NEW YORK (WABC) — Gov. Kathy Hochul spoke out Tuesday morning in regards to the proposed Con Edison price hikes for New York Metropolis and Westchester residents.
Hochul is asking the New York State Public Service Fee to reject the proposal and stated she is going to launch an investigation into compensation packages on the utility
“Right here I’ve a letter that I am sending to the DPS chair, and CEO, Rory Christian, that I will signal proper now that expresses my sturdy objection to what they’re proposing to do to New Yorkers at the moment once they simply haven’t got the cash to pay these payments,” Hochul stated.
Final week, Con Ed introduced it was asking state regulators for permission to hike electrical payments by a median of 11.4% and gasoline payments by 13.3% beginning on Jan. 1, 2026.
Hohcul stated that the rise proposal will hit seniors particularly arduous. There are 500,000 Con Ed prospects already behind 60 days or extra on their electrical payments, in line with AARP.
The excessive price of utility payments has even led one landlord in New York Metropolis to return to house heating oil to decrease his and his tenant’s payments.
Plumber John Norton put in mega environment friendly, wall-hung boilers in three residence buildings his household owns in Queens. For a number of years, it was terrific for his pockets and the surroundings. Fuel utilization dropped in half and tenants received all the new water they wanted. However he says the swap to gasoline, and the transfer to go inexperienced has now proved crippling.
One in every of his buildings consumed solely $149 value of gasoline however Con Ed charged him greater than $450 to ship the gasoline. That is 3 times as a lot for the service, multiplied by Norton’s three buildings. On prime of that, he’s being slapped with one other $600 high-quality each month he is late.
For Norton, who can’t afford his Con Ed payments, he’s going to take away the superbly good gasoline boilers and return to grease. He has discovered an power environment friendly mannequin that can enable him to flee Con Ed’s steep service charges.
Whereas the corporate says they hear these issues from prospects, it stated it additionally has a duty to ship dependable energy.
They beforehand stated the speed hikes would assist fund investments in clear power and infrastructure upgrades wanted as extreme climate turns into extra frequent and extreme.
Nonetheless, the governor stated the utility shouldn’t be in a position to elevate prices on New Yorkers whereas persevering with to pay massive salaries, and she or he opened an audit of Con Ed administration compensation.
The CEO and CFO have base salaries of over $1.3 million and $810,000 a 12 months, respectively, in line with SEC information.
To additional defend the state’s clear power mandates, the governor says property tax will increase for Con Ed within the metropolis is the true driver behind potential price hikes.
She says if these are newer property taxes due to the investments firms are making to implement clear power laws, that’s value having a dialog between state funds workplace and town.
The proposed hikes nonetheless must undergo a prolonged course of, together with public remark.
A spokesperson for Con Ed launched the next assertion:
“Affordability in our state and nation touches each side of New Yorkers’ each day life-from power to housing to groceries. Con Edison is conscious about this, which is why we work with prospects to make utility payments extra inexpensive. Our power effectivity applications assist our prospects use much less power and get monetary savings, we have invested 300 million {dollars} in power help applications for low- and moderate-income prospects in 2024 and proceed work to enroll all eligible prospects, and advocate for coverage modifications to make utility payments extra inexpensive. We even have a duty to proceed to securely and effectively ship the nation’s most dependable energy whereas complying with state legal guidelines and rules. Meaning fortifying the grid within the face of more and more extreme excessive climate, bringing renewable power sources on-line to assist meet the state’s clear energy targets, and supporting the workforce we have to conduct ongoing upkeep and swiftly reply to customer support calls. Con Edison, as we at all times have, stands able to work with stakeholders and the general public to steadiness all of those priorities and proceed to ship secure and dependable energy whereas utilizing our prospects’ {dollars} as effectively as attainable.”
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