NRDC: NY HEAT Act Can Save Billions on Increasingly Obsolete Infrastructure

Rising utility bills and affordability are top of mind for many New Yorkers.

But what if those high bills aren’t just a result of market prices or bad weather, but actually baked into the system by outdated laws?

Right now, utilities across the state are required to spend billions maintaining and expanding fossil gas infrastructure—even as the state tries to move away from fossil fuels altogether.

It’s a system that many experts say is locking us into decades of unnecessary costs and pollution. Some advocates say the New York Home Energy Affordable Transition Act—or NY HEAT for short—could change all that.

Its goal is to give utilities the flexibility to invest in cleaner, more cost-effective energy solutions like building electrification, instead of more gas pipes and service lines.

Christopher Casey is Utility Regulatory Director for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in New York. He’s been closely tracking the state’s utility spending and advocating for smarter, more affordable ways to power our homes and buildings.

Image: Advocates and hundreds of New Yorkers in Albany, New York, to urge the state assembly to pass the NY HEAT Act, February 2025. (Credit: Renewable Heat Now (RHN))