generates, stores, distributes or transmits renewable energy or 18 thermal energy as defined in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, and

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00338-01-3

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1 includes the construction, installation and/or operation of ancillary 2 facilities or equipment done in connection with any such renewable ener- 3 gy generating projects, including, but not limited to, energy storage 4 systems, electric vehicle charging infrastructure and offshore wind 5 support and installation vessels owned by the authority, and the 6 production, use, and sale of green hydrogen defined as hydrogen produced 7 through electrolysis powered using one hundred percent renewable energy. 8 31. Where a renewable energy site appropriate for New York state falls 9 into federal jurisdiction, the authority may participate in lease 10 auctions in an attempt to obtain ownership of that area. 11 32. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority 12 shall, on or after January first, two thousand thirty-one, only generate 13 renewable energy and shall only purchase, acquire, plan, design, engi- 14 neer, finance, and construct generation and transmission facilities for 15 the purpose of generating, storing, distributing and transmitting renew- 16 able energy. The authority shall phase out its use of existing non-re- 17 newable generation no later than December thirtieth, two thousand thir- 18 ty-one, unless the authority provides to its trustees, and makes 19 publicly available, an attestation in writing, signed by the independent 20 system operator and a representative of the regional clean energy hub in 21 which the facility is located, identifying the existence of a reliabil- 22 ity need. The authority shall work with the New York state energy 23 research and development authority to provide any funding necessary for 24 a regional clean energy hub to meet the needs of this subdivision. The 25 authority, in consultation with the independent system operator, shall 26 ensure that the phase out of its existing non-renewable generation does 27 not lead to an increase in the delivery of out-of-state non-renewable 28 generation into the New York state electric grid. For the purposes of 29 this subdivision, a "reliability need" means an electricity system need, 30 which if unmet, would result in a violation of the electric power system 31 planning and operating policies, standards, criteria, guidelines, proce- 32 dures, and rules promulgated by the North American Electric Reliability 33 Corporation ("NERC"), Northeast Power Coordinating Council ("NPCC"), and 34 the New York State Reliability Council ("NYSRC"), as they may be amended 35 from time to time. 36 (b) The authority shall prioritize funding, siting, building, and 37 owning renewable energy projects which: (i) actively benefit disadvan- 38 taged communities as defined by the climate justice working group; (ii) 39 minimize harm to wildlife, ecosystems, public health, and public safety; 40 (iii) do not violate Indigenous rights or sovereignty; and (iv) which 41 are the most cost-effective to the state according to the best available 42 cost modeling research. The types of renewable energy projects the 43 authority builds shall be determined and prioritized in consultation 44 with affected labor unions and community organizations via the New York 45 state energy research and development authority's regional clean energy 46 hubs. 47 33. (a) Within two years of the effective date of this subdivision, 48 the authority shall make public a ten-year climate and resiliency plan. 49 Such climate and resiliency plan shall be designed to minimize costs to 50 ratepayers, while balancing the interests of employees, grid reliability 51 and resiliency, disadvantaged communities as defined by the climate 52 justice working group, and the environment. Such plan shall be developed 53 in consultation with the New York state independent system operator, 54 the New York state energy research and development authority, the 55 New York state department of public service, and climate and resiliency 56 experts, labor organizations, environmental justice communities, resi-

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1 dential and small business ratepayer advocates, and community organiza- 2 tions via the New York state energy research and development authori- 3 ty's regional clean energy hubs. Such resiliency plan shall outline the 4 renewable energy projects the authority plans to build, how the authori- 5 ty plans to phase out non-renewable assets and how the authority plans 6 to comply with the climate leadership and community protection act and 7 the renewable energy targets in subdivisions thirty-two and thirty-four 8 of this section, and efforts to improve energy and electric grid resili- 9 ency. The authority shall update such plan annually, after public 10 comment and a hearing. Such updated plan shall include a review of the 11 state's progress towards the renewable energy goals of the climate lead- 12 ership and community protection act. If the authority, in consultation 13 with the New York state energy research and development authority, 14 determines that the renewable energy goals of the climate leadership and 15 community protection act are not likely to be met