PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE State Administrative Procedure Act, NOTICE is hereby given of the following proposed rule:

The Public Service Commission is considering petitions for rehearing, reconsideration or clarification of the April 20, 2017 Order Establishing Statewide Inspection Schedules and Procedural Requirements.

Toll commencement date; allow changes to performance metrics; correct language; allow service termination; reconcile orders.

To consider requests for rehearing, reconsideration or clarification of the April 20, 2017 Order.

The Commission is considering petitions for clarification, rehearing or reconsideration of the Order Establishing Statewide Inspection Schedules and Procedural Requirements, issued April 20, 2017 (April 20 Order), which established inspection schedules and certain protocols required of local distribution companies (LDCs) to meet the gas safety regulatory requirements of performing leakage surveys and corrosion inspections. National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation (NFG), Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc. (Con Edison), the Northeast Gas Association (NGA), The Brooklyn Union Gas Company d/b/a National Grid NY, KeySpan Gas East Corporation d/b/a National Grid, and Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation d/b/a National Grid (collectively, National Grid) filed petitions for rehearing, reconsideration or clarification seeking to revise the April 20 Order. Central Hudson Gas & Electric (Central Hudson), and St. Lawrence Gas Co. (St. Lawrence), submitted letters in support of NGA’s Petition. Most of the petitions seek clarification of two language errors in the body of the order, which conflict with the regulations and one ordering clause, and request a confirmation that all LDCs, not only Con Edison (as stated in the April 20 Order), may count inspections performed since issuance of the Department of Public Service’s 2015 Straw Proposal towards meeting the baseline requirements. Most of the petitions ask that the Commission toll the official commencement date of the inspections to December 31, 2017 and that the Commission authorize LDCs to seek adjustments to any of their rate plans’ customer metrics that may be affected by the new $100 charge in tariffs when a customer fails to allow access to a premises for inspections. NFG asks that the Commission reconsider the requirement that customers who refuse access first be charged $100 and only have their gas service terminated after failure to pay such charge. NFG seeks instead that LDCs be authorized to terminate service solely for failure to provide access. Con Edison seeks a reconciliation and resolution of a conflict between the last Con Edison rate order, in Case 16-G-0061 (Order Approving Electric and Gas Rate Plans, issued January 25, 2017) and the April 20 Order with respect to how Con Edison’s costs for the inspections may be recovered from ratepayers. The full text of the proposal may be reviewed online at the Department of Public Service web page: www.dps.ny.gov. Upon conducting its evaluation of the petitions, the Commission may reaffirm its initial decision or adhere to it with additional rationale in denying the petitions, modify or reverse the decision in granting the petitions in whole or in part, or take such other or further action as it deems necessary with respect to the petitions. However, the Commission will limit its review to the issues raised by the above-referenced petitions.

John Pitucci, Public Service Commission, 3 Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350, (518) 486-2655, email: [email protected]

Kathleen H. Burgess, Secretary, Public Service Commission, 3 Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350, (518) 474-6530, email: [email protected]

45 days after publication of this notice.