Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s commission tasked with investigating the state’s utilities in the wake of Hurricane Sandy has recommended that the Long Island Power Authority be privatized.
The commission, which possesses broad investigative powers under the Moreland Act, found LIPA’s current model of contracting out electrical and repair services to National Grid lacking for storm response. After examining alternatives, including a public takeover of the utility, the commission recommended the selling of LIPA to a private company in an interim report released Monday.
“There is no question that LIPA could be operated much more efficiently than it is today, particularly if it was purchased by an existing electric utility company, which could share staff, facilities and systems,” said the report.
The utility came under heavy fire from Cuomo, local officials and the public when parts of Long Island were left without power for more than two weeks after Hurricane Sandy.
North Shore mayors blasted LIPA in the weeks after the storm for what they described as insufficient and sometimes inaccurate information provided to them and their constituents.
Cuomo established the commission on Nov. 13 to study utilities’ responses to storms in recent years, including Hurricane Sandy and Hurricane Irene. Monday’s report was based on subpoenaed documents, the testimony of operators, interviews with stakeholders, public hearings and media coverage.
The commission reserved much of its harshest criticism for LIPA’s administrative structure.
While LIPA is responsible for the overall management of Long Island’s power system and is tasked with communicating with the public during outages, it does not actually operate substations or have the staff to repair lines – rather, it contracts power delivery out to National Grid.
”The Interim Report provides sufficient evidence that LIPA’s outsourcing of most of the day-to-day management and operations of its system to National Grid simply does not work,” said the report, arguing that the outsourcing of power operations leads to mismanagement, poor investment in infrastructure, lack of accountability and high rates.
The report also criticized LIPA’s communication with elected officials and the public, echoing complaints made by local mayors and legislators in the weeks after the storm.
“From local municipalities to individual customer complaints, the commission heard account after account of LIPA’s inability to communicate accurate, real-time information about outages and restoration,” said the report.
