Advocates Slam Governor Hochul For Calling Climate Law Unaffordable While Pushing Costly Gas Pipelines

ALBANY, NY (10/28/2025) (readMedia)-- Yesterday, Governor Hochul announced she will appeal a federal judge ruling that ordered her to implement New York's landmark Climate Law, claiming that she will "sit down with the Legislature" to revise the law over affordability concerns. The announcement comes as the Governor promises to prioritize costs for everyday New Yorkers while pushing two fracked gas pipelines - the Williams Northeast Supply Enhancement Project (NESE) and Constitution - that would force New Yorkers to pay over $3 billion on our energy bills while threatening our water and posing serious health risks to surrounding communities.

In response, Alex Beauchamp, Northern Region Director of Food & Water Watch issued the following statement:

"Governor Hochul would rather work with the Legislature to undo our Climate Law and cut deals with Trump than actually lower our energy bills and fight climate change as she is required by law to do. The Governor claims she cares about our climate and affordability, but the reality is she is doing everything she can to make New York dirtier and reject affordable, clean energy projects that would protect her constituents' health and wallets. If the Governor really wants to deliver an affordable future, she should stop pushing costly fossil fuel pipelines at Trump's direction."

Governor Hochul has repeatedly committed to an "all-of-the-above" approach to energy that prioritizes affordability, but her own state regulators have repeatedly found that the Governor's approach would make things worse for New Yorkers struggling to get by. The NESE pipeline alone would force New Yorkers to pay over $3 billion to expand gas infrastructure, all while her own state agencies reported that clean energy mandates account for a fraction of utility bill increases.

Background

Neither the NESE or Constitution applications have been amended since they were repeatedly denied by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which means they both still pose the exact same environmental threats to New York. The Constitution pipeline would threaten more than 250 waterways throughout Upstate New York, endangering sensitive habitats and wildlife populations that depend on healthy ecosystems, while the Williams NESE pipeline would stir up toxic contaminants in the New York Harbor that harm critical fisheries and other wildlife habitats.

In addition to serious threats to ecosystems across the State, these pipelines would force regular New Yorkers to pay billions to expand fossil fuel infrastructure that is increasingly unreliable and expensive to maintain. National Grid's own estimates state that the NESE pipeline alone will cost New Yorkers at least $2.2 billion and force ratepayers to pay more than $200 million every year for the next 15 years - though a report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) suggests the real cost to New Yorkers is closer to $3.2 billion.