New Policies will Establish Privacy and Cybersecurity Requirements for Access to Energy Related Data

Comprehensive Data Initiative Supports New York’s Green New Deal Strategy and Nation-Leading Mandate to Achieve Economy-Wide Carbon Neutrality

ALBANY — The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today initiated a proceeding to address the strategic use of energy-related data, and to develop the policies necessary to appropriately balance privacy and system security concerns with a rapidly changing marketplace. Ready access to customer energy usage and system data is a central theme of the State’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) strategy to animate markets and to promote innovation and customer choice.

“New York’s REV strategy is creating a cleaner, affordable, and more resilient energy system,” said Commission Chair John B. Rhodes. “Achieving Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s ambitious carbon-reduction goals requires the continued development and maintenance of a strong market for the development of clean distributed energy resources. Accurate and comprehensive energy related data is an unsung but critical component of our work.”

The Commission has recognized the need to address data related issues through many of its prior proceedings and has continued to take necessary steps to increase access to, and the appropriate use of, customer and system data in order to further New York State’s clean energy goals and continue support of the Department’s mission. Achieving the State’s clean energy goals requires the continued development and maintenance of system data and customer energy-related data. The benefits in doing so are numerous and encompass all levels of the market from the customer up, and also support New York State’s energy efficiency goals.

Today, the Commission determined that it was timely and appropriate to initiate this comprehensive proceeding to address the strategic use of energy related data As a result of today’s action, Department of Public Service staff will file two whitepapers for public comment: one regarding the creation of an integrated energy data resource that would provide a platform for access to customer and system data, and a second regarding development of a data access policy framework that standardizes the necessary privacy and cybersecurity requirements for access to energy related data.

In its December 2018 Order Adopting Accelerated Energy Efficiency Targets, the Commission directed the establishment of a new comprehensive data proceeding guided by the principles to: increase customers’ familiarity with and consent to appropriate data sharing; move towards improved access by third-party service providers to customers’ energy usage data, consistent with such consent; link customer energy usage data with other sources of building data, energy use drivers, and energy systems data to enable enhanced identification of opportunities for deployment of distributed energy resources and energy efficiency; and provide that mechanisms for appropriate access to customer usage data are implemented in a useful, timely, and quality-assured manner.

The Commission’s 2018 order established guiding principles to serve as foundational elements for developing policies that appropriately balance privacy concerns with the rapidly changing energy marketplace. These principles include: (1) increase customers’ familiarity with and consent to appropriate data sharing; (2) movement towards improved access by third party service providers to customer energy usage data, consistent with consent; (3) linking customer energy usage data with other sources of building data, energy use drivers, and energy systems data to enable enhanced identification of Energy Efficiency/DER opportunities; and (4) providing that the mechanisms for appropriate access to customer energy usage data are implemented in a useful, timely, and quality-assured manner. The Commission today determined that, on a going forward basis, the topic of the strategic use of customer energy usage data should be further developed in a comprehensive manner.

Today’s decision may be obtained by going to the Commission Documents section of the Commission’s Web site at www.dps.ny.gov and entering Case Number 20-M-0082 in the input box labeled "Search for Case/Matter Number". Many libraries offer free Internet access. Commission documents may also be obtained from the Commission’s Files Office, 14th floor, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223 (518-474-2500). If you have difficulty understanding English, please call us at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this press release.

New York State's Green New Deal

Governor Cuomo's Green New Deal is the most aggressive climate and clean energy initiative in the nation, putting the state on a path to being entirely carbon-neutral across all sectors of the economy and establishing a goal to achieve a zero-carbon emissions electricity sector by 2040, faster than any other state. It builds on New York's unprecedented ramp-up of clean energy including a $2.9 billion investment in 46 large-scale renewable projects across the state, the creation of more than 150,000 jobs in New York's clean energy sector, a commitment to develop nearly 1,700 megawatts of offshore wind by 2024, and 1,700 percent growth in the distributed solar sector since 2012.

The recently passed Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act mandates the Green New Deal's nation-leading clean energy targets: nine gigawatts of offshore wind by 2035, six gigawatts of distributed solar by 2025, and three gigawatts of energy storage by 2030, while calling for an orderly and just transition to clean energy that creates jobs and continues fostering a green economy. The CLCPA also directs New York State agencies and authorities to collaborate with stakeholders to develop a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 85 percent from 1990 levels by 2050 and aim to invest 40 percent of clean energy and energy efficiency program resources to benefit disadvantaged communities, achieving 70 percent renewable energy by 2040.