Enacts the "smart meter transparency and consumer protection act"

S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          11138

                                  I N  A S S E M B L Y

                                     April 24, 2026
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A. SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Energy

        AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to requiring  utili-
          ties  to  provide certain information about smart meters to customers;
          and authorizing and directing the public service commission to conduct
          a study on smart meter implementation in New York state

          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 "smart meter transparency and consumer protection act".
     3    § 2. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 67-b to
     4  read as follows:
     5    § 67-B. SMART METER TRANSPARENCY AND  CONSUMER  PROTECTION.  UTILITIES
     6  SHALL  PROVIDE CUSTOMERS WITH CLEAR, STANDARDIZED INFORMATION RELATED TO
     7  SMART METERS WHICH SHALL INCLUDE:
     8    1. SIDE-BY-SIDE COMPARISONS OF PRE-SMART METER  BILLS  AND  POST-SMART
     9  METER BILLS; AND
    10    2. PLAIN LANGUAGE EXPLANATIONS OF ANY BILLING CHANGES, INCLUDING TIME-
    11  OF-USE PRICING AND RATE STRUCTURE ADJUSTMENTS.
    12    §  3.  1.  The public service commission is authorized and directed to
    13  conduct a study, in coordination with an  independent  third  party,  on
    14  smart meter implementation in New York state.
    15    2. The scope of such study shall include a comprehensive review of:
    16    (a) the impact of smart meters on residential utility bills;
    17    (b)  differences  in  billing  before  and after installation of smart
    18  meters;
    19    (c) the role of time-of-use pricing and billing structure changes;
    20    (d) complaint trends from customers;
    21    (e) opt-out fees, including:
    22    (i) a full accounting of opt-out fees charged to customers;
    23    (ii) a comparison of the actual cost  to  utilities  of  accommodating
    24  opt-out customers, including but not limited to installation and mainte-
    25  nance of smart meters, and the total revenue collected by utilities from
    26  opt-out fees; and

         EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD15614-01-6
        A. 11138                            2

     1    (iii) whether such opt-out fees are reasonable or excessive; and
     2    (f) the effects of smart meters on:
     3    (i) seniors;
     4    (ii) low- and moderate-income households; and
     5    (iii) customers without access to digital tools.
     6    3. Utilities shall provide the following to the public service commis-
     7  sion for oversight and inclusion in such study:
     8    (a)  side-by-side  comparisons of pre-smart meter bills and post-smart
     9  meter bills; and
    10    (b) plain language explanations  of  any  billing  changes,  including
    11  time-of-use pricing and rate structure adjustments.
    12    4.  No  later  than one year after the effective date of this act, the
    13  public service commission shall submit to the legislature  a  report  on
    14  the  study  conducted  pursuant  to  this act and shall make such report
    15  publicly available. Such report shall include:
    16    (a) policy recommendations; and
    17    (b) a determination of whether  additional  consumer  protections  are
    18  needed.
    19    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.