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Albany – NYS Senator Liz Krueger and NYS Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, joined by 34 other NYS legislators, expressed their opposition to Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposal to use taxpayer- and ratepayer-funded subsidies to support the construction of new nuclear power plants in New York. Recent nuclear projects in the United States have gone billions of dollars over budget, fallen years behind schedule, and burdened ratepayers with significantly higher bills.

The elected officials submitted official comments, linked here, opposing the plan in response to the NYS Energy Research and Development Authority and the Public Service Commission (PSC) request for comments on New York’s Advanced Nuclear Policy Options Paper.

To cover the cost of a new nuclear facility, the State’s Policy Options paper suggested enormous surcharges on utility bills, taxpayer-funded construction grants, and public money that would also provide cost-overrun guarantees. The PSC estimated these subsidies could total $23.9 billion, likely an underestimate. New nuclear reactors would burden New Yorkers with higher electric bills while taking on the risk of paying billions in cost overruns.

“The idea that new nuclear generation is a realistic or even a desirable option for New York is just divorced from reality,” said Senator Krueger. “We need new generation now, not 15 or 20 years from now, and we need to lower costs for ratepayers, not saddle them with billions of dollars of liabilities that will drive up their rates for generations. Fortunately, the solution to both our affordability and our reliability needs is right in front of us – cheap, clean, fast-to-deploy renewable generation and storage paired with money-saving energy efficiency investments. Instead of wasting time and money chasing nuclear fantasies, let’s focus on what is already working in New York and around the world.”

“New York quite literally can’t afford to move forward with new, costly nuclear facilities,” said Assemblymember Simon. “Recent nuclear projects across the country have been plagued by massive cost overruns and delays, leaving ratepayers to pick up the tab. Overly optimistic assumptions about what new reactors will cost and how long they will take to build don’t begin to address the problem – New Yorkers face an energy affordability crisis now. Renewable energy is both cheaper and faster to deploy to scale. New York must prioritize its expansion.”

The last nuclear facility built in New York was the Shoreham nuclear power plant on Long Island, which cost roughly 85 times its original estimate and left Long Islanders with some of the highest utility bills in the country. Local ratepayers had already paid most of the $6 billion to build the facility before public backlash over safety concerns led to it being decommissioned.

In Georgia–which built the first new nuclear reactor in the country in 30 years–the facility took 15 years to build, which was 7 years longer than planned, and cost more than double the original estimate to provide 2GW of power. The new nuclear generator led to a nearly 25% rate increase for Georgia Power customers. By comparison, over the past four years Texas has built 30GW of solar power and 6GW of storage for roughly the same cost as Georgia’s reactors.

In addition to being very expensive and taking a very long time to build, nuclear power is toxic and dangerous, generating hazardous waste and radioactive pollution while threatening catastrophic accidents. 84 years after the world’s first nuclear reactor was built in the U.S., there is still no solution for safe long-term disposal of radioactive waste. All that waste will remain a danger to New Yorkers, our environment, and our drinking water for many generations.

New York has better options than nuclear facilities, and the state legislators urged the Governor to invest in wind, solar, and thermal energy, which would meet the state’s energy needs sooner and at a lower cost.

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Albany – Today, 69 state legislators, including 33 senators and 36 Assembly members, led by Senator Liz Krueger and Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, released a letter to New York’s Congressional Delegation, urging them to reverse the nearly $200 billion in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that were implemented as part of H.R. 1, the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” The lawmakers also called for the reversal of changes to work requirements, eligibility, and other changes that place food assistance out of reach for many New Yorkers. The letter can be viewed here.

“With the cost of food and other basic necessities continually increasing as a direct result of policy decisions coming out of Washington, it is particularly perverse to implement a historically large cut to SNAP benefits,” said Senator Krueger. “Too many Americans  – especially children – are going hungry or having to choose between buying groceries and paying their utility bills. We are urging Congress to take action to reverse these cruel cuts to a program that has supported our neighbors in need for almost 90 years.”

“SNAP is a lifeline for nearly 3 million New Yorkers, including children, seniors, people with disabilities, and working families,” said Assemblymember González-Rojas. “These attacks on SNAP are coming at a time when communities like mine are already struggling to make ends meet, with families facing rising costs for groceries and other basic necessities. At a time like this, Congress should be making it easier, not harder, to put food on the table. These cuts will not only increase hunger, but they will also shift billions of dollars in costs onto New York’s counties, putting pressure on local budgets and taxpayers. We need Congress to reverse these harmful cuts, protect access to nutrition assistance, and make sure every New Yorker can afford the food they need to live with dignity.”

Nearly 3 million New Yorkers – the majority of whom are children, older adults, and people with disabilities – rely on SNAