Again, I’m not against “green” energy: I’m all for it, as long as it is affordable, dependable, and reliable. Oh, and that it doesn’t create an environmental (meaning, not climate scam) mess
States have big hopes for renewable energy. Get ready to pay for it.
A generational push to tackle climate change in New York is quickly becoming a pocketbook issue headed into 2024.
Some upstate New York electric customers are already paying 10 percent of their utility bill to support the state’s effort to move off fossil fuels and into renewable energy. In the coming years, people across the state can expect to give up even bigger chunks of their income to the programs — $48 billion in projects is set to be funded by consumers over the next two decades.
The scenario is creating a headache for New York Democrats grappling with the practical and political risk of the transition.
It’s an early sign of the dangers Democrats across the country will face as they press forward with similar policies at the state and federal level. New Jersey, Maryland and California are also wrestling with the issue and, in some cases, are reconsidering their ambitious plans.
“This is bad politics. This is politics that are going to hurt all New Yorkers,” said state Sen. Mario Mattera, a Long Island Republican who has repeatedly questioned the costs of the state’s climate law and who will pay for it.
Democrats, Mattera said, have been unable to explain effectively the costs for the state’s goals. “We need to transition into renewable energy at a certain rate, a certain pace,” he said.
Places like NYC, Albany, and Buffalo, among others, should be forced to implement these green energy sources: let’s see how well they do, and how well the mostly Democratic party voting residents enjoy it. Seriously, can you imagine NYC running on pure renewable? With all those skyscrapers? Good luck! What they really need is their own gen 5 or 6 nuclear power plant.
Proponents say the switch will ultimately lower energy bills by harnessing the sun and wind, result in significant health benefits and — critically — help stave off the most devastating climate change scenarios. And they hope federal money from the Inflation Reduction Act, celebrating its one-year anniversary, can limit costs to consumers.
When will it lower bills? Reporters almost never ask politicians this as mostly left-wing politicians mandate this stuff, a vast over-reach of their authority. Where’s that money for the IRA coming from?
Even Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who is fond of saying that “we’re the last generation to be able to do anything” about climate change, last spring balked at the potential price tag of a policy to achieve New York’s climate targets. And she’s not the only top member of her party to say so.
“If it’s all just going to be passed along to the ratepayers — at some point, there’s a breaking point, and we don’t want to lose public support for this agenda,” state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, a Democrat, warned in an interview. (snip)
New York City “supports efforts to transform our electric system away from fossil fuels to sustainable, carbon-free technologies,” a lawyer for Mayor Eric Adams’ administration wrote in recent comments on a potential new clean energy subsidy. “However, the City is very concerned that the cost of utility service is becoming unaffordable for many New Yorkers.”
Unaffordable, huh? Democrats are gung ho about this stuff in theory, but, as soon as it become practice, well, their tune tends to change.
Of course, the bigwigs will still push this stuff, and the bureaucrats won’t let them stop. And since New Yorkers, and other Blue state residents, will continue to vote Democrat, their power bills will continue to skyrocket. They’re getting what they voted for.
A study released by the state’s utility regulators last summer found Murphy’s clean energy policies could increase rates by 10 percent to 20 percent unless people use less energy, buy an electric car and rip out their natural gas appliances to install new electric appliances.
So, unless you are forced to do these things, reduce the standard of your life, you’ll pay through the nose. And, even if you do these things, you’ll pay through the nose since two of those things require the use of more electricity.
Read: Politico: Say, You Know All That Green Energy? Someone Has To Pay For It »