NEW YORK BESS MORATORIUMS

Battery Storage Restrictions by County

128 Moratoriums Tracked | 90 Active | 35 Counties | Updated Monthly

New York accounts for more than 80% of all active BESS moratoriums in the United States, more than the other 8 states with active moratoriums combined. This month’s update adds four new moratoriums enacted in June 2026, all carrying ALL_BESS scope: Town of Arietta and Town of Benson (Hamilton County), Town of Wilton (Saratoga County), and Town of Spafford (Onondaga County). All four are one-year moratoriums expiring in June 2027. With these additions, 13 New York jurisdictions now restrict all battery storage regardless of size, up from 9 in the previous update. The vast majority of remaining active moratoriums restrict utility-scale projects only. Most moratoriums have defined expiration dates, with expiration clusters in the second half of 2026 and into early 2027.

ORES and Standalone BESS: What the Law Currently Allows

New York’s Office of Renewable Energy Siting and Electric Transmission (ORES) is a state-level permitting body created under the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act (Section 94-c, now codified under the RAPID Act as Public Service Law Article VIII). ORES reviews and issues siting permits for major renewable energy facilities, defined as renewable energy generation systems with a nameplate capacity of 25 MW or more, co-located energy storage systems, and certain electric transmission facilities.

Critically, ORES does not have jurisdiction over standalone battery energy storage projects under current law. A developer with a 50 MW standalone BESS project in Chester (Orange County) or Cortlandt (Westchester County) cannot use the ORES process to bypass a local moratorium. Standalone BESS of all sizes (whether 10 MW or 200 MW) must be permitted locally. This means that for standalone battery storage, every one of the 86 active moratoriums tracked in New York is a binding constraint with no state-level workaround.

The only BESS projects that qualify for ORES review are those co-located with a solar or wind generation facility that itself meets the 25 MW threshold. In those cases, the energy storage component is reviewed as part of the larger renewable energy project, and ORES can override local zoning restrictions including moratoriums.

Pending legislation could change this. Senate Bill S5506 (Sen. Kavanagh) and its Assembly companion A8378 (Asm. Levenberg) would expand ORES jurisdiction to include standalone “qualified energy storage systems.” The bill was introduced in February 2025 and referred to the Energy and Telecommunications Committee, where it remains as of September 2026. It has not passed either chamber. Several municipalities, including Carmel and Yorktown, have passed resolutions opposing the legislation.

Subscribers to Carina’s moratorium database receive legislative tracking on S5506/A8378, including committee status updates and Carina’s analysis of how the bill’s passage or failure would affect development strategy in moratorium jurisdictions.

New York is one of seven states with a pathway that allows developers to bypass local restrictions on renewable energy projects with co-located storage. See the full comparison of state bypass laws.

New York BESS Moratoriums by Region

New York’s 90 active moratoriums are not evenly distributed. They cluster in specific regions, often driven by a wave of proposed BESS projects triggering a chain reaction of local government responses. Understanding where these clusters are (and when they expire) is critical for developers evaluating sites.

Western New York – 21 Active Moratoriums

Chautauqua County remains the densest moratorium cluster in the state with 9 active moratoriums, now including Village of Mayville (enacted May 2026, expiring June 2027). Erie County follows with 5 active moratoriums. The cluster shrank this month after Niagara County dropped from 4 active to 1 (Royalton and Somerset were lifted; Wilson expired; only Newfane remains, extended to August 2026). Allegany County still has 2 active moratoriums (Angelica and Allen). Several Erie County moratoriums were extended, including Boston (now December 2026), signaling that while some Western New York jurisdictions are letting moratoriums expire or lifting them, others are doubling down.

Hudson Valley & NYC Metro – 15 Active Moratoriums

This cluster saw the most dramatic change this month. Westchester County dropped from 8 active moratoriums to 5 after Mamaroneck Village, Mount Pleasant, and Pound Ridge were lifted. Bedford, New Castle, Cortlandt, Yonkers, and Peekskill remain active, with Bedford and New Castle both running through August 2026. Orange County lost Montgomery (lifted) but Chester was extended to August 2026. Putnam County is unchanged with three active moratoriums (Carmel, Kent, and Putnam Valley), two of which carry ALL_BESS scope. Columbia County has three active moratoriums (Claverack, Livingston, and Stockport), all with past expiration dates that are confirmed active pending updated dates. Ulster County dropped from three to two after Plattekill was lifted, leaving Hurley and Gardiner.

