New York S 8481: Authorizes local governments to opt out of mandates and benchmarks arising under the climate leadership and community protection act and associated universal electrification requirements

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S08481 Summary:

BILL NOS08481 

&nbsp

SAME ASSAME AS A08996

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SPONSORGALLIVAN

&nbsp

COSPNSRASHBY, BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, GRIFFO, HELMING, MATTERA, O'MARA, RHOADS, STEC, TEDISCO,
 WALCZYK, WEIK

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

Add §75-0121, En Con L; add §8-a, Pub Serv L; add §11-104-a, Energy L; amd §378, Exec L

&nbsp

Authorizes local governments to opt out of mandates and benchmarks arising under the climate leadership and community protection act and associated universal electrification requirements by filing a resolution with the department of environmental conservation.

Go to top S08481 Actions:

BILL NOS08481 

&nbsp

08/20/2025REFERRED TO RULES

01/07/2026REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION

Go to topS08481 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topS08481 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topS08481 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 8481

 2025-2026 Regular Sessions

 IN SENATE

 August 20, 2025
 ___________

 Introduced by Sen. GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
 printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules

 AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, the public service
 law, the energy law and the executive law, in relation to authorizing
 local governments to opt out of mandates and benchmarks arising under
 the climate leadership and community protection act and associated
 universal electrification requirements

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

 1 Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature hereby
 2 finds and declares:
 3 (a) New York state is on a collision course with an energy affordabil-
 4 ity and reliability crisis due to increasingly rigid and unilateral
 5 mandates arising from the climate leadership and community protection
 6 act (CLCPA) and related universal electrification policies;
 7 (b) The forced transition to all-electric building codes and transpor-
 8 tation benchmarks, without sufficient infrastructure, technological
 9 readiness, or financial safeguards, poses a substantial threat to rate-
 10 payers, local economies, and public safety;
 11 (c) Communities in western New York and throughout the state must
 12 retain the ability to make energy choices appropriate to their economic,
 13 geographic, and infrastructural circumstances;
 14 (d) Municipal home rule and energy choice must be preserved, partic-
 15 ularly where mandates create new costs, burdens, or public safety
 16 concerns; and
 17 (e) California's recent withdrawal of the advanced clean fleets (ACF)
 18 rule, with a formal repeal soon to follow, and other states' reconsider-
 19 ation of strict electrification timelines suggest a prudent course
 20 correction is warranted.
 21 § 2. The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a new
 22 section 75-0121 to read as follows:

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD13531-01-5

 S. 8481 2

 1 § 75-0121. Municipal opt-out authority.
 2 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a city, excluding
 3 cities with a population of one million or more, town, or village may,
 4 by majority vote of its legislative body, adopt a resolution opting out
 5 of any requirement, benchmark, or mandate imposed under this article or
 6 any related regulation or code requiring universal electrification or
 7 restricting the use of traditional energy sources.
 8 2. Such resolution shall be filed with the department and shall take
 9 effect upon such filing.
 10 3. No municipality shall be penalized, denied funding, or otherwise
 11 disadvantaged by the state for exercising the opt-out authority granted
 12 under this section.
 13 § 3. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 8-a to
 14 read as follows:
 15 § 8-a. Opt-out provision under the RAPID act. Any municipality opting
 16 out pursuant to section 75-0121 of the environmental conservation law
 17 shall be deemed to have opted out of any streamlined permitting require-
 18 ments, benchmarks, or infrastructure obligations arising under article
 19 eight of this chapter where such obligations relate to electrification
 20 or zero-emissi