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New Yorkers pay the third-highest residential electrical energy costs within the nation — trailing solely Hawaii and California, a stunning new report reveals.
Frustration over New York’s sky-high excessive vitality prices has emerged as a prime marketing campaign challenge within the governor’s race pitting Republican Bruce Blakeman in opposition to Democratic incumbent Kathy Hochul.
“Third highest within the nation isn’t the place New York ought to wish to be on electrical energy costs,” mentioned Zilvinas Silenas, president of the Empire Middle for Public Coverage.
“If that is affordability, New Yorkers can’t afford it.”
New York’s residential electrical energy costs have been a whopping 29.93 cents per kilowatt-hour in Might, based mostly on the newest federal information, the evaluation by the Albany-based suppose tank discovered.
Hawaii got here in at 52 cents per kilowatt-hour, and California at 33.25 cents per kilowatt-hour, the frequent billing unit for electrical vitality equipped by a utility.
New York’s costs have been 62% larger than the nationwide common, practically double Florida’s and greater than 80% larger than Texas’.
Electrical energy costs within the Empire State additionally rose 12% from a yr earlier — twice the speed of enhance for the US common.
And New York has jumped within the rankings — from eighth highest amongst states final October and November, to sixth highest in December to 4th in April and Third in Might, based on the Empire Middle.
In the meantime, New York’s common residential pure fuel costs have been 15% above the nationwide common, and ranked nineteenth highest within the US, the evaluation discovered.
“New York’s vitality coverage is contributing to the upper prices we have now warned about for years,” mentioned Silenas, including elevated electrical energy demand can be an element.
Gavin Donohue, president of the Unbiased Energy Producers of New York State mentioned “the largest wrongdoer of excessive electrical energy charges in New York is excessive taxation.”
Transmission and distribution prices, taxes and costs and inexperienced vitality mandates mixed account for 70% of utility payments, he mentioned.
On the identical time, New York isn’t producing sufficient new vitality capability whereas closing older oil, fuel and nuclear energy vegetation, Silenas mentioned.
The Indian Level nuclear energy plant in Westchester County had supplied 25% of New York Metropolis’s vitality earlier than it closed in 2021.
One vitality skilled mentioned New York’s high-tax burden considerably contributes to the upper prices.
“The New York Metropolis property tax is the massive distortion on the Con Ed invoice,” mentioned John Howard, a former member of the state Public Service Fee that regulates utilities.
Utility firms are additionally charged a gross receipts tax, a franchise tax and gross sales tax on commodities, and a “methods profit cost” to advertise photo voltaic and different clear vitality investments, Howard famous.
Con Ed and Nationwide Grid are allowed to move these prices on to clients.
Power prices have emerged as a sizzling marketing campaign challenge within the governor’s race, with Blakeman blaming Hochul’s administration for approving 48 utility price electrical and fuel hikes throughout her tenure, through the Public Service Fee. She appoints a lot of the PSC members who regulate the utility business.
“Kathy Hochul’s utility payments are killing us,” Blakeman mentioned.
“When I’m governor, I’ll minimize utility payments in half, repeal Hochul’s expensive surcharges, and return $2.4 billion in unspent vitality tax funds on to ratepayers,” he vowed.
In response to yearly common billing information from Con Edison and NYSEG, Hochul has presided over bigger price will increase in contrast together with her predecessor, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Between Hochul’s first full yr in workplace in 2022 and 2025, the typical NYSEG supply cost – the a part of utility charges topic to the state’s approval – for upstate ratepayers spiked an eye-watering 75%.
ConEd’s common charges for a similar interval elevated 25%.
Primarily based on the identical information, supply charges solely elevated 25% for NYSEG and 9% for ConEd between 2016 and 2021, the majority of Cuomo’s time period.
Hochul, in search of re-election to a second time period in November, pivoted earlier this yr, forcing the legislature to delay implementation of mandates within the state’s inexperienced vitality legislation — the Local weather Management and Group Safety Act of 2019 — over issues of rising prices.
The state can even be sending “utility rebate” checks out this fall, a transparent sign that Hochul and her fellow Dems within the state Legislature are apprehensive about backlash on the poll field over massively rising vitality prices.
The state finances accredited in Might tapped $1 billion from the treasury to redistribute as $100 to $200 rebate checks ostensibly meant to assist defray burdensome state utility prices.
The checks, nonetheless, can be based mostly on residents’ 2024 earnings, no matter whether or not somebody truly paid utility payments.
Involved about straining the ability grid, Hochul additionally not too long ago issued an govt order imposing a one-year freeze on opening vitality hungry AI-driven information facilities in New York State.
The Hochul marketing campaign defended the governor’s vitality report.
“Governor Hochul is placing vitality rebate checks immediately in New Yorkers’ pockets and taking up the massive utility firms to carry down prices, but when ‘100% MAGA’ Blakeman had his manner, New Yorkers would get caught with larger payments, no vitality rebates, no tariff refunds, and no assist in anyway whereas he and Trump jack up costs,” mentioned Hochul marketing campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki.
“Whereas the governor fights to carry down vitality prices for households, Blakeman thinks Trump is doing an ‘superb job’ as he indicators laws to jack them again up.”
Blakeman has referred to as the rebate checks “a political ploy to purchase votes for the election, and I let you know what, New Yorkers are usually not going to purchase that.”
