New York lawmakers push utility relief plan amid rising energy costs

As New Yorkers continue to face rising energy costs, state lawmakers are advancing a series of proposals aimed at lowering utility bills and strengthening protections for consumers.

Funding for the measures was included in the New York State Assembly’s proposed one-house budget resolution for the 2026–27 fiscal year, which starts on April 1. If approved, it will provide rebate checks to ratepayers, pause new utility rate increases and create an independent office to represent residential customers when utilities seek higher rates.

Earlier this year, Con Edison secured approval for rate hikes that will raise electric and gas bills over the next three years. The company estimates average electricity bills will increase by 3.5 percent this year, followed by 3.2 percent in 2027 and 3.1 percent in 2028.

Gas bills will spike even more, increasing by 4.4 percent this year, followed by 5.7 percent in 2027 and 5.6 percent in 2028. The average gas customer will see monthly bills rise about $10.67 this year.

Assembly member Jeffrey Dinowitz, who has pushed for stronger consumer protections in utility rate cases, said the proposals reflect growing concern about affordability.

“What is quite clear is that asking New Yorkers to continue to pay more and more for one of life’s necessities is unsustainable,” he said. “New Yorkers need to have someone whose only responsibility is to fight for them when utility companies ask the Public Service Commission to grant them a rate increase.”

Dinowitz has long advocated for the creation of a State Office of the Utility Consumer Advocate, which would act as an independent agency representing residential customers in cases before the Public Service Commission, the state body responsible for approving utility rate increases.

“The inclusion of this legislation signals that the assembly has recognized the importance of having an office solely dedicated to protecting utility consumers from the egregious rate hikes that utility consumers impose upon them,” Dinowitz said.

The assembly proposal includes $2.1 million to establish the office and an additional $1 million for utility intervenor reimbursements. Lawmakers say the new office would replace the state’s existing Utility Intervention Unit and strengthen the state’s ability to challenge rate increases on behalf of residents.

The plan is part of a broader effort by assembly leaders to address the growing cost of utilities for households across the state.

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said the proposals are intended to provide relief to New Yorkers who are facing some of the highest utility costs in the country.

“As New Yorkers faced down a brutally cold winter, we also paid among the highest utility rates in the country,” Heastie said. “The assembly majority is committed to bringing those rates down.”

Heastie said the assembly’s budget proposal includes several measures designed to ease costs for residents.

“This budget will put money back into New Yorkers’ pockets while working on comprehensive solutions to bring rates down,” he said.

Across the city, energy insecurity remains widespread, with roughly 30 percent of New Yorkers unable to meet their household energy needs, according to a report published by the New York City Comptroller’s Office under former Comptroller Brad Lander.

The burden is particularly severe in the Bronx. In 2024, 55 percent of Bronx households fell behind on their utility payments and 32 percent experienced a utility shutoff.

“Including my legislation in our Assembly One-House Budget Resolution while repealing the law that created the Utility Intervention Unit demonstrates to ratepayers that we’re serious about making sure their interests are represented when utility companies, who year after year make billions in profits, seek to get approval to increase their rates,” Dinowitz said.

The assembly proposal will now be negotiated with the State Senate and Gov. Kathy Hochul as lawmakers work toward adopting a final state budget later this year.

Among the most immediate forms of relief in the proposal are rebate payments known as Protecting Our Wallets Energy Rebate, or POWER checks. Under the plan, residential ratepayers earning less than $150,000 would receive a $500 check, while households with incomes between $150,000 and $300,000 would
receive $300.

Lawmakers estimate the program would provide roughly $2.6 billion in relief to residents statewide.