Published: June 30, 2009 10:41 pm      

NYPA: State’s Power for Jobs in limbo

Kessel tells board to prepare for program’s end during local meeting

The chief administrator for the New York Power Authority warned Tuesday afternoon that the clock was ticking on the state’s Power for Jobs program.

Power Authority President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Kessel addressed his agency’s Board of Trustees during a meeting held at the Robert Moses Power Project in Lewiston, telling them he was prepared for a midnight deadline for extending the low-cost power program to come and go due to the still deadlocked state Senate in Albany.

“We hope that the state Senate will somehow act on this important piece of legislation,” Kessel said.

Late Tuesday night, state Sen. Antoine Thompson's office said the Senate passed the Power for Jobs bill during a flurry of activity Tuesday night.

It was not clear at press time if the Democratic-led Senate’s actions in passing any bills will hold up in the light of day.

Kessel’s comments came as Senate members were still locked in the same 31-31 stalemate they have been in since a Republican-led coup three weeks ago. Senators needed to approve an extension for the program by midnight to avoid the loss of low-cost power benefits to roughly 330,000 participating companies statewide. The benefits are offered to companies who pledge to create and retain jobs in New York. Officials fear expiration of the program will result in increases in electricity costs for businesses at a time when they can ill afford them. Some lawmakers say lack of a renewal will not have as dire consequences as predicted.

Kessel told trustees the authority’s options will be limited once the statute expires, but he is prepared to make recommendations, if necessary, at the board’s next meeting.

“We will obviously be discussing with the board some of the options if it is not extended,” Kessel said.

The board’s meeting in Lewiston marked the second time in Kessel’s short tenure the authority’s leaders have met in Western New York. The board previously held its regular monthly session in November in Buffalo.

Kessel, whose agency has come under intense criticism from Niagara County leaders for a perceived lack of interest in the region’s needs, said the board’s visit is yet another sign of his intention to provide Western New York with the level of attention it deserves. Kessel said he has now made 14 personal visits to the area since being hired in September.

Earlier in the day on Tuesday, Kessel and other local elected officials gathered in Buffalo to announce Internet giant Yahoo!’s plan to build a new data center in Lockport. Kessel said he’s expecting other positive developments to be headed to Niagara County and Western New York in the coming months.

During Tuesday’s meeting, the NYPA Board approved a $7.5 million contract with the University at Buffalo to construct a 1.1 megawatt solar energy array on the college’s Amherst Campus. The solar array, consisting of approximately 5,000 photovoltaic panels, will generate energy for college apartment complexes. Kessel said it is the largest university-based energy program ever conducted in New York.

“We are doing a lot to help Western New York, despite some of the criticism,” Kessel said.

Mayor Paul Dyster, who attended Tuesday’s board meeting, thanked Kessel and the board for their support of local projects, including those in Niagara County. He added that construction of the Yahoo! facility in Lockport seems to him to be a sign of good things to come from the agency.

“I think it’s going to be a very important asset to our region and we are just getting started,” Dyster said.