Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s commission tasked with investigating the response of New York’s utilities to Hurricane Sandy has issued a subpoena to the Long Island Power Authority.
The commission, which possesses sweeping investigative powers under the Moreland Act, sent subpoenas to both LIPA and Con Edison, reports Newsday.
And LIPA Chairman Howard Steinberg resigned Nov. 30, about two weeks after he accepted Chief Operating Officer Michael Hervey’s resignation effective the end of this year, according to media reports.
Steinberg, who cited time commitments to his private business in a letter of resignation to Cuomo, is the fourth LIPA official to quit – along with Hervey. Vice President for Customer Service Bruce Germano and trustee X. Christofer Damianos have also resigned, according to the New York Times.
LIPA has faced withering criticism from Albany down to local municipal officials.
Mayors from the Great Neck peninsula, New Hyde Park, Mineola, Williston Park and East Williston as well as Town of North Hempstead officials castigated the utility in the weeks following the storm, citing poor communication and extended outages that left some residents without power for nearly two weeks. Officials reported extended delays in repairs, ill-supplied work crews and poor communication with LIPA administrators.
The authority has also been accused of failing to properly inform the public throughout the crisis. Officials cited estimations of service restoration that were continually pushed back, with little information for consumers as to when their neighborhoods would be brought back onto the grid.
The commission is charged with examining the state’s utilities in light of a series of damaging weather events in recent years, including Hurricane Sandy and Hurricane Irene. It will offer recommendations on improving the utilities’ performance to the state legislature following the completion of its report.
Commission spokesperson David Neustadt confirmed that subpoenas had been issued but would not comment on their recipients. LIPA and Con Ed both confirmed they had been subpoenaed, according to the Newsday report.
