ORES Overview
Consistent with the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), the mission of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission (ORES) is to consolidate the environmental review and permitting of major renewable energy facilities in New York State into a single forum that provides a coordinated and timely review of siting permit applications.
This process is designed to help meet the State’s renewable energy objectives while ensuring the protection of the environment with consideration of all pertinent social, economic and environmental factors (including environmental justice) while providing opportunity for local government and community participation in the permitting process.
ORES and the RAPID Act
Effective April 20, 2024, the Renewable Action through Project Interconnection and Deployment (RAPID) Act (L 2024, ch 58, part O) repealed Executive Law § 94-c and enacted a new Public Service Law article VIII entitled “Siting of Renewable Energy and Electric Transmission” (Article VIII). The RAPID Act consolidates the environmental review, permitting, and siting of major renewable energy facilities and major electric transmission facilities under the purview of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission (Office or ORES).
The RAPID Act also transferred ORES’s regulations at 19 NYCRR part 900 (Part 900) to 16 NYCRR chapter XI, and continued Part 900 in full force and effect subject to conforming changes, such as the substitution of numbering, names, titles, citations, and other non-substantive changes to be filed with the Secretary of State. Effective July 17, 2024, the conforming changes were filed with the Secretary of State as a new 16 NYCRR part 1100 (Part 1100).
The text of the new Part 1100 currently in effect may be accessed at ORES Regulatory Documents.
The ORES Process
The ORES regulations establish procedural and substantive requirements for permit applications for major renewable energy facilities.
- All large-scale, renewable energy projects 25 megawatts or larger will be required to obtain a siting permit from ORES for new construction or expansion. Projects already in the initial phases of the current Article 10 siting process through the State’s Siting Board may remain in Article 10 or opt to transfer into the new siting process.
- ORES has the authority to issue a single permit for the construction of major renewable energy facilities from both a state and local law perspective, but applicants will still be required to obtain any approvals necessary under federal law, including federally-delegated permits.
- ORES has 60 days from the date of its receipt of a permit application to make a completeness determination. An application will not be complete without proof of consultation with the host municipalities and communities. After a completeness determination, draft permit conditions will be issued by ORES for public comment. Within the established comment period, the host municipalities must submit a statement indicating whether the proposed renewable energy facility complies with applicable local laws.
- ORES must issue a final decision on the siting permit within one year of the date on which the application is deemed complete and within 6 months if the facility is proposed to be located on brownfield, former commercial or industrial, landfill, former power plant, and abandoned or underutilized sites.
ORES Proposed Rulemaking
The RAPID Act also authorizes ORES, in consultation with the Department of Public Service (Department or DPS), and subject to approval by the Public Service Commission, to promulgate rules and regulations to implement a new siting permit program for major electric transmission facilities.
Pursuant to the RAPID Act and the provisions of article 2 of the State Administrative Procedure Act (SAPA), ORES proposes to repeal the current Part 1100 (Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission), and replace it with a new Part 1100 (General Procedures), Part 1101 (Major Renewable Energy Facility Siting), and Part 1102 (Major Electric Transmission Facility Siting).
The purpose of the rulemaking is to establish procedural rules and uniform standards and conditions for the siting, design, construction, and operation of major renewable energy generation and electric transmission facilities. The text of the proposed rulemaking may be accessed below.
In addition, pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) (Environmental Conservation Law article 8), DPS, by and through ORES, as lead agency, has completed and accepted a draft generic environmental impact statement (DGEIS) in connection with the proposed rulemaking. The DGEIS was prepared to analyze potential environmental impacts associated with the new siting permit program for major electric transmission facilities established by the RAPID Act. The DGEIS may be accessed below.
Written comments are sought on the proposed rulemaking and DGEIS. Comments should be submitted by April 18, 2025, and should refer to Case 24-M-0433. Persons filing written comments are strongly encouraged to post their comments on the Department’s Document and Matter Management (DMM) system. To post a comment, go to www.dps.ny.gov, click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), enter “24-M-0433” in the “Search by Case Number” field, and click on “Post Comments” in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.
Persons unable to post comments electronically may mail their comments to the Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission, Empire State Plaza, P-1 South, J Dock, Albany, NY 12242, and reference Case 24-M-0433. All comments must be postmarked no later than April 18, 2025. Comments mailed to the Office will be posted on the Department’s DMM and will be included in the official record of the matter.
Additionally, the office will conduct twenty (“20”) in-person public comment hearings and two virtual public comment hearings across New York State. For more information on the schedule of in-person public comment hearings, please visit “Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Acceptance of Draft GEIS” and “Notice of Additional Public Comment Hearings” at www.dps.ny.gov; click on “File Search” (located under the heading “Commission Files”), enter “24-M-0433” in the “Search by Case Number” field.