2026-11-04 · contested story
Hochul, Blakeman clash over energy costs, fracking and nuclear in governor
In New York's only 2026 gubernatorial debate, incumbent Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul and Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, clashed over how to keep electricity affordable as demand rises and the state's utility bills rank among the nation's highest. Hochul touted an 'all of the above' strategy pairing renewables with new nuclear power, energy rebate checks of up to $200, and a data center moratorium, while blaming Trump's tariffs and the war with Iran for rising costs. Blakeman pledged to cut utility bills in half by lifting the fracking ban to tap the Marcellus Shale, reopening the shuttered Indian Point nuclear plant, and rolling back clean energy surcharges he called a 'green energy scam.' The debate unfolds against a broader backdrop in which even Hochul herself has moved to weaken the state's landmark 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, citing affordability.
How each side frames it
left
"state data shows that decarbonization programs account for only a portion of residential electricity costs. A 2025 Public Service Commission report found that measures mandated by New York's Climate Act made up between 5 and 9.5 percent of a typical monthly residential electric bill in 2024."
"it's galling to see how New York Gov. Kathy Hochul gutted New York's Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act"
"The main effect of these proposed changes is to allow the Hochul administration to do nothing for at least the next four years... The only beneficiaries would be Hochul along with gas utilities and corporate polluters."
"The rub in all of this is the Hochul administration is trying to sell this as an affordability issue, that somehow the state's climate law is responsible for high utility bills. Nothing could be further from the truth."
"by grounding climate action in the everyday math of household energy bills, Democrats may have finally found a way to make climate policy feel less abstract — and more like a winning issue."
center
"Hochul rejected Blakeman's proposals, calling his approach unrealistic and extreme. "I don't pretend to say energy costs are going to be slashed in half on Day One," Hochul said."
"The GOP candidate for governor has made slashing energy costs a centerpiece of his campaign. But he's presented no plan for how to do it."
"Most experts believe the biggest driver of high utility rates is aging infrastructure that has long been neglected and needs to be upgraded."
"She also slowed down the state's timeline for phasing in green energy sources, angering some environmentalists. She's proposing permitting New York's first nuclear power plant in generations as a way to meet energy demands."
"Blakeman said he would cut utility bills in half by rolling back clean energy surcharges on electric bills, ending restrictions on natural gas production and lifting Hochul's moratorium on data centers."
right
"Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman drilled Gov. Kathy Hochul Tuesday — saying green energy policies were "bankrupting" New Yorkers."
""I would extract the natural gas from the Marcellus Shale," he said... "We'll get rid of that green energy scam.""
""On the Pennsylvania side of the border, people are driving around in brand-new Cadillac Escalades," Blakeman said. "And on the New York side of the border, they're driving around 25-year-old rusted-out pickup trucks because of your policies.""
"a recent report from the think tank the Empire Center for Public Policy, which found natural gas could slash heating costs during the winter, dropping average New York prices to about $131 per month from October to March. Electric heating — which most of the state depends on — would cost about $550 per month"
"Her plan scapegoats energy companies and pushes a Mamdani-esque theory that electricity is expensive because executives travel too much."
What each side left out
The right left out — covered by the Inside Climate News & CBS News
- State PSC data showing Climate Act mandates are only 5-9.5% of residential electric bills
- The role of the Iran war and global gas markets in driving up costs
The right left out — covered by the Politico & Inside Climate News
- That new onshore renewables are cheaper to build than other forms of power
The left left out — covered by the New York Post & Politico
- The specifics of Blakeman's fracking/nuclear proposal and the Empire Center cost estimates
- That some upstate Democrats and farmers also blame climate policy for cost increases
The left left out — covered by the New York Post & Inside Climate News
- That fracking was banned in NY in 2014 and codified in 2021, making Blakeman's promise legally difficult to deliver
The center left out — covered by the Common Dreams & Los Angeles Times
- The moral/scientific stakes of weakening the Climate Act (methane accounting change)
- That Hochul's donors include energy company executives pushing the accounting change
The right left out — covered by the New York Focus & Inside Climate News
- That Blakeman has offered 'few other details' of how he'd cut bills in half
- The data center moratorium's rationale of requiring facilities to 'bring their own power'
What's actually true?
