New PPI Report Warns New York’s Climate Strategy Is Failing as Energy Costs Surge

November 25, 2025
Neel Brown

WASHINGTON — Today, the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) released a new report warning that New York is entering a climate and energy cost crisis as the state falls far behind its statutory decarbonization mandates. The report, “New York’s Climate Crossroads: Assuring Affordable Energy,” finds that New York’s current energy strategy is driving up costs for families, constraining reliable supply, and jeopardizing the political viability of the state’s climate agenda. PPI produced the analysis to help lawmakers, regulators, and stakeholders chart a practical path that aligns climate ambition with affordability and reliability.

Authored by Neel Brown, Managing Director at PPI, and John Kemp, an internationally recognized expert on energy markets and systems, the report outlines how New York is off track on key goals ranging from emissions reduction to renewable generation to offshore wind deployment. Distributed solar is the only measure on pace to meet statutory targets. According to the state’s own data, offshore wind and energy storage are classified as severely behind schedule, underscoring systemic challenges in the state’s planning and execution.

“New York set bold climate targets, but ignored the economic and technical realities required to achieve them,” said Brown. “The result is an energy system that is less reliable, more expensive, and now politically unsustainable. Unless policymakers course correct, the state risks turning a climate leadership story into a cautionary tale.”

Key takeaways from the report include:

New York’s emissions per capita are already among the nation’s lowest at 8.4 tons, more than 40% below the U.S. average.
Electricity prices are 44% higher than the national average, and residential rates have risen 36% since 2019, nearly three times faster than the rest of the country.
New York is behind on nearly every major climate mandate, including offshore wind, which is 1% operational, and energy storage, which is 8% operational toward 2030 goals. Only distributed solar is on track.
Fossil fuels still supply nearly half of New York’s electricity, and the closure of Indian Point erased a major source of zero-emission power, slowing the state’s progress.
Utilities are pursuing additional rate hikes of roughly 20%, driven by aging infrastructure, storm repairs, and rising operating costs, adding further pressure on households already facing higher energy bills.

The report highlights a growing collision between shrinking dispatchable power supply, state-driven increases in electricity demand, and rising ratepayer costs. The closure of the Indian Point nuclear facility removed a major source of zero-emission electricity, while state policies have blocked upgrades to aging natural gas plants and restricted natural gas pipeline capacity. These decisions have tightened supply and added cost pressures.

According to the analysis, residential electricity prices in New York have risen at nearly three times the national average since 2019. Utilities have requested further rate hikes of roughly 20%, citing infrastructure needs, storm recovery, and rising operating costs.

The authors outline a set of pragmatic considerations for policymakers, including shifting from technology mandates to outcome-driven policies, modernizing existing natural gas infrastructure to preserve reliability, and prioritizing affordability to maintain public support.

Read and download the report here.