energy

Retreat on the Climate Law Is Tone Deaf & Foolhardy

/ Peter Bardaglio / Leave a comment

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s ongoing effort to slow key elements of New York’s renewable-energy transition could not come at a more tone-deaf moment. Across the United States, solar and wind power are accelerating at record pace, costs continue to decline, and the clean-energy economy is rapidly becoming one of the nation’s strongest engines of investment and job growth. New York, once positioned as a national climate leader, now seems to be drifting backward.

The contrast is striking.

The Boom in Renewable Energy

In March 2026, renewable energy sources generated more electricity nationally than gas for the first full month in U.S. history. Analysts project that 93% of all new electric-generating capacity added in 2026 will come from solar, wind, and battery storage. Even amid full-scale political attacks on clean energy at the federal level, market forces continue propelling renewables forward because they are increasingly cheaper, faster to deploy, and more attractive to investors than fossil fuels.

Meanwhile, Gov. Hochul has proposed delaying or weakening parts of New York’s landmark 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), the law that established ambitious mandates for renewable electricity and greenhouse-gas reductions. Her administration argues that the changes are necessary to address affordability concerns and implementation challenges.

Rising utility bills are a legitimate public concern, especially for working families already stretched thin by inflation. But retreating from renewable energy is the wrong response.

The real problem is not that New York has embraced clean energy too aggressively. The problem is that the state has moved too slowly to build the infrastructure needed to make the transition work. Transmission bottlenecks, permitting delays, regulatory complexity, deferred maintenance, and years of indecision have hindered progress on offshore wind, solar expansion, and grid modernization. Delaying climate targets now risks compounding those failures rather than effectively addressing them.

Pulling Back from Renewables Wrong Move

New York’s clean-energy goals reflect the realities of climate science, economic competition, and public health. Extreme weather, flooding, heat waves, and air pollution already impose enormous costs on communities across the state. Pulling back from renewable energy will not insulate New Yorkers from those costs; it will worsen them over time.

Furthermore, the state risks losing economic leadership at precisely the moment when clean energy is becoming a dominant global industry. Texas, not exactly the most progressive state when it comes to climate action, now leads the nation in wind generation and ranks near the top in solar deployment because it prioritized transmission expansion and streamlined project development. Other states are aggressively competing for manufacturing plants, battery facilities, and renewable-energy investment. If New York signals policy uncertainty, investors and developers will simply move elsewhere.

Ironically, backing away from renewables will ultimately increase energy costs rather than reduce them. Fossil-fuel markets remain volatile and vulnerable to geopolitical shocks. Solar and wind, by contrast, have no fuel costs once installed. Over time, a diversified renewable grid paired with battery storage offers greater price stability and energy independence.

None of this means the state should ignore affordability concerns. It should reassess how costs are distributed, expand energy-efficiency programs, protect low-income households, and accelerate grid upgrades. But there is a profound difference between improving implementation and abandoning ship.

New Yorkers should remember that the state has often provided critical leadership on such progressive reforms as labor protections, environmental stewardship, and public-health reform. The transition to clean energy is another such moment. History will not look kindly on leaders who failed to provide the necessary leadership to facilitate this transition.

Gov. Hochul still has time to change course. Rather than pursuing the foolhardy move to weaken climate commitments, she should focus on fixing the bureaucratic and infrastructure failures that have slowed progress. The clean-energy transition is happening whether New York participates fully or not. The only real question is whether the state intends to take part in that future or just sit on the sidelines.

The New York Draft Energy Plan Falls Woefully Short

/ Peter Bardaglio / Leave a comment

It wasn’t that long ago New York achieved national prominence for its ambitious renewable energy push. But with NYSERDA’s recent release of its draft energy plan state officials are openly acknowledging that New York will fail to meet the clean energy targets mandated by the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2018. The state climate law stipulates that 70% of the energy produced in New York should be zero-emissions by 2030.

The plan recognizes the need for more renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions reductions. To say the least, however, it sends a disappointing message by calling for continued reliance on fossil fuels as well as new investments in new natural gas pipelines and the repowering of fossil fuel plants.

The plan also concludes that New York’s goal of reaching a 40% reduction in emissions from 1990s levels by 2030 is probably not achievable. So far the state has only reduced its emissions by 10% with just five years to go.

Not surprisingly, the plan blames some of the state’s failures on the increasingly aggressive opposition to renewable energy by the Trump administration, but as environmental activists point out, the state was already behind before these attacks.

To its credit, the plan calls for accelerating the deployment of energy efficiency measures such as home weatherization and power-saving appliances. According to its projections, up to 25% of homes by 2040 will have heat pumps and over half the cars could be zero-emission vehicles.

The plan also seeks to increase solar power and battery storage, and notes that New York could increase its renewable electricity generation by 80% over the next 10 years. Of course, the Trump administration’s irrational effort to pull the plug on offshore wind casts a shadow over this possibility.

With the right kind of strong, visionary leadership, New York could accelerate its adoption of solar energy, battery storage, and geothermal energy while retiring its fossil fuel system and electrifying transportation and buildings. The key problem clearly lies with Gov. Kathy Hochul’s reluctance to meet the moment and provide such leadership.

Thousands of comments have been submitted by the public focusing on the flaws in the draft energy plan and its lack of commitment to the CLCPA. Later this year, the state will publish a final plan. Let’s hope it responds to these comments, keeping New York on the path to a renewable energy future.

Let’s Keep the Inflation Reduction Act Powering Upstate New York

/ Peter Bardaglio / Leave a comment

The following was originally published in the Ithaca Times on April 20, 2025.

Upstate New York has always been a place where hard work and innovation go hand in hand, going back to the building of the Erie Canal. Now, thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), our region is seeing a surge in clean energy investments that are creating jobs, lowering energy costs, and strengthening local economies.

The IRA Drives Economic Benefits

We can see firsthand how federal policies like the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) are driving tangible benefits for our communities.Ithaca’s groundbreaking plan to decarbonize the city’s buildings, for example, is tapping into federal incentives to make the transition affordable and sustainable.

Meanwhile, the IRA’s Rural Energy for America program is helping farms and small businesses across the Southern Tier invest in energy efficiency upgrades and clean energy projects for affordable energy they can generate on their own land.

Key to Private Investment Growth

Throughout our region and the nation, clean energy projects are delivering economic growth and hundreds of new jobs. Since the passage of the IRA, the U.S. has added more than 400,000 new clean energy jobs and seen over $422 billion in private investment. And in New York alone, federal clean energy tax credits have driven $115.47 billion in investments and created nearly 29,000 jobs since they were passed. Here in our region, the impact is clear: new, good-paying jobs in manufacturing, more reliable, locally-produced clean energy, and strengthened economic opportunities in both urban and rural communities. Despite this momentum, some in Washington want to roll back these critical investments. Repealing clean energy tax credits would mean turning away billions in future investment, increasing energy costs for businesses and families, and slowing the progress we have worked so hard to achieve.

That’s why we need Rep. Josh Riley, Rep. Nick Langworthy, and Rep. Claudia Tenney to stand up for Upstate New York and protect the Inflation Reduction Act. Our region is already seeing the benefits, and by maintaining this momentum, we can build a future that is both economically and environmentally resilient. Now is the time to double down on our progress, like the early canal builders, not turn back.