within the timeframe 16 established by the law, the authority shall include in the updated plan 17 the renewable energy projects it plans to build to ensure the state 18 meets such goals, including the permit applications submitted, the stage 19 of each project in the development process, when such projects are 20 expected to be commissioned, and any barriers to deployment experienced 21 by the authority. If the authority has identified a reliability need to 22 maintain its existing non-renewable generation pursuant to subdivision 23 thirty-two of this section, the authority shall identify in the annual 24 report the renewable energy project, energy storage project, trans- 25 mission or distribution infrastructure, demand response, or other such 26 project or projects that the authority, or another entity, only if such 27 entity has obtained all the necessary permits and has begun 28 construction, plans to develop to meet the reliability need. 29 (b) Within two years of the effective date of this subdivision, the 30 authority shall make public a democratization plan, with a mandate to 31 implement the plan within two years of its completion. Such plan shall 32 be created in partnership with, and codesigned with, a statewide alli- 33 ance of community organizations with at least five years' history of 34 working on energy democracy and implementation issues, providing funding 35 for this alliance as necessary for their participation in the completion 36 of the plan. Such plan shall ensure that the scale up of renewable build 37 out across the state occurs in line with the principles of energy democ- 38 racy and transparency. 39 (c) The authority shall hold at least eight public hearings within two 40 years of the effective date of this subdivision related to the climate 41 and resiliency plan. The hearing shall be publicized in various forms 42 of media, including but not limited to the authority's website, local 43 newspapers and social media platforms, and shall also be accessible via 44 livestream. In advance of such hearing, the authority shall conspicu- 45 ously post written notice of such hearing in all authority facilities 46 and New York state energy research and development authority regional 47 clean energy hubs on a sign posted at each facility entrance and exit 48 used by employees, and shall provide at least two weeks advance notice 49 of such hearing to authority customers by directly communicating such 50 notice to customer phone, email and mailing lists. Hearings shall be 51 permitted between 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM, and the 52 authority shall provide all speakers with the option to sign up to speak 53 within those three hour windows such that no speaker shall wait longer 54 than three hours to speak. In addition to oral testimony, written 55 testimony from the public for such hearings shall be accepted by the 56 authority no less than two weeks after each hearing. Each speaker shall

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1 have at least three minutes to speak, and a remote option shall be 2 provided for submitting comments via video conference, phone, including 3 short message services (SMS) text messages and/or written comment, which 4 shall be read aloud. Provisions for translation services, American sign 5 language interpretation, closed captioning, and access to accommodations 6 provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act shall be provided upon 7 request. 8 (d) The authority shall maintain all data, meeting minutes, recordings 9 and documents that do not include personal customer information, includ- 10 ing but not limited to depreciation schedules, annual financial state- 11 ments of itemized spending, environmental impact statements, cost-bene- 12 fit analyses, climate and resiliency plans, renewable energy project 13 plans, and annual reports on operations, customer service, reliability, 14 resiliency and sustainability. All such data, meeting minutes, 15 recordings and documents shall be made available on the authority's 16 website, or otherwise made accessible by the authority upon request. 17 All such records shall be maintained as business records for a minimum 18 of ten years. The state comptroller shall audit the authority at least 19 once every two years until two thousand thirty-one to ascertain whether 20 the authority is in compliance with the renewable energy targets 21 outlined in this subdivision and subdivisions thirty-two, thirty-four 22 and thirty-five of this section and whether the authority's spending and 23 operations are effectively and efficiently promoting the common good. 24 The most recent comptroller audits shall also be made available on the 25 authority's website, or otherwise made accessible by the authority upon 26 request. 