[verified] Average residential electricity bills in New York rose 10 percent from 2024 to 2025, and the state has the eighth-highest residential electricity prices in the country.
[verified] A 2025 Public Service Commission report found Climate Act mandates made up between 5 and 9.5 percent of a typical monthly residential electric bill in 2024.
[verified] Fracking was banned statewide in New York in 2014 by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, with the ban codified in 2021.
[verified] Hochul sent energy rebate checks of up to $200 to 8.2 million households, part of roughly $1 billion in rebates.
[verified] Hochul proposed revising the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, delaying implementation and switching from a 20-year to a 100-year methane accounting method.
[contested] A NYSERDA report concluded that implementing the law to meet 2030 targets would lead upstate households relying on oil and gas to see costs in excess of $4,000 a year.
[verified] New onshore renewables are cheaper to build than other forms of power.
[unverified] ConEd bills in New York City climbed 27% between 2021 and 2025, from about $160 to $218 per month, and NYSEG customers upstate saw bills rise 46%.
The narrative clash
How much climate mandates contribute to utility bills
Left: A 2025 Public Service Commission report found that measures mandated by New York's Climate Act made up between 5 and 9.5 percent of a typical monthly residential electric bill in 2024.
Right: He said taxes, delivery fees, and charges for offshore wind and solar farms make up 70% of a monthly utility bill.
Whether Blakeman can realistically cut utility bills in half
Left: The GOP candidate for governor has made slashing energy costs a centerpiece of his campaign. But he's presented no plan for how to do it.
Right: Blakeman has made energy costs a centerpiece of his campaign, vowing to slash utility bills in half... natural gas could slash heating costs during the winter, dropping average New York prices to about $131 per month
The primary cause of rising energy costs
Left: It is the war with Iran. Everything is more expensive. The cost of gas, the cost of diesel that powers many of our plants
Right: green energy initiatives to build wind and solar farms... have landed New York with the third-highest energy bills in the country
Whether weakening the climate law lowers costs
Left: The only beneficiaries would be Hochul along with gas utilities and corporate polluters. These proposals will do nothing to benefit New Yorkers.
Right: Anyone who had hoped Governor Kathy Hochul would use the state budget to do something about high prices and New York's unreasonable climate deadlines looks to be in for a disappointment.
What is actually driving New Yorkers' electricity bills
Left: Climate mandates are a small slice of the bill; blaming the Climate Act for high rates misstates the state's own data.
Right: Green energy policy is the cause of the price spike and is financially crushing ratepayers.
94 sources analyzed
The New Republic Inside Climate News ABC News 10 Vermont New York Post The New York Sun The Damage Report Politico New York Focus Just The News Fox News Mother Jones Los Angeles Times ABC 7 New York Boston Herald Fox News The Daily Beast The Washington Post Newsday Just The News National Review Common Dreams Los Angeles Times CBS News Boston Herald The New York Sun The New Republic PBS NewsHour Just The News City Journal Vox Los Angeles Times Reason The New York Sun The New Republic NBC News Investor's Business Daily Newsmax MSNBC NBC News Just The News The Federalist Mother Jones PBS NewsHour Richmond Times-Dispatch City Journal Common Dreams NPR Richmond Times-Dispatch National Review Vox NBC News Reason National Review Common Dreams CNN Boston Herald The Daily Signal Mother Jones NPR Investor's Business Daily Newsmax The Daily Beast Los Angeles Times New York Post The New York Sun Common Dreams PBS NewsHour Boston Herald City Journal The Daily Beast USA Today Reason The Federalist Vox CNN New York Post City Journal Mother Jones The Washington Post Reason The Federalist The Boston Globe CNN The Center Square Newsmax The New Republic PBS NewsHour Richmond Times-Dispatch The Daily Signal Vox USA Today The Center Square National Review The Boston Globe