New York state electricity prices are the sixth highest in the U.S., according to data released Wednesday from the conservative think tank Empire Center for Public Policy and the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The data showed the state’s average residential electricity price reached 28.4 cents per kilowatt-hour in the month of January, 11 cents higher than the national average. Prices rose 3.6% from December and were up 12% year over year, the data found.
States with higher prices included California, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
“Even before the war in Iran, New Yorkers were suffering from some of the highest electricity prices in the U.S. Instead of complaining about the Trump administration and data centers, state legislators should be looking in the mirror and focusing on what they are doing that makes electricity in New York more expensive than in nearly every other state, including New Jersey and Pennsylvania,” said Zilvinas Silenas, president of the Empire Center.
State officials have placed blame on a number of factors for high prices while offering different solutions. Gov. Kathy Hochul has proposed reforming the Public Service Law, removing hidden utility fees and a “ratepayer protection plan” with the aim of reducing energy bills and building a reliable energy grid. In addition, she has proposed rollbacks to the state’s 2019 emissions-reducing climate law.
The Empire Center’s data said that New York’s electricity prices have consistently exceeded the U.S. average. The gap between the two narrowed steadily between 2001 and 2019, but since then, that trend has reversed.
When it comes to natural gas, New York prices fell slightly to $16 per thousand cubic feet, closely tracking the national trend while remaining 15% above the national average.