ALBANY — The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) will hold an in-person public statement hearing on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, to receive public comments regarding CHPE LLC and CHPE Properties, Inc.’s proposed amendment to the conditional Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need (certificate) authorizing the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Champlain Hudson Power Express Project.

By Order dated April 18, 2013, the Commission granted a conditional certificate pursuant to Public Service Law (PSL) Article VII to the certificate holders, authorizing the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Champlain Hudson Power Express Project – a high voltage, direct current transmission line extending approximately 330 miles from the international border with Canada to a converter station in Astoria, Queens; and approximately 3 miles of 345 kilovolt alternating current transmission line to the Rainey substation in Astoria (the project).

The Commission has since granted several amendments to the certificate:  authorizing changes related to project filing requirements on March 20 and September 21, 2020; approving route modifications on August 13, 2020, and January 16, 2021; approving increases in capacity and to the converter station footprint on May 14, 2021; approving changes to the configuration of the high voltage alternating current interconnection on February 17, 2022; approving acceleration of funding to the Hudson River and Lake Champlain Habitat Enhancement, Restoration, and Research/Habitat Improvement Project Trust on March 16, 2022; and approving changes to Certificate Condition 114 on December 15, 2022.

In a petition filed pursuant to Section 123(2) of the PSL on March 31, 2023, and revised on May 26, 2023 (Amendment 8 Petition), the certificate holders request that the certificate be amended to authorize a change to an approximately 0.8-mile segment of the project route approved in the Town and Village of Catskill.  According to the certificate holders, this routing change would authorize the removal of portions of the project from some local roadways, relocating away from residences and into NY State Department of Transportation lands along State Routes 23 and 9W, and provide a more technologically constructable installation of project components beneath major railroad and highway infrastructure, as well as under the Catskill Creek.  The modification is requested due to engineering constraints and to minimize construction impacts to stakeholders.  

The Commission may adopt or reject the certificate holders’ request, in whole or in part, or may modify it.  In doing so, the Commission will consider input from the public.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a public statement hearing on the Amendment 8 Petition will be held before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) on:

It is not necessary to make an appointment in advance or present written material to speak at the hearing.  Persons will be called to speak after completing a request card.  The public statement hearing will be held open for a minimum of thirty minutes and until everyone wishing to speak has been heard or other reasonable arrangements have been made to include their comments in the record.  A verbatim transcript of the public statement hearing will be made for inclusion in the record of this proceeding.  

Comments should pertain to the Amendment 8 Petition, which may be reviewed online at the Department of Public Service website, www.dps.ny.gov.  To access documents, click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), and enter “10-T-0139” in the “Search by Case Number” field.  

Persons with disabilities requiring special accommodations should call the Department of Public Service’s Human Resources Management Office at 518-474-2520 as soon as possible.  TDD users may request a sign language interpreter by placing a call through the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call the Department at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this notice.  

Other Ways to Comment  

For those who cannot attend or prefer not to speak at the public statement hearing, there are several other ways to provide your comments to the Commission.  Comments should refer to “Case 10-T-0139 - Amendment 8 Petition.”  Although comments will be accepted throughout the pendency of this proceeding, they are requested by September 8, 2023.  

Internet or Mail:  Go to www.dps.ny.gov, click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), enter “10-T-0139” in the “Search by Case Number” field, and then click on the “Post Comments” box at the top of the page.  Alternatively, comments may be mailed to the Hon. Michelle L. Phillips, Secretary, Public Service Commission, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350.  All written comments will become part of the record considered by the Commission and may be accessed on the Department of Public Service website by searching the case number, as described above, and clicking on the “Public Comments” tab.  

Toll-Free Opinion Line: Individuals may choose to submit comments by calling the Commission’s Opinion Line at 1-800-335-2120.  This line is set up to receive comments about pending cases from in-State callers 24-hours a day. These comments are not transcribed verbatim, but a summary is provided to the Commission.  

PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that a virtual procedural conference will be held before ALJ Michael Clarke on Wednesday, August 30, 2023.  The principal purpose of the conference will be to provide the parties an opportunity to present and explain any proposals regarding the procedures they believe should be followed by the ALJ and the Commission with respect to the Amendment 8 Petition, including whether any issues of fact presented by the petition warrant an evidentiary hearing.