Don't Be Gaslit by Industry Lies: Get the Facts About All-Electric New Buildings

BUFFALO, NY (02/28/2023) (readMedia)-- Last year, Governor Kathy Hochul and the state senate supported the All-Electric Building Act, but New Yorkers for Affordable Energy – an astroturf group funded by National Grid and others aligned with the gas industry – killed the bill. The opposition group launched an extensive campaign to spread disinformation and lies, and they're back at it. This year, they're scaring people into believing a particularly pervasive myth that gas stoves will be ripped from kitchens. Industry groups also say gas is critical to maintaining reliable energy infrastructure, and transitioning off gas is too expensive and will destroy jobs. They're wrong on all counts.

"The gas industry is hard at work spreading fear about all-electric buildings because their only concern is their bottom line. The truth is, all-electric buildings will save New Yorkers money while improving air quality and health and fighting climate change - while creating 200,000 new jobs in the process. The clean, affordable and reliable energy future we deserve is possible if lawmakers get the facts, stand up to the gas industry and pass the All-Electric Building Act and NY HEAT Act this year," said Brynn Fuller-Becker, communications coordinator with New Yorkers for Clean Power and member of the Better Buildings NY Coalition.

Gas industry claims are explicitly wrong. Here are the facts about all-electric new buildings:

• No one is coming for your gas stove – those with gas stoves in their existing homes will get to keep using them. The All-Electric Building Act is about new construction, not existing buildings.
• New York's electric grid can handle the electrification of all newly constructed buildings. One megawatt will meet the needs of 800-1,000 new, all-electric homes – an increase of 80,000 homes per year will only generate a need for 80 to 100 additional megawatts of capacity per year. Our state already has 4,000 megawatts of surplus generation capacity on top of an energy reserve margin that is 20 percent over the peak demand. This surplus will meet the increased energy demand to electrify newly constructed homes for many years to come.
• Heat pumps can be used in cold-climate upstate New York. The newest models operate with 100 percent capacity to 5F and good performance down to negative 13F. Heat pumps are two to three times more efficient than gas heating. Even in cold weather, heat pumps perform more efficiently than their fossil-fueled counterparts in many homes, and heat pumps have grown in popularity in several other cold climates beyond New York.
• Heat pumps are no less reliable than fossil fuel heating equipment during power outages. Gas furnaces on the market today still need electricity to power their electronics and fans. Plus, new technologies are coming to market to keep electric machines running when the power goes out.
• Heat pumps are popular. Last year over 4 million heat pump units were sold, surpassing sales of gas furnaces by a large margin. In 2021 alone, more than 21,500 heat pumps were installed across New York State.
• Newly constructed all-electric buildings are more affordable to build and run. Across the state, families living in new electric homes would save an average of approximately $1,000 per year. In parts of the state that rely on propane, all-electric new homes would see savings of $3,672 per year.
• Fossil fuels – not renewables – are a major reason New York households are energy burdened. Residential natural gas prices were forecast to be 34 percent higher than last winter, while residential electric heating prices will be only 7 percent higher – due in large part to natural gas power generation. As more energy is generated by renewable sources, New York households will become even less burdened by volatile fossil fuel costs.
• The All-Electric Building Act is the quickest and easiest way to make an impact on reducing carbon pollution from the building sector. The building sector accounts for 32 percent of New York's carbon pollution. The state can't meet its climate mandate without electrifying buildings as quickly as possible. Every new home built with gas appliances locks in carbon pollution for decades to come.
• Newly constructed buildings with heat pumps reduce carbon pollution no matter the generating source of the energy. 98 percent of U.S. households would cut their carbon pollution by installing heat pumps today. As the grid gets cleaner, the total emissions impact of any electric appliance will continue to decrease.
• The transition from fossil fuel heating to all-electric will create nearly 200,000 new jobs by 2040 in energy-efficient construction and clean heating, doubling current employment. The Climate Action Council's scoping plan ensures displaced workers are supported and will benefit from the transition to clean energy.
• All-electric homes are healthier for families. One study found that replacing a gas stove with an electric induction stove reduced nitrogen dioxide concentrations, which can cause damage to the human respiratory tract and increase a person's vulnerability to asthma, by 35 percent. Another study found that children living in a home with a gas stove are up to 24 percent more likely to develop asthma.

