Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 10-year solar programme was proposed earlier this year and builds on the NY-Sun Initiative, a public-private partnership formed with the aim of driving growth in the sector and lowering solar costs. The technology has seen a surge in popularity among legislators recently following the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy. The storm exposed New York’s infrastructure as outdated and unable to resist the likely effects of climate change.
The next stage of bill’s progress is preparation for signature by governor Cuomo’s desk before the summer recess.
“Lawmakers should not leave town this month before giving final passage to the New York solar bill and sending agreed-to legislation to governor Cuomo for his signature” said executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York Dave Gahl. New York's sun is underemployed, and by passing this bill the legislature can put it to work.”
The vote is the second milestone achievement for the state for solar policy this month following the approval of the New York Public Service Commission for a tripling of New York State’s net metering cap from 1 percent to 3 percent of 2005 system peak load for each of the state’s five utilities. The commission’s approval could add a further 462MW of distributed power to the state’s energy supplies.
“With solar projections expected to continue to rise sharply in the near future, this decision comes at a particularly crucial time” said Jason Keyes, lead attorney for the Interstate Renewable Energy Council. “As NEM capacity in three of the five utilities is over 75% subscribed, New York's current 1% cap would have presented a major hurdle to future development in the state.”
Further information:
