Senator Mattera Joins Senate Republican Colleagues And Business And Labor Leaders To Protect Energy Choices

                   Please click here to view video of Senator Mattera's remarks.

Senator Mario R. Mattera (2nd Senate District), ranking member of the Senate Energy Committee, along with Senators Tom O’Mara (58th Senate District), Senator Rob Rolison (39th Senate District) and members of the Senate Republican Conference today were joined by New Yorkers for Affordable Energy Executive Director Daniel Ortega at a press conference in Albany to call for a cost benefit analysis of New York’s climate policies and to oppose a costly new mandate, the New York Heat Act.

Since Democrats passed the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act in 2019, Republicans have demanded answers about its cost, expressed concerns about its mandates and questioned if its goals were realistic or achievable. 

Further, the Senate Republican Conference has unanimously opposed new energy costs and mandates such as the NY Heat Act/Affordable Gas Transition Act. These policies will raise rates for at least 75 percent of New Yorkers, eliminate thousands of good paying union jobs and slap up to $50,000 in costs on homeowners who may be forced to transition from natural gas to electric heat.

“There needs to be a realistic plan not an ideological ban that will cost New York ratepayers trillions and result in real job losses for our hardworking men and women of labor.  As a proud union leader who creates jobs, I know there is a better approach that avoids this costly ill-conceived and reckless approach to our energy future.  It is up to those who are pushing this to accept reality and to join us to come up with a realistic way forward that protects our ratepayers and our workers both now and in the future,” said Senator Mattera.

“The NY Heat Act is a disaster on the horizon for the vast majority of middle-class ratepayers. New York is already one of the least affordable and highest taxed states in America. Our state leads the nation in population loss. The Heat Act will only make it all worse. The Albany Democrats continue to impose unaffordable and unrealistic clean energy mandates with no concern for their affordability, feasibility, or reliability. They keep reaching deeper and deeper into the pockets of middle-class taxpayers, destroying family budgets, killing local jobs, and devastating local economies with the promise of very minimal or realistic benefits for most New Yorkers,” said Senator O’Mara.   

“We all favor a cleaner environment, the question is how we achieve this outcome in a way that does not impose more harm and heap more costs on struggling working- and middle-class families. Governor Hochul's plan will hurt blue-collar workers and raise costs on ratepayers who have watched their bills skyrocket in the last year. By banning the 100-foot rule and imposing new mandates for electrification before most industries are ready, the governor has set up Hudson Valley homeowners, businesses, and utility customers to fail,” stated Senator Rolison.

New Yorkers are already struggling to pay high utility bills, largely driven by policies conceived by Democrats. Even before CLCPA was passed in 2019, 25 percent of the delivery charges on utility bills were made up of New York State taxes and fees.

Since then, things have only gotten worse. According to an analysis by the Empire Center for Public Policy of the first CLCPA report published by the Department of Public Service last summer, rates have already been driven upward by as much as 9.8 percent.

Passing the NY Heat Act would be a disaster for most ratepayers. While the bill caps utility costs for 25 percent of New Yorkers according to its sponsors, the money needed to continue to operate the grid will merely be picked out of the pockets of the 75 percent of those who do not receive any assistance. This is a classic political bait and switch, where a small group benefits while hard working middle-class families bear the burden. Further, the NY Heat Act would eliminate the “100-foot rule” for gas service that would lead to thousands of utility workers losing their jobs.

“On behalf of our collation of business and labor organizations, I want to thank Leader Ortt and the Senate Republican Conference for fighting back against energy policies that are expensive,

ill conceived and bad for our economy. We need common sense and not extreme climate ideology to lead the way. New York is blessed with an abundance of resources. If we plan carefully, we can reduce emissions, protect jobs and keep costs reasonable for consumers. In order to get there, we must pause on our current course, appropriately measure the costs already imposed and stop passing new mandates like the New York Heat Act, which only make things worse,” said Daniel Ortega, Executive Director of New Yorkers for Affordable Energy, 

The New York Heat Act (S2016-A) passed the Senate in 2023 and again, this year. Governor Hochul has included a version of it in her budget that she calls “The Affordable Gas Transition Act”.