Staff Reports
The new Daymark Energy Advisors study is hard to ignore: revive the Constitution Pipeline and the Northeast could save billions on electricity bills. If Governor Kathy Hochul truly cares about affordability, she now has a clear choice. Act — or keep talking and watch New Yorkers keep paying more.
Daymark study: real dollars, not feel‑good promises
Daymark’s modeling says the 125‑mile Constitution Pipeline would cut roughly $5.8 billion in wholesale electric costs across New York and New England over 20 years, with about $3.0 billion of that going to New York consumers. The study also finds the line would reduce reliance on oil‑fired generation in severe winters and avoid tens of thousands of tons of CO2 in stress scenarios. That is the kind of straight math voters understand: cheaper power, fewer blackout risks, and more jobs where they’re needed.
Regulatory fight is back — and the clock is ticking
Federal regulators at FERC have reopened environmental review and plan to issue an assessment for public comment. That step matters: it sets the schedule and could decide whether a full Environmental Impact Statement is needed. At the same time, New York’s DEC and other state actors remain skeptical and have raised procedural objections in the state permitting process. President Donald Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have pushed the project, so this is now a federal‑state showdown over who puts ratepayers first.
Governor Hochul’s test: politics versus pocketbooks
Governor Hochul has made “affordability” her slogan, but words mean little when state regulators keep blocking projects that lower bills. If she truly wants to help families facing high energy costs, she can direct her team to work the permitting questions and find lawful paths to approval — not hide behind delay and vague “consideration.” The people of New York don’t need more political theater; they need cheaper heat and fewer emergency power runs.
What comes next and why voters should care
The immediate next steps are the FERC environmental assessment, the DEC’s 401 water‑quality review, and the public comment period — with lawsuits sure to follow from well‑funded environmental groups. Those are the mechanics. The real choice is political: will state leaders prioritize lower bills and greater reliability, or keep bowing to ideological purity that costs households real money? Governor Hochul can make the practical, popular move now and claim the win — or spend the rest of her term explaining why she chose politics over pocketbooks.
