OPINION: Building Electrification Ruling: Latest Gut Punch To New York Residents

New York State has an energy problem, and it seems to be getting worse by the day. The latest setback for New Yorkers came by way of a recent court ruling clearing the way for the state to impose a wildly burdensome and costly new requirement [under the 2023 All-Electric Building Act] that nearly all new buildings seven stories or less must be built using zero-emission appliances and heating. The shortcomings of the plan to fully electrify the state have been well documented. Most notably, Cornell University Professor Lindsay Anderson and her team recently built out a projection model based on New York’s actual energy usage, transmission infrastructure, and weather and found we will have nowhere near enough energy to power New York under the requirements of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), which is the blueprint for the state’s energy plans. Not only is the CLCPA inadequate, it’s also extremely costly. For example, earlier this year, cost estimates for just one component of the law, a requirement that all school buses must be zero-emission by 2035, range between $8 billion and $15.25 billion. Now, building contractors are going to be in the same boat as school districts — being forced to spend huge amounts of money to follow an unworkable mandate that most people don’t even want. And like the school-bus mandate, the incoming cost increases are going to be passed down to you. The true impact of the court ruling [in favor of the all-electric building mandate] was summed up succinctly by Donna Ciancio of the Southern Tier Homebuilders and Remodelers Association, who said there is real concern the mandate is going to discourage new home construction, especially in communities that already don’t see a ton of construction activity. And Buffalo Niagara Building Association President Phil Nanula, who is also president of Essex Homes, added, “New York State ... it’s been difficult to get anyone to really listen to any logic on the problems that this poses to us as builders. It was going to create about a $20,000 increase in the cost to build a home.” They’re right, and laws like this are a major reason why New York has a massive outmigration problem. A lack of new homes means diminished economic activity, which will drive away businesses, tourists, and taxpayers. It’s hard to ignore the irony of imposing costly mandates on construction when lawmakers and experts on both sides agree New York is already facing a housing crisis. Young people are having a terribly hard time finding homes as it is. Affordable housing in nearly every region of the state is at a critical level. And the plan is to make it more expensive to buy a home. How does that make any sense? As I have repeatedly stated, clean, reliable, and diverse energy sources are critical to the future of New York, and I support measures to reasonably mitigate our carbon footprint. But there is nothing reasonable about passing an energy plan with no price tag or guarantee of dependability. It feels like New Yorkers have less choice every day, and this [mandated all-electric building] policy being upheld in court is just the latest example of how little say we have in our economic and energy future. 

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William (Will) A. Barclay, 56, Republican, is the New York Assembly minority leader and represents the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses all of Oswego County, as well as parts of Jefferson and Cayuga counties.