Westchester County leaders fighting back against Con Edison's proposed rate hikes
Town and county leaders across Westchester are taking action against proposed rate hikes with Con Edison.
Town and county leaders across Westchester are taking action against proposed rate hikes with Con Edison.
Ardsley neighbor Rachael Methal says life can already get expensive enough.
"I feel very privileged to live here but it grows increasingly difficult," says Methal.
Included in that is her bill with Con Edison.
"Certainly in the last few months, its gone up about 40%, I noticed," Methal explains.
Methal says that's about $400 more a month.
Come next year, it could be even pricier. Con Edison is proposing rate hikes of 11.4% for electric bills and around 13.3% for gas.
"Increases are never good, especially with what's going on now with inflation and everything," says Westchester County resident Joseph Leone.
That's why Westchester County is fighting back.
"It's the way to ensure that Westchester has its moment in court, has its ability to push back on these rate increases," says Westchester County Legislator David Imamura.
The Board of Legislators voted to join a major rate case on Monday night.
Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins took action on Tuesday afternoon.
"I signed legislation that the Board of Legislators approved unanimously to get us engaged in the intervening which means we have a seat at the table," says Jenkins.
In a release from the county, it says this action from legislators and Jenkins will ensure a powerful voice in the rate case proceedings.
“While we all recognize the need for reliable energy and infrastructure improvements, passing excessive costs onto consumers—especially without transparency and accountability—is simply unacceptable. By signing this legislation, we are making it clear that Westchester County will not back down from protecting our residents," says Jenkins.
The Town of Greenburgh is looking at joining a similar battle.
"They would hire an attorney who is specialized in utility rate cases who could help us effectively fight the proposed rate hikes," says Greenburgh town supervisor Paul Feiner.
A spokesperson with Con Edison released the following statement:
“Con Edison is acutely aware of the issue of affordability, which is why last year we provided $300 million of bill discounts to low-income customers in our energy assistance programs. We will continue enrolling all eligible customers and advocate for policy changes to make utility bills more affordable. Nearly 27 percent of the proposed electric revenue increase and about 14.5 percent of the proposed gas revenue increase are a result of the estimated new property taxes on energy infrastructure paid by our customers in 2026. We welcome the opportunity to work with policy makers on solutions that could direct that tax revenue back to low-income customers to provide bill relief or support clean energy programs.
We also have a responsibility to continue to safely and efficiently deliver the nation’s most reliable power while complying with state laws and regulations. That means fortifying the grid in the face of increasingly severe weather, supporting the state’s clean energy goals, and the workforce we need to conduct ongoing maintenance and swiftly respond to customer service calls. Con Edison stands ready to work with stakeholders and the public to balance all these priorities and continue to deliver safe, reliable power while using our customers’ dollars as efficiently as possible.”
