Governor Cuomo Announces $86.2 Million Settlements with 4 Utilities for Power Outages and Emergency Response Failures

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that the New York State Public Service Commission has accepted the terms of settlements valued at $86.2 million regarding alleged violations committed by four New York utilities - Consolidated Edison of New York, Orange & Rockland Utilities, Inc., Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation, and Frontier Communications of New York, Inc. - for failing to adequately prepare for and respond to emergencies, including Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020. The settlements resolve all open investigations related to TS Isaias, less than one year after the storm made landfall in New York State, and the total for all the settlements is nearly $190 million.

Key Takeaways:

• The New York State Public Service Commission accepted settlements valued at $86.2 million with four utilities for failing to prepare for and respond to emergencies during Tropical Storm Isaias in 2020.
• The settlements resolve investigations into failures related to TS Isaias, as well as outages in 2019 and 2018, and will be used to offset costs that would have otherwise been borne by customers.
• Con Edison and O&R will pay a total of $82.05 million, with $2.7 million going to Frontier and $1.5 million to Central Hudson.
• Utilities were required to develop more robust storm response programs, enhance communication with municipal and county governments, and improve preparedness and accountability.
• Investigations found 33 alleged violations of Con Edison's emergency response plan and 38 alleged violations of O&R's emergency response plan related to TS Isaias.
• The settlements reflect the Governor's determination to protect ratepayers by holding utilities accountable for their failures and ensuring they are better prepared for future storm events.
• Con Edison's $82.05 million settlement includes resolving investigations of several incidents, including 2020 TS Isaias, 2019 Brooklyn Outage, 2019 Manhattan Outage, and 2018 Steam Incident.
• The settlements necessitate Con Edison, O&R, Central Hudson, and Frontier to invest in operations and systems to prevent storm outages and recover more quickly from those that do occur.
• Tropical Storm Isaias left over 900,000 utility customers without service, and the next day, Governor Cuomo directed the Department of Public Service to launch an investigation into utility performance.
• The settlement increases accountability and preparedness among utilities to prioritize storm response programs and ensure reliability and service for customers.

Statistics:

• $86.2 million - the value of settlements with utilities related to failures during TS Isaias
• 2020 - the year Tropical Storm Isaias occurred
• 900,000 - the number of utility customers left without service during TS Isaias
• $82.05 million - the amount Con Edison and O&R will pay for their settlements
• $2.7 million - the amount Frontier will pay
• $1.5 million - the amount Central Hudson will pay
• 33 - the number of alleged violations of Con Edison's emergency response plan related to TS Isaias
• 38 - the number of alleged violations of O&R's emergency response plan related to TS Isaias
• $190 million - the total for all the settlements

Sources:

• July 15, 2021 GOVERNOR ANDREW M. CUOMO GOVERNOR CUOMO ANNOUNCES $86.2 MILLION IN SETTLEMENTS WITH 4 UTILITIES FOR FAILURES RELATED TO POWER OUTAGES AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE INCLUDING TROPICAL STORM ISAIAS (For Immediate Release from the Office of the Governor - The Governor's Office)