27 (e) (i) The authority, in consultation with the New York state energy 28 research and development authority and the public service commission, 29 shall develop and conduct an energy efficiency and energy audit program 30 to identify public buildings most in need of retrofits and efficiency 31 measures. Such program shall provide for the installation of renewable 32 heating and cooling systems, and, when feasible, other green building 33 projects as defined in section 58-0101 of the environmental conservation 34 law, in public housing and public schools by the year two thousand thir- 35 ty-six, prioritizing first public affordable housing and public schools 36 in disadvantaged communities. The authority shall hire authority employ- 37 ees or contractors to perform energy audits, retrofits and other effi- 38 ciency programs for these buildings, and provide incentives, in conjunc- 39 tion with the New York state energy research and development authority, 40 for energy efficient appliances and induction stoves, as needed, to meet 41 the climate goals outlined in the climate leadership and community 42 protection act. If the buildings selected for this program need mold 43 remediation measures or lead abatement measures to be carried out before 44 energy efficiency measures can be safely implemented, the authority 45 shall also hire employees or contractors to perform lead abatement meas- 46 ures and/or mold remediation measures for these buildings. 47 (ii) The authority shall annually post on its website a report evalu- 48 ating the energy efficiency program, including, but not limited to, the 49 number of customers served by the efficiency program, the customer demo- 50 graphics, the number of retrofits and energy audits performed, the 51 number of jobs created and employee demographics, and the amount of 52 energy and dollars saved as a result of the program. 53 (iii) All work subject to this subdivision shall be considered public 54 work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor law, and shall 55 utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this subdivision, 56 "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective bargaining

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1 agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf of the 2 authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor organ- 3 ization establishing the labor organization as the collective bargaining 4 representative for all persons who will perform work on a public work 5 project, and which provides that only contractors and subcontractors who 6 sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organization can perform 7 project work. All contractors and subcontractors associated with this 8 work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship agreements as defined 9 by article twenty-three of the labor law. 10 (f) The authority shall submit an annual report to the governor and to 11 the legislature which shall be made available to the public. Such report 12 shall include the: 13 (A) Ten year climate and resiliency plan described in paragraph (a) of 14 this subdivision; 15 (B) Amount of energy produced by each facility; 16 (C) Energy transferred between facilities within the authority; 17 (D) Energy transferred outside of the authority for sale; 18 (E) Kilowatt-hour sales by project; 19 (F) Revenues and costs for each project facility; 20 (G) Accumulated provision for depreciation of each project facility; 21 (H) Financial and operating information of the energy efficiency 22 program; 23 (I) Enrollment in and effectiveness of renewable energy auto-enroll- 24 ment, retrofit, and energy efficient appliance programs; 25 (J) Any projected rate increase for the year; and 26 (K) An analysis of the authority's actions to ensure the state will 27 meet the renewable energy goals of the climate leadership and community 28 protection act. 29 34. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on or after January 30 first, two thousand thirty-one, the authority shall be the sole provider 31 of electricity to all state owned, leased, controlled, or operated 32 buildings and on or after January first, two thousand thirty-six, the 33 authority shall be the sole provider of electricity to all municipal 34 owned, leased, controlled, or operated buildings that use electricity. 35 A municipal owned, leased, controlled, or operated building that uses 36 electricity may elect not to receive its energy supply from the authori- 37 ty if (i) the authority's energy supply rate is higher than the energy 38 supply rate of the utility in the municipal building's service territo- 39 ry, as determined by the twelve-month average utility supply rate; (ii) 40 the municipal building is being served by a municipal electric utility 41 that shall supply only renewable energy to the building; or (iii) the 42 municipal building elects to participate in a community choice aggre- 43 gation program that shall supply only renewable energy to the building. 44 35. (a) The authority is authorized to sell or provide renewable ener- 45 gy to residential end-use customers and CCA communities. Any excess 46 renewable energy produced by the authority and not used or stored by 47 state or municipal owned or leased buildings shall be sold directly to 48 low-to-moderate income households first, prioritizing low-to-moderate 49 income households in disadvantaged communities, and at a rate that is 50 fifty percent less than the energy supply rate of the utility in the 51 customer's service territory. Any remaining excess renewable energy 52 produced by the authority shall be sold to residential end-use customers 53 or CCA's at the wholesale cost. For the purposes of this paragraph, the 54 term "low-to-moderate income households" shall mean households with 55 annual incomes at or below eighty percent of the area median income of 56 the county or metro area where they reside.

