The New York State Legislative Commission on the Future of the Long Island Power Authority on April 18 approved a draft report for submission to the New York Legislature detailing its preliminary findings and plan for transitioning LIPA into a public power provider that would both own and operate the electric grid on Long Island and in the Rockaways.
The Commission will now conduct another round of public hearings and consult with its fifteen member advisory committee before delivering a final report to the legislature in time for its recommendations to be acted upon this legislative session.
The draft report lays out the operational, legal, and legislative steps necessary to achieve full public power at the expiration of PSEG Long Island’s contract on December 31, 2025.
The draft report’s key financial finding is that LIPA can save between nearly $50 million and $80 million a year by operating its electric grid itself without hiring an outside, for-profit utility – PSEG Long Island – to operate it for them, after one-time transition costs of between $16 million and $59 million.
In late 2021, LIPA announced a revised management services contract and settlement with PSEG Long Island that included reforms designed to drive performance and accountability, while providing an unprecedented level of oversight of PSEG Long Island's operations.
