FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Charlie Heller, charlie@agreeny.org, 609-933-6774
With Trump admin looming, Gov. Hochul’s leadership to lower energy costs and fight fracked gas companies raising prices is more important than ever
Group urged the Governor and Assembly to pass the NY HEAT Act, save families who need it most $136/month on average, curb rate hikes, and fight climate change
SYRACUSE, NY – Today, the Renewable Heat Now Campaign, joined Syracuse residents and advocates to rally against continued gas rate hikes and demand lawmakers pass the NY HEAT Act during this year’s session. As winter begins, National Grid is yet again looking to raise the cost of heating by 20%, while utilities across the state are expected to charge everyday New Yorkers 18% more for heat! Now, Onondaga County residents are demanding to know what the Governor and Assembly are doing about it.
Watch a recording of the event here.
Said Onondaga County legislator Mo Brown: “I want to call on Governor Hochul to ensure this gets in the budget–we don’t want to be fighting this all the way through June. We want to be able to tell families you’re going to be able to afford your energy bills going forward. We don’t want to have that up in the air.”
As of September 2024, approximately 1 in 7 households in New York was two months or more behind on their energy bills. This affordability crisis is hurting more than 1.2 million families, who are collectively in debt more than $1.3 billion dollars to utility companies. Utilities have only continued to raise rates — even while the cost of gas decreases — in order to force New Yorkers to foot the bill for new pipes and pipelines!
The NY HEAT Act, which would help control future gas rate hikes, will provide critical relief for Central New York residents and New Yorkers statewide. The bill would save 1 in 4 families who can’t afford their bills statewide up to $136/month on average, and in Onondaga County the NY HEAT Act could save as much as $120 a month.
Despite lawmakers’ failure to pass the bill last session, the NY HEAT Act has support across the legislature and is popular across party lines. Governor Hochul embraced key parts of the NY HEAT Act in her 2025 Executive Budget proposal, the Senate passed the bill twice, and the bill has support from a majority of Assemblymembers.
Said Jessica Azulay, Executive Director of Alliance for a Green Economy (AGREE): “Nearly a quarter of Onondaga County families are energy burdened, and National Grid is trying to raise their bills another 20%. Governor Hochul and the Assembly can either let skyrocketing bills get even worse, or pass the NY HEAT Act and GAP Fund to protect them by capping bills today, and transitioning to cleaner, safer, more affordable heating tomorrow.
Attendees included the Renewable Heat Now Campaign, AGREE, Citizen Action NY, Alliance for Communities Transforming Syracuse, The event was one of 12 local rallies, press conferences and educational events organized by climate and environmental justice groups as part of a “Statewide Day of Action.” Advocates in cities including Syracuse, Brooklyn, Albany, Buffalo and Long Beach all demanded Governor Hochul and the Assembly pass critical climate legislation including the NY HEAT Act — and fight for affordable, clean, and climate-friendly buildings. Lawmakers cannot ignore the climate crisis any longer, and their continued refusal to act is a moral, climate, and environmental justice failure.
Background
According to a recent Siena Poll, 8 in 10 New Yorkers across party lines agree that the high cost of living in New York is a major problem. Higher energy costs, exacerbated by double-digit rate hikes not just from Central Hudson, but also from National Grid, ConEd, RG&E, NYSEG, National Fuel Gas, and O&R, only exacerbate the cost of living problem.
The Home Energy Affordable Transition Act, also known as the NY HEAT Act, will stop the expansion of New York’s outdated and dangerous fracked gas system. The bill modernizes archaic state laws that force New Yorkers to pay billions of dollars each year to subsidize new fracked gas hookups and pipelines. It would limit households’ energy burdens and would allow utilities to provide cheaper and clean heating alternatives at no additional cost to customers – a win-win for New Yorkers and the environment. And in addition to cost savings for everyday families, the bill gets rid of the unfair 100-foot rule, which forces New Yorkers to subsidize new gas hookups to the tune of $200 million every year while accelerating fossil fuel-generated climate change that supercharges storms, floods, and wildfires – turning the sky orange and the air toxic – and drives deadly extreme heat and cold.
The NY HEAT Act is popular across party lines, with 67% of democrats, 47% of republicans, and 55% of independents agreeing it should have passed. It was also popular with 60% of upstate voters, 55% of union households, and across income groups. 74% of Black voters and 70% of Latino voters also wanted it to pass.
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