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1 (b) Within three years following the effective date of this subdivi- 2 sion, the authority's trustees, in consultation with the New York state 3 energy research and development authority's regional clean energy hubs, 4 shall develop a progressive rate structure based on income and energy 5 usage to be offered to end-use customers and CCA communities. 6 (c) The authority shall work with the office of temporary and disabil- 7 ity assistance to assist low-income customers to access the low income 8 home energy assistance program and other utility benefits and shall 9 offer deferred payment agreement payment plans for customers that fall 10 into arrears. 11 (d) The authority is authorized to sell up to thirty percent of the 12 electricity that it provides to residential and commercial customers to 13 customers of the long island power authority, established under title 14 one-A of this article, and the long island power authority is authorized 15 to purchase this power. 16 36. All new renewable energy projects subject to this section shall be 17 considered public work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor 18 law and shall utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this 19 subdivision, "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective 20 bargaining agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf 21 of the authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor 22 organization establishing the labor organization as the collective 23 bargaining representative for all persons who will perform work on a 24 public work project, and which provides that only contractors and 25 subcontractors who sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organ- 26 ization can perform project work. All contractors and subcontractors 27 associated with this work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship 28 agreements as defined by article twenty-three of the labor law. 29 37. The authority, in consultation with labor organizations, shall 30 develop a comprehensive plan to transition, train, or retrain employees 31 that are impacted by the New York state build public renewables act, and 32 shall establish and contribute to a just transition fund that shall make 33 funding available for worker transition and retraining. 34 38. The authority shall include requirements in any procurement or 35 development of a renewable energy project, as defined in subdivision 36 thirty of this section, that the components and parts shall be supplied 37 with equipment produced or made in whole or substantial part in the 38 United States, its territories or possessions. The authority's trustees, 39 in consultation with the New York state energy research and development 40 authority, may waive the procurement and development requirements set 41 forth in this subdivision if the trustees determine that: the require- 42 ments would not be in the public interest; the requirements would result 43 in unreasonable costs; obtaining such infrastructure components and 44 parts in the United States would increase the cost of a renewable energy 45 project by an unreasonable amount; or such components or parts cannot be 46 produced, made, or assembled in the United States in sufficient and 47 reasonably available quantities or of satisfactory quality. Such deter- 48 mination must be made on an annual basis no later than December thirty- 49 first after providing notice and an opportunity for public comment, and 50 be made publicly available, in writing, on the authority's website with 51 a detailed explanation of the findings leading to such determination. If 52 the authority's trustees have issued determinations for three consec- 53 utive years that no such waiver is warranted pursuant to this subdivi- 54 sion, then the authority shall no longer be required to provide the 55 annual determination required by this subdivision.

