New York looks to be waffling on its commitment to ditch fossil fuels in new buildings.<\/p>\n
In July, the state became the first in the nation<\/a> to require all-electric appliances for most new construction. The rules, set to take effect on Dec. 31, would help New York reach its climate goals while slashing energy and health costs<\/a> for its residents, according to several analyses. Modeling by the state\u2019s grid operator shows that the grid can handle the added demand from electrifying new buildings.<\/p>\n But last week, 19 state assemblymembers \u2014 all Democrats \u2014 sent a letter<\/a> to Gov. Kathy Hochul arguing that the all-electric building standard threatens affordability and the grid isn\u2019t ready.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile I share the long-term goal of decarbonizing our state, I believe the imminent requirement to mandate all-electric new buildings must be paused pending thorough reassessment of grid reliability, cost impacts, and risk mitigation,\u201d wrote Assemblymember William Conrad, who led the petition.<\/p>\n Delaying implementation would buck a timeline set by the 2023 All-Electric Buildings Act, the law that required the state to put together rules for zero-emissions construction.<\/p>\n Cost of living takes center stage<\/p>\n Hochul, a Democrat, said at a recent press event that she would seriously consider the assemblymembers\u2019 request. \u201cI’m going to look at this with a very realistic approach and do what I can because my No. 1 focus is affordability right now, because New Yorkers are suffering too much.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is purely a political maneuver,\u201d said Michael Hernandez, New York policy director at electrification advocacy nonprofit Rewiring America. \u201cThese Democrats\u201d \u2014 many in districts considered flippable \u2014 \u201care working with fossil-fuel interests and building developers to try to delay the All-Electric Buildings Act, \u2026 a state law that was enacted through the democratic process.\u201d<\/p>\n For instance, National Fuel, which supplies gas to about 500,000 households in western New York, has funded a lobbying campaign<\/a> against bans on the fuel.<\/p>\n For her part, Hochul has a \u201ctroubling track record on climate,\u201d said Elizabeth Moran, New York policy advocate at nonprofit Earthjustice. The governor has paused or indefinitely delayed<\/a> initiatives she once championed, from congestion pricing<\/a> and electric school buses<\/a> to the signature policy to implement the state\u2019s 2019 climate law: an emissions-pricing program known as cap-and-invest<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are seeing tremendous misinformation from the fossil-fuel industry,\u201d Moran said. \u201cThe governor should not cave to the fearmongering of an industry that is only interested in its own profits.\u201d<\/p>\n Last month, a judge found the state violated the law<\/a> when it slammed the brakes on the cap-and-invest program \u2014 a case that could serve as a template should Hochul issue an executive order to delay implementing the All-Electric Buildings Act.<\/p>\n Hernandez pointed out that the all-electric law proceeds in a phased way, initially affecting new structures up to seven stories tall and, for commercial and industrial buildings, up to 100,000 square feet. Bigger buildings won\u2019t be subject to the requirement until 2029.<\/p>\n Moreover, the law exempts projects if the grid can\u2019t accommodate them within a reasonable window of time. The Department of Public Service has proposed that builders can use fossil-fuel systems if utility upgrades for all-electric construction would tack on 18 months or more to the development process, compared with a mixed-fuel project.<\/p>\n Several analyses show that all-electric buildings are more affordable<\/a> than those with both electricity and gas or other fossil fuels. Building all-electric homes in New York may cost more up-front<\/a>, but a 2024 state report<\/a> shows the payback period is 10 years or less, thanks to the benefits of superefficient electric appliances, like heat pumps<\/a> and heat-pump water heaters<\/a>. Over 30 years, households will save on average about $5,000, the report finds.<\/p>\n A 2025 study<\/a> by climate-policy think tank Switchbox that considers mortgage payments, gas hookup costs, and fuel costs, as well as the loss of federal electrification incentives<\/a>, found even bigger savings: an average of $12,050 over 15 years for households living in newly built, all-electric single-family homes instead of ones heated with gas or propane.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Building Code Council, by law, can only update the building code if it’s cost-effective,\u201d Hernandez said.<\/p>\n Can the grid support lots of new electric homes?<\/p>\n In their letter, the assemblymembers expressed concern about the grid\u2019s ability to handle electrification of new buildings, citing reliability assessments from the state\u2019s grid operator, the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO).<\/p>\n However, that fear is \u201cbased on a limited methodology that is not designed to identify blackout risks … and is based on a variety of extreme assumptions for which NYISO does not present factual support,\u201d said Michael Lenoff, senior attorney at Earthjustice. NYISO\u2019s projections \u201cdon\u2019t justify delaying the All-Electric Buildings Act.\u201d<\/p>\n NYISO uses two approaches to determine if it will be able to procure enough power for the grid in the coming years, Lenoff explained. One approach ignores common strategies to balance supply and demand, like utilizing backup systems called operating reserves, recruiting customers to voluntarily use less energy, and tapping emergency assistance from neighboring states. The method also assumes delays in major transmission projects, like the Champlain Hudson Power Express<\/a>, even though NYISO reports<\/a> that the transmission line \u201cis nearing completion\u201d and is scheduled to enter service in May of 2026.<\/p>\n As one might expect, this first approach paints a pessimistic picture, spurring NYISO to call for procuring more resources to supply power.<\/p>\n Under NYISO\u2019s second approach \u2014 the industry standard to determine adequate power supply \u2014 the operator in fact finds that it will have plenty of planned generation resources<\/a> to meet demand through 2034, even if the All-Electric Buildings Act is fully implemented. The blackout risk generally considered acceptable, striking a balance between greater security and higher costs to customers, is one event in 10 years. NYISO estimates that its risk in 2034 will be about one blackout in 20 years<\/a> \u2014 twice as protective as the norm, Lenoff said. It\u2019s even more protective in the years leading up to that.<\/p>\n \u201cProcuring resources when industry-standard reliability metrics indicate the system is already overprotected risks gold-plating the system at consumers\u2019 expense,\u201d Lenoff said.<\/p>\n In its 2025 Power Trends report<\/a>, which the letter directly references, NYISO also determined that building electrification is not a concern in the short term; rather, energy-hungry customers \u2014 namely hyperscalers<\/a> and cryptocurrency miners \u2014 are.<\/p>\n \u201cIf the lawmakers are concerned about grid capacity and energy affordability, they should prioritize reining in large energy users like data centers and crypto-mines rather than cutting back on electrification,\u201d Lenoff said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s a commonsense policy that will save people money while cutting climate pollution.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New York looks to be waffling on its commitment to ditch fossil fuels in new buildings. 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