Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed legislation sponsored by New York State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele, Jr. and State Senator Kenneth P. LaValle that would enable the Town of Southampton to create “Underground Utility Improvement Districts”. This legislation would permit Southampton Town to create districts that would enter into agreements with public utility companies to construct underground utility facilities or convert existing above ground utilities to underground. Such facilities could include electric transmission and distribution lines, cable television lines and telephone lines.

Thiele stated, “New York, in general, needs to build an electric grid that is stronger, more resilient and smarter. Long Island, and more specifically, the Town of Southampton, is particularly susceptible to nor’easters, tropical storms, and hurricanes. We need to protect our energy system, and the best way to do that is by selectively undergrounding our utility infrastructure.”

Senator Ken LaValle said, “This legislation would provide the Town of Southampton with another tool to safeguard their electrical infrastructure from future storm damage with the opportunity to share costs or spread them out over time.”

Under the new law, Southampton would have the authority to create an “underground utility improvement district”, utilizing the same process and procedures that currently exist for the creation of other special districts such as water or sewer districts. The creation of a district would be subject to a permissive referendum. After an underground utility improvement district has been established, the Town Board may enter into a contract with a public utility company, municipality, or public authority in order to construct underground new public utility facilities or convert existing overhead public utility facilities to underground facilities.

The same law was enacted for East Hampton Town in 2016.