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1 39. The authority shall work with existing workforce development 2 programs, union apprenticeship programs, and regional community energy 3 hubs to publish a report on the ways that the construction of renewable 4 projects can best support the development of skilled, well paid local 5 workforces in the renewable energy sector, and shall provide financial 6 support through the just transition fund established pursuant to subdi- 7 vision thirty-seven of this section for pre-apprenticeship programs 8 through local community based organizations that work with disadvantaged 9 communities and union run workforce development institutions, where 10 this support is found to be necessary to the effective development of 11 this workforce according to the report. 12 40. For energy projects that the authority builds on properties of the 13 New York city housing authority, including heat pump installations, 14 retrofits, weatherization measures, and lead, mold, and asbestos remedi- 15 ation, both the authority and its contractors shall prioritize hiring 16 residents of these properties, provided that residents meet consider- 17 ations of availability, interest, skill level and training. No 18 provisions of this subdivision shall alter the status of any Section 9 19 housing. The authority shall consult the residents or occupants of all 20 public buildings where the authority is building projects to assess 21 their needs and minimize disruption, nuisance, public health risks, and 22 displacement during any remediation, retrofit, weatherization, heat pump 23 installations, or other construction the authority or its contractors 24 perform. All work subject to this subdivision shall be considered 25 public work, subject to articles eight and nine of the labor law, and 26 shall utilize a project labor agreement. For purposes of this subdivi- 27 sion, "project labor agreement" shall mean a pre-hire collective 28 bargaining agreement between the authority, or a third party on behalf 29 of the authority, and a bona fide building and construction trade labor 30 organization establishing the labor organization as the collective 31 bargaining representative for all persons who will perform work on a 32 public work project, and which provides that only contractors and 33 subcontractors who sign a pre-negotiated agreement with the labor organ- 34 ization can perform project work. All contractors and subcontractors 35 associated with this work shall be required to utilize apprenticeship 36 agreements as defined by article twenty-three of the labor law. 37 41. (a) Nothing in the New York state build public renewables act 38 shall alter the rights or benefits, and privileges, including, but not 39 limited to terms and conditions of employment, civil service status, and 40 collective bargaining unit membership, of any current employees of the 41 authority. 42 (b) Nothing in the New York state build public renewables act shall 43 result in: (i) the discharge, displacement, or loss of position, includ- 44 ing partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of non-over- 45 time work, wages, or employment benefits; (ii) the impairment of exist- 46 ing collective bargaining agreements; (iii) the transfer of existing 47 duties and functions; or (iv) the transfer of future duties and func- 48 tions, of any currently employed worker impacted by this act who agrees 49 to be retrained. 50 42. The authority shall enter into a memorandum of understanding for 51 the operation and maintenance of a renewable energy project developed 52 pursuant to the New York state build public renewables act with a bona 53 fide labor organization of jurisdiction that is actively engaged in 54 representing transitioning employees from non-renewable generation 55 facilities. Such memorandum shall be entered into prior to the 56 completion date of a renewable energy project and shall be an ongoing

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1 material condition of authorization to operate and maintain a renewable 2 energy project developed pursuant to the New York state build public 3 renewables act. The memorandum shall only apply to the employees neces- 4 sary for the maintenance and operation of such renewable energy gener- 5 ation projects. Such memorandum shall contain but not be limited to 6 safety and training standards, disaster response measures, guaranteed 7 hours, staffing levels, pay rate protection and retraining programs. The 8 employees eligible for these positions shall first be selected from and 9 offered to a pool of transitioning workers who have lost their employ- 10 ment or will be losing their employment in the non-renewable energy 11 generation sector. Such list of potential employees will be provided by 12 affected unions and provided to the department of labor. The department 13 of labor shall update and provide such list to the authority ninety days 14 prior to purchase, acquisition, and/or construction of any project under 15 the New York state build public renewables act. 16 43. The authority shall comply with the objectives and goals of certi- 17 fied minority and women-owned business enterprises pursuant to article 18 fifteen-A of the executive law and certified service-disabled veteran- 19 owned businesses pursuant to article three of the veterans' services 20 law. The authority, in consultation with the commissioner of the divi- 21 sion of minority and women's business development and the director of 22 the division of service-disabled veterans' business development shall 23 make training and resources available to assist minority and women-owned 24 business enterprises and service-disabled veteran-owned business enter- 25 prises on renewable energy projects to achieve and maintain compliance 26 with prevailing wage requirements. The authority shall make such train- 27 ing and resources available online and shall afford minority and women- 28 owned business enterprises and service-disabled veteran-owned business 29 enterprises an opportunity to submit comments on such training. 