One local state lawmaker is calling on Kathy Hochul to take immediate action to lower utility costs for New Yorkers, arguing that rising energy bills are placing a growing financial strain on families, seniors and small businesses.
In a letter dated Feb. 24, Senator Pamela Helming urged the governor to return surplus energy program funds to ratepayers and pause certain state mandates she says are driving up electricity costs.
Helming wrote that residential electricity rates in New York are about 50 percent higher than the national average and have climbed more than seven percent in the past year. Since the adoption of the state’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, she said rates have increased roughly 45 percent. She also noted that customers in some areas pay 30 to 40 percent more than in neighboring Pennsylvania.
Citing media and utility data, Helming said tens of thousands of households have fallen behind on their bills. She pointed to reports showing nearly 67,000 RG&E customers owing more than $92 million and more than 225,000 National Grid customers in upstate New York more than two months in arrears, with total past-due balances in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Statewide, she said more than 400,000 households experienced service shutoffs last year.
Helming also highlighted the finances of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, or NYSERDA, saying the agency’s financial plan shows more than $2 billion in unspent funds collected through ratepayer surcharges. She called for that money to be returned directly to customers in the form of utility bill credits and for a one-year holiday on certain taxes and surcharges.
The senator outlined several legislative proposals she and colleagues support, including delaying implementation of parts of the climate law, studying its cost impacts, offering credits to ratepayers and businesses, expanding gas infrastructure in rural areas, preventing the closure of certain power plants before replacements are online, and repealing an all-electric construction mandate.
Helming said the measures would provide both immediate relief and long-term stability for the state’s energy grid and economy. She urged the governor to advance the proposals during budget negotiations.
The governor’s office has not yet publicly responded to the letter.
