N.Y. PBS Law § 112-A

§ 112-a. Appointment of temporary operator. (a) The commission may\nappoint a temporary operator of a gas corporation with twenty thousand\nor fewer customers or water-works corporation with one thousand or fewer\ncustomers if the commission, after notice and an opportunity to be\nheard, makes a determination that such gas corporation or water-works\ncorporation exhibits one or more of the following criteria:\n (i) a failure to provide safe, adequate, or reliable service;\n (ii) a lack of technical, financial, or managerial capacity or ability\nto provide the service; or\n (iii) actual or effective abandonment of any service or portion\nthereof.\n (b) In making a determination under this section, the commission may\ntake into consideration:\n (i) the financial, managerial, and technical ability of the gas\ncorporation or water-works corporation;\n (ii) the financial, managerial, and technical ability of persons or\nentities providing the same type of service;\n (iii) expenditures necessary to make improvements to assure compliance\nwith applicable statutory and regulatory standards; and\n (iv) any other matter that the commission deems relevant.\n (c) For the purposes of this section, a "temporary operator" shall\nmean any person or entity that:\n (i) is not an affiliated interest of the gas corporation or\nwater-works corporation;\n (ii) agrees to operate the gas corporation or water-works corporation\nunder the terms and conditions established by the commission; and\n (iii) is financially, managerially, and technically capable of\noperating the gas corporation or water-works corporation in compliance\nwith applicable standards.\n (d) The gas corporation or water-works corporation shall have the\nburden of demonstrating that it is supplying and has the ability to\ncontinue to supply safe, adequate, and reliable service at just and\nreasonable rates, or that abandonment of service by its system is in the\npublic interest.\n (e) The appointment of a temporary operator shall be in addition to\nany other remedies provided by law.\n