Nearly 1 million households are already enrolled, while the state estimates another 2.5 million are eligible but have not signed up. Hochul\u2019s administration says participants can save hundreds of dollars a year, with some households eligible for up to $500 in annual savings.<\/p>\n
\u201cBills are going up for everybody, and middle-class families who don\u2019t have other benefits available to them are being hardest hit,\u201d Hochul said.\n<\/p>\n
The program\u2019s eligibility was expanded in January to include households below the state median income, or below area median income in New York City, Westchester and Nassau counties. For Con Edison and National Grid NYC customers, that includes one-person households earning up to $113,400 and four-person households earning up to $162,000.<\/p>\n
The state is now launching a broader enrollment push using digital advertising, mail, email and text messages, along with outreach through community organizations, government agencies and utilities.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/DSC_0451.jpg\" "\\"NYC")
Gov. Kathy Hochul holds an informational flyer for New York\u2019s Energy Affordability Program during a visit to the Flatbush YMCA in Brooklyn on Wednesday. Photo\u00a0by Lloyd Mitchell<\/p>\n
The monthly discounts are separate from another Hochul affordability initiative that has become an issue in the governor\u2019s race \u2014 $1 billion in one-time energy rebate checks<\/a> that the state says will begin going out to 8.2 million eligible households Sept. 21.<\/p>\n Blakeman, the Nassau County executive and Republican nominee for governor, called those payments an \u201celection-year gimmick\u201d Tuesday and argued that one-time checks would do little to offset rising utility costs. His campaign also blamed Hochul for increases in electric bills, claims the campaign used to promote Blakeman\u2019s pledge to cut utility costs.<\/p>\n New York electricity prices have risen sharply in recent years, though an analysis by the New York Independent System Operator <\/a>points to a mix of factors, including natural gas prices, tightening power supplies<\/a>, aging infrastructure and grid investments.<\/p>\n Asked about the criticism Wednesday, Hochul said the $1 billion in rebates was negotiated with lawmakers in the spring and signed into law in May, and that state officials then needed time to determine who qualified.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s just the process,\u201d Hochul said. \u201cPeople are saying, \u2018Why don\u2019t we wait till next year?\u2019 I say, \u2018As soon as we\u2019re able to, we\u2019re doing it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n She made a similar argument Tuesday night on NY1\u2019s \u201cInside City Hall,<\/a>\u201d when host Errol Louis noted that the checks were set to arrive less than 50 days before the election. Hochul said the election should not stop her administration from providing relief that had already been approved in the state budget.<\/p>\n Hochul also picked up support Wednesday from the New York Working Families Party<\/a>, months after the progressive party declined to endorse her ahead of the Democratic primary.<\/p>\n A WFP representative told amNewYork that the endorsement followed a vote of the party\u2019s state committee but declined to disclose the tally. Announcing the endorsement Wednesday, WFP state director Jasmine Gripper said the party was urging New Yorkers to support Hochul and lieutenant governor nominee Adrienne Adams on the Working Families ballot line.<\/p>\n In February, ahead of the Democratic primary, the committee chose a placeholder rather than endorse Hochul or then-Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado. City & State reported<\/a> at the time, citing a person present for the vote, that Hochul received 3% of the weighted vote. WFP leaders disputed the reported totals but declined to provide their own. Delgado dropped out of the race<\/a> days later.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/DSC_0928.jpg\" "\\"NYC")
Hochul speaks with local residents at the Flatbush YMCA in Brooklyn on Wednesday. Photo\u00a0by Lloyd Mitchell<\/p>\n