[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3366 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3366

     To amend the Niagara Redevelopment Act to encourage economic 
    development and recovery in western New York, to promote fiscal 
 transparency, to enhance the safety and security of the Niagara Power 
                    Project, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 20, 2005

 Mr. Higgins introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend the Niagara Redevelopment Act to encourage economic 
    development and recovery in western New York, to promote fiscal 
 transparency, to enhance the safety and security of the Niagara Power 
                    Project, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Western New York Redevelopment Act 
of 2005''.

SEC. 2. RENEW REPLACEMENT POWER.

    Section 1 of the Act of August 21, 1957 (Public Law 85-859; 71 
Stat. 401; 16 U.S.C. 836) is amended in subsection (b)(3) by striking 
out ``for a period ending not later than the final maturity date of the 
bonds initially issued to finance the project work herein specifically 
authorized,''.

SEC. 3. ECONOMIC RECOVERY.

    (a) License Conditions.--The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(FERC) shall include among the conditions imposed on any license issued 
subsequent to the original license for the project authorized by 
section 1 of the Act of August 21, 1957 (Public Law 85-859; 71 Stat. 
401; 16 U.S.C. 836) in addition to those deemed necessary and required 
under the terms of the Federal Power Act, the following:
            (1) Annual payment.--(A) In order to render financial 
        assistance to the host governments in which any feature of the 
        Niagara Power Project is located, the New York Power Authority 
        (NYPA) shall make a mandatory annual payment from its gross 
        proceeds to the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation in 
        the City of Buffalo and the County of Erie in the amount of 
        $10,000,000 for each 12-month period of the new license. For 
        every 12-month period after the first such period after the 
        license is issued and continuing for the life of the new 
        license and any subsequent licenses, the annual payment shall 
        include an additional 3 percent of the amount of the payment 
        made during the preceding 12-month period.
            (B) Prior to the establishment of the Erie Canal Harbor 
        Development Corporation, the payment described in subparagraph 
        (A) shall be held in escrow by the NYPA for transfer to the 
        corporation upon its establishment. Such payment shall be used 
        by the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation only for the 
        development, design, engineering and construction of projects 
        at the Inner and Outer Harbor in Buffalo, and Erie County, New 
        York, including transportation infrastructure improvements and 
        Skyway Bridge alternatives. Other qualified uses may include 
        brownfield remediation, greenway trail design and construction 
        and other waterfront environmental restoration projects.
            (C) At the expiration of the Erie Canal Harbor Development 
        Corporation the annual payments shall be made to the Erie 
        County Industrial Development Agency for the uses and purposes 
        set forth in subparagraph (B).
            (2) Additional annual payment to counties.--(A) In order to 
        achieve the yet unrealized regional economic benefits that the 
        New York Power Authority contracted to deliver on when it was 
        awarded exclusive control of the Niagara Power Project, the 
        Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shall include as a 
        condition on any new and subsequent license, the payment of 1 
        percent of gross proceeds to be split evenly by the Industrial 
        Development Agencies for each of the counties of Niagara, Erie, 
        Chautauqua, and Cattaraugus, New York.
            (B) Such funds shall be distributed by such agencies to 
        high-load industries and businesses committed to incremental 
        capital investment and job retention and creation in each such 
        county. The proceeds shall be disbursed to such western New 
        York industries and businesses and used by such industries and 
        businesses to offset the high cost of energy in New York State 
        and retain current employment levels.
            (C) The payment of funds under this paragraph to Erie, 
        Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Niagara counties shall be 
        additional to, and shall not affect the obligation of the New 
        York Power Authority to pay, any other funds to those counties 
        under the terms of any judicial decree or settlement of an 
        action brought by one or more of such counties against the 
        NYPA.
            (D) The term ``gross proceeds'', as used in this paragraph, 
        means the total gross proceeds derived by the licensee from the 
        sale of power for the preceding fiscal year, excluding power 
        used by the Corporation or sold or delivered to any other 
        department or agency of the State of New York for any purpose 
        other than resale.

SEC. 4. TRANSPARENCY.

    The Secretary of Energy, acting through the Office of Inspector 
General, Office of Audit Services, shall conduct an audit of Niagara 
Power Project finances and operations since project inception in order 
to provide consistent and timely information concerning the true 
economic impact of the Niagara Power Project and its revenue and 
disbursements and shall conduct subsequent annual audits to verify 
payments to host communities and others.

SEC. 5. PHYSICAL SECURITY AND SAFETY.

    (a) In General.--In order to improve the physical security of the 
Niagara Power Project, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shall 
include among the conditions imposed on any license issued subsequent 
to the original license for the project authorized by section 1 of the 
Act of August 21, 1957 (Public Law 85-859; 71 Stat. 401; 16 U.S.C. 836) 
in addition to those deemed necessary and required under the terms of 
the Federal Power Act, a requirement that the licensee shall acquire by 
contract or other agreement property or interests therein sufficient to 
provide an appropriate effective zone of separation between all project 
control, switching or generating facilities and any privately owned 
real property not used for the generation, transmission, or control of 
electric energy. Any such acquisition by the licensee shall be carried 
out pursuant to such terms as may be necessary to ensure replacement of 
any residential, educational, recreational, and community services and 
facilities acquired or adversely affected by such acquisition, and that 
such replacement facilities or services are of equivalent character, 
value, and number to those so acquired, while meeting contemporary 
standards for construction, operation, and level of service.
    (b) Resources for First Responders.--The New York Power Authority 
shall provide to First Responders serving the local jurisdictions in 
which the Niagara Power Project facilities are located adequate 
financial and other resources and assistance to acquire, operate, 
maintain, and replace, through the term of any license granted pursuant 
to this Act, the equipment and other assets needed to protect human 
life and property from harm should any feature or facility of the 
Niagara Power Project be subject to damage of any type because of an 
act of terror or other criminal behavior.

SEC. 6. HOLD HARMLESS.

     Nothing in this Act authorizes any increase in the rates and 
charges for electric energy under the Replacement Power program.

SEC. 7. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act, or amendment made by this Act, or the 
application of this Act or such amendments to any person or 
circumstance is determined by a court to be invalid, the validity of 
the remainder of this Act and the amendments made by this Act and the 
application of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall 
not be affected by such determination.
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