Background

The All-Electric Building Act will ban gas hookups in new buildings across New York State, requiring them to be all-electric with appliances like energy efficient heat pumps for heating, cooling, and hot water, and modern induction cooktops. In 2021, New York City passed its own version of the All-Electric Building Act, banning fossil fuel heating systems in new buildings across the city starting in 2024.

The NY HEAT Act (formerly the Gas Transition and Affordable Energy Act) ensures that New York State will be able to meet the crucial climate justice and greenhouse gas emission reduction mandates set forth in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act for buildings without sticking everyday New Yorkers with the bill for misguided expansion of the gas system. It will allow gas utilities to invest in safer, cheaper, neighborhood-scale non-pipe alternatives to new gas infrastructure to protect New Yorkers from spiraling bills and enable zero emissions alternatives to the gas system. It also puts a price cap of 6% of income on electricity bills for low- and middle-income families to ensure energy stays affordable.

Crucially, the NY Home Energy Affordable Transition Act will do away with the unfair 100 foot rule, which sticks everyday New Yorkers with the bill for gas hookups in new buildings totalling $1 billion in added costs to utility bills for New Yorkers over just five years. It will also allow utilities to redirect the $150 billion that it will cost to complete planned gas pipe replacements over the next 20 years, and instead invest in neighborhood-scale building electrification.

In January, 200 advocates and 25 NYS legislators and called on Governor Hochul to uphold her State of the State commitments by including the All-Electric Building Act (S562A/A920), the NY Home Energy Affordable Transition (NY HEAT) Act (S2016/A4592) and the Energy Efficiency, Equity, and Jobs Act (S3126/A3996A) in her Executive Budget, and for the Assembly's support. Previously, 220 groups across New York State sent a letter to Governor Hochul, urging her to include the All-Electric Building Act, the NY HEAT Act, and other key energy affordability provisions in her executive budget.

Buildings account for a third of New York's greenhouse gas emissions, and 66 percent of likely New York voters support a statewide proposal to end fossil fuels in new construction. 55 percent are "very concerned" about the cost of their home energy bills. These proposals will help New York meet the Climate Act's requirement of reducing emissions by 40 percent by 2030 while also saving New Yorkers money.

A statewide analysis by Win Climate shows that, under the All-Electric Building Act, families from the warmest to the coldest parts of the state would see savings. Families living in new homes with cold-climate air source heat pumps would save an average of over $900 a year. Those living in new homes with ground source heat pumps would save over $1,100. In rural parts of the state with no natural gas distribution network where homes instead burn propane, new homes equipped with heat pumps could save over $3,670. Statewide, heat pumps in new construction could save households on average $13,975 over 15 years. Tax credits and rebates through programs such as NYS Clean Heat Rebates, the federal Inflation Reduction Act, and the NYS $5,000 geothermal tax credit make heat pumps affordable, and the newly expanded EmPower Plus, combined with other incentives can cover up to 100 percent of heat pump installation costs for low and moderate income families.

Getting off gas and going all electric over the next 30 years is a massive, net-positive jobs creator, creating more than 200,000 new jobs (more than doubling current employment) in the buildings sector. NY State has passed legislation backing utility thermal networks for district heating and cooling with dramatic energy savings.

Last year, the All-Electric Building Act enjoyed support from Governor Hochul, Senate leadership and environmental groups, but a campaign financed by the fossil fuel industry that spread disinformation and lies derailed the bill. The industry set up a front group called New Yorkers for Affordable Energy to preserve the status quo. A report from Little Sis reviewed the organization's tax filings which show that its mission is "to expand natural gas service." The group is meant to have the appearance of a grassroots coalition, but it was founded and is run by fossil fuel executives. From the report: "The coalition is backed by a range of fossil fuel companies and lobbying groups, including utility companies National Fuel and National Grid; pipeline companies Williams, Enbridge, and Millennium Pipeline; and the American Petroleum Institute. Other backers include corporate lobbying groups like the Business Council of New York State, regional chambers of commerce like the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, and fossil fuel industry trade groups like Independent Power Producers of New York and Energy Coalition New York."

Nationwide, the fossil fuel industry is still heavily involved in misinformation efforts against necessary legislation like this. The New York Times reported recently about the Propane Education Research Council sponsoring HGTV star Matt Blashaw. Blashaw calls propane - which contributes to climate change and is the most expensive heating fuel- "an energy source for everyone."

About Better Buildings New York (BBNY)

BBNY is a network of organizations working for the equitable decarbonization of homes and buildings in New York State. We are committed to environmental justice and a just transition to all-electric homes and buildings.