Long Island – 10 Active Moratoriums

Long Island is unchanged in count but several moratoriums were extended. Hempstead was extended to August 2026, Oyster Bay to April 2027, and Glen Cove to May 2027, confirming that Long Island jurisdictions are actively renewing rather than letting moratoriums expire. Nassau County’s four moratoriums include two with ALL_BESS scope (Hempstead and North Hempstead). Suffolk County’s six moratoriums now stagger through late 2026 and into 2027, with Southold extended to April 2027 and Islip to September 2026.

Finger Lakes – 4 Active Moratoriums

The Finger Lakes region saw significant attrition this month. Walworth (Wayne County) and Elba (Genesee County) were lifted. Naples (Ontario County) and Victory (Cayuga County) are under review. The remaining four active moratoriums are Penfield (Monroe County), Rose (Wayne County), West Bloomfield (Ontario County), and Mentz (Cayuga County), with expiration dates ranging from mid-2026 to late 2026.

Southern Tier – 8 Active Moratoriums

Steuben County continues to anchor this cluster with 5 active moratoriums. Cameron, Campbell, and Prattsburgh remain active alongside Greenwood and Southport. Corning was extended to November 2026. Barker (Broome County) is now under review, leaving Maine as the sole active Broome County entry. Willing (Allegany County) expired. The Steuben concentration remains significant for developers watching the Southern Tier.

Capital Region & Mohawk Valley – 13 Active Moratoriums

This region shrank by three after German Flatts (Herkimer County), Salem (Washington County), and Frankfort (Herkimer County) were reclassified (German Flatts and Salem to under review, Frankfort to lifted). The Mohawk Valley sub-cluster remains concentrated: Montgomery County (3 moratoriums: Amsterdam, Root, Palatine), Fulton County (3: Gloversville, Perth, Northampton), and Saratoga County (3: Halfmoon extended to August 2026, Milton to July 2026, and Clifton Park through July 2026). Berne (Albany County) was extended to November 2026. Town of Carlisle (Schoharie County) remains active through October 2026. Glenville (Schenectady County) shows active with an October 2025 expiration date that is under verification. Town of Wilton (Saratoga County) enacted June 2026 as ALL_BESS moratorium expiring June 2027. Saratoga County now has 4 active moratoriums (Halfmoon, Milton, Clifton Park, and Wilton).

North Country – 10 Active Moratoriums

Remote, low-population area with scattered restrictions across St. Lawrence County (4), Essex County (2), and Lewis County (4 with the addition of Town of Lewis in March 2025, now under verification for status as expiration approaches). Lewis County now has the highest concentration in the North Country region, with Denmark and Greig (both expiring January 2027), Leyden, and Town of Lewis all active. Lewis County has the highest concentration in the North Country region with four active moratoriums: Denmark and Greig (both expiring January 2027), Leyden, and Town of Lewis (extended to March 2027). The four St. Lawrence County moratoriums (Brasher, Norfolk, Oswegatchie, Parishville) run through mid-to-late 2026. Essex County has two active moratoriums (Essex County-wide and Jay), both with past expiration dates that are confirmed active pending updated dates. Hamilton County now has 3 active moratoriums (Long Lake previously expired; Arietta and Benson both enacted June 2026 with ALL_BESS scope).

Central New York – 5 Active Moratoriums

Central New York’s footprint grew despite the broader statewide contraction. Town of Marcellus (Onondaga County) enacted an ALL_BESS moratorium in May 2026 running through May 2027, the ninth jurisdiction in New York to actively restrict all battery storage. Schroeppel (Oswego County) was extended to February 2027 and remains the only SOLAR_PLUS_STORAGE-scoped record in our database. Lysander (Onondaga County) was extended to December 2026. Camillus (Onondaga County) runs through March 2027 with ALL_BESS scope. Oswego City (Oswego County) is indefinite. Florence (Oneida County) is now under review. Town of Spafford (Onondaga County) enacted June 2026 as ALL_BESS moratorium expiring June 2027. Onondaga County now has 4 active moratoriums (Lysander, Camillus, Marcellus, and Spafford), with 3 of the 4 carrying ALL_BESS scope.

Full List: New York BESS Moratoriums

Source: Carina Energy research.