30 § 3. Section 1003 of the public authorities law, as amended by chapter 31 766 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows: 32 § 1003. Trustees. 1. The authority shall consist of [seven] seventeen 33 trustees, five of whom shall serve respectively for terms of one, two, 34 three, four and five years, to be appointed by the governor, by and with 35 the advice and consent of the senate. The sixth and seventh trustees 36 shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent 37 of the senate, and shall serve initial terms of one and two years 38 respectively. All other trustees shall be appointed as follows: two by 39 the governor, four by the temporary president of the senate, and four by 40 the speaker of the assembly, and shall proportionally be selected from 41 labor union representatives that represent both employees of the author- 42 ity and employees of construction contractors of the authority, environ- 43 mental justice advocates, community renewable energy advocates, consumer 44 advocates, and building electrification and energy efficiency experts. 45 For any appointment and vacant trustee position, the New York state 46 energy research and development authority's clean energy hubs shall 47 select qualified candidates that shall be given reasonable consideration 48 for an appointment as trustee by the governor, senate, and assembly. 49 Each trustee shall hold office until a successor has been appointed and 50 qualified or until removed by a majority vote of the legislature or the 51 governor. At the expiration of the term of each trustee and of each 52 succeeding trustee [the governor shall, by and with the advice and 53 consent of the senate, appoint a successor, who shall hold office for a 54 term of five years, or until a successor has been appointed and quali- 55 fied. In the event of a vacancy occurring in the office of the trustee 56 by death, resignation or otherwise, the governor shall, by and with the

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1 advice and consent of the senate, appoint a successor, who shall hold 2 office for the unexpired term. Four trustees shall constitute a quorum 3 for the purpose of organizing the authority and conducting the business 4 thereof.], or the event of a vacancy occurring in the office of the 5 trustee by death, resignation or otherwise, the original entities who 6 appointed that trustee shall appoint a successor, after consideration of 7 clean energy hub candidates, who shall hold office for the unexpired 8 term. Nine trustees shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of organ- 9 izing the authority and conducting the business thereof. Any authority 10 trustee or board member may be terminated by either a majority vote of 11 the senate or assembly, or by the governor. Reasons for termination may 12 include, but are not limited to: failure to meet the renewable energy 13 targets outlined in this bill; conflicts of interest; failure to prior- 14 itize climate justice, environmental justice, or economic justice in the 15 authority's operations; sexual assault or harassment; or corruption. 16 2. The trustee chosen as chairman as provided in section one thousand 17 four of this title, shall receive an annual salary which shall be set by 18 the trustees of the authority, and which shall not exceed the salary 19 prescribed for the positions listed in paragraph (f) of subdivision one 20 of section one hundred sixty-nine of the executive law. [Each other 21 trustee shall not receive a salary or other compensation.] Each trustee 22 shall receive his or her reasonable expenses in the performance of his 23 or her duties hereunder. The trustee chosen as chairman may elect to 24 become a member of the New York state and local employees' retirement 25 system on the basis of such compensation to which he or she shall be 26 entitled as herein provided notwithstanding the provisions of any gener- 27 al, special or local law, municipal charter, or ordinance. 28 § 4. Nothing in this act shall impact the power authority of the state 29 of New York's existing recharge New York power program, existing hydro- 30 power allocations to any municipal and cooperative electric utility 31 customers, or any other power allocation program managed by such author- 32 ity. 33 § 5. Nothing in this act is intended to limit, impair, or affect the 34 legal authority of the power authority of the state of New York under 35 any other provision of title 1 of article 5 of the public authorities 36 law. 37 § 6. No section of this act or any action required to be taken under 38 this act shall be delayed or made contingent upon the completion of the 39 plan required by subdivision 33 of section 1005 of the public authori- 40 ties law, as added by section two of this act. 41 § 7. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdi- 42 vision, or section of this act shall be adjudged by any court of compe- 43 tent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, 44 or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its opera- 45 tion to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or section thereof 46 directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have 47 been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature 48 that this act would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions 49 had not been included herein. 50 § 8. This act shall take effect immediately.