Monticello

To the editor:

If you had $3,378 to spare, how would you spend it? Low to moderate-income households in Sullivan County pay this much on average for energy bills in a year, representing 13% of their income. This is one of the highest energy burden rates in the state, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Low-Income Energy Affordability Data. In this study, low to moderate-income households are those whose income is at or below 80% of the area median household income for their county. Energy burden is the percentage of a household’s income that goes towards energy bills.

The NY Build Public Renewables Act (BPRA) would fight this energy affordability crisis. The act proposes the New York Public Authority (NYPA) build and sell renewable energy to low to moderate-income households at a 50% discount. The NYPA is well-positioned to carry out this proposal without costing taxpayers anything and maintaining its high-quality bond-rating—accomplishing what the private sector has struggled to do. Furthermore, the act would allow NYPA to access a substantial amount of federal money through the Inflation Reduction Act, which will expire in 2032.

The Build Public Renewables Act has already sailed through the Senate, but it is currently stuck in the Assembly for the second year in a row. I urge my Assemblymember Aileen Gunther to cosponsor this bill and help protect her constituents from the crises of energy unaffordability and climate catastrophe.