48 Hours Until Electric Utility Rate Hike

Queens, NY – On Saturday, Con-Edison (ConEd) customers will see an increase in their electric utility bills. The increase, however, is not to pay for their ConEd usage but rather to subsidize upstate nuclear plants on the verge of closing down.

The increase that all New Yorkers will see on our bills could be catastrophic for many of our neighbors. Of the 800,000 New Yorkers who are two months or more behind on their energy bills, close to 300,000 are ConEd users and this increase, no matter how slight it is argued to be, will inevitably make it more difficult for them to keep up with their monthly energy bills.

These struggling ratepayers are being ignored in the Public Service Commission’s (PSC) rushed decision to arbitrarily add a nuclear tax to our bills. People living paycheck to paycheck or below the poverty level simply can’t afford even the smallest of increases in their electric bills. They are the ones who will suffer the most under this 12-year albatross of a deal. Who is protecting their interests?

That is why Senator Avella is advancing legislation that would force New York State regulators to hit the “pause” button to allow for a thorough public review of the deal as well as to grant the public – the people who will pay the additional billions of dollars – the opportunity to have their voices heard.

“We need to help those New Yorkers who have fallen behind and need a moment to catch up, not surprise them with extra taxes to bail out power plants they don’t benefit from. Let’s hit the pause button on the PSC’s plan for a moment and shine a light on their top-secret plan so that we can truly know exactly what it is we’re being charged for,” said Senator Avella.