New York State is expected to approve a $229 billion budget that includes a ban on the use of natural gas in new buildings and family homes.
Restaurants are exempt from the ban, which came in response to recommendations from the Climate Action Council.
Earlier this year, a ban on gas hookups in small new buildings went into effect in New York City, with a full ban to be implemented by 2027.
“Everyone knows we’ve seen the effects of climate change, the storms, the hurricanes coming to New York, record snow amounts,” Governor Kathy Hochul told reporters this past weekend.
“Our budget prioritizes nation-leading climate action that meets this moment with ambition and the commitment it demands,” she said.
But the ban, approved by Hochul and Democratic lawmakers in the “conceptual” budget deal, won’t affect the Governor’s Mansion in Albany, nor will Hochul be forced to change the gas stoves she uses in her own home in Buffalo.
Assembly Member Phillip Palmesano (R-Corning) told the NY Post that unless the state replaces natural gas with reliable energy alternatives, the state’s business sector could be affected.
“I will reiterate if businesses in New York can’t get an affordable and reliable energy supply in New York they’re gonna go someplace else where they can get it,” he warned.
Under the mandate, all new buildings up to seven stories will be required to go “all electric” by 2026. Larger buildings will have to meet the same requirement by 2029.
New Yorkers are not so happy with this new “ecology friendly” requirement, according to a February 2023 poll by Siena College.
According to the survey, 61 percent of registered voters oppose the new ban, and construction industry officials say the mandate could drive residents out of the state.
“People are apt to make choices of whether they are located in New York State or somewhere else and this will provide a further strain on the market until there’s certainty about the availability in the grid as we move forward, so that’s a real concern,” Joseph Hogan, vice president of building services at the Associated Contractors of New York State told the Post.
Last year, Hochul signed a state law banning the sale of gasoline-fueled automobiles by 2035.
