Assembly Must Pass NY HEAT Act to Address Affordability Crisis & Crushing Energy Bills

ALBANY, NY (01/21/2025) (readMedia)-- Today, Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled her FY2026 executive budget, which nods to the importance of energy affordability and moving away from fossil fuels, but includes no clear policies to address these issues. Meanwhile, President Trump is once again siding with the fossil fuel lobby by pulling out of the Paris Climate Accords, leaving everyday people to suffer from higher energy costs - and making the NY HEAT Act more urgent than ever.

"The Governor is missing an opportunity to lead, but New Yorkers still expect her to continue to support the NY HEAT Act. The real question is whether the Assembly, which has failed three years in a row to pass the NY HEAT Act, will address the dual climate and affordability crises crushing New York families, by saving them up to $136 a month on their energy bills. Everyday people are already struggling, and now they'll have to pay even more as the Trump administration puts oil and gas industry profits over their pocket books. The Assembly must get the job done now and finally deliver real relief for New Yorkers forced to choose between eating and heating," said Liz Moran, New York Policy Advocate at Earthjustice; Jessica Azulay, Executive Director at Alliance for a Green Economy; and Annie Carforo, Climate Justice Campaign Manager at WE ACT for Environmental Justice.

Background

In December, Governor Hochul announced a plan to cut a $300-$500 check for every New York family earning under $150,000/year. It's a start, but a one-time check won't actually address the ongoing affordability crisis – an issue that a whopping 43% of New Yorkers agree is the most important one for Albany lawmakers to tackle this year.

As of September 2024, approximately 1 in 7 households in New York was two months or more behind on their energy bills. This crisis is impacting more than 1.2 million families, who are collectively in debt more than $1.3 billion dollars to utilities And as winter for-profit gas corporations are projected to charge New Yorkers 18% more for heat, even though the price of gas itself is going down.

The Home Energy Affordable Transition Act, also known as the NY HEAT Act, will stop the expansion of New York's outdated and dangerous fracked gas system and save the 1 in 4 New Yorkers who struggle to pay their energy bills an average of $136 every month. 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.

The NY HEAT Act will also free New Yorkers from the gas mandate (also known as "the utility obligation to serve gas"), an antiquated state law that locks utilities, and consequently the vast majority of New Yorkers, into the dirty, expensive, aging gas system for heat. Because of the gas mandate, one home that wants to stay on the gas system can be the deciding factor for an entire neighborhood that would otherwise have the opportunity to receive cheaper, cleaner heating alternatives from their utility. But the NY HEAT Act would require utilities to provide easy access to the most affordable and healthier heating options for their families.

By curbing expansion of the fracked gas system, the NY HEAT Act will also curb the utility rate hikes slamming New Yorkers across the state:

Pro-climate legislation that saves New Yorkers money is popular: 67% of Democrats, 47% of Republicans, and 55% of independents agreed the NY HEAT Act should have passed last session. The bill 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.

State action against climate change is crucial as Trump takes office and vows to go all-in on fossil fuels. 2024 was the hottest year on record, and New Yorkers experienced wildfires, flooding, and tornadoes. The NY HEAT Act will help New York fight climate change and it will protect New Yorkers from an unpredictable Trump administration by helping to stabilize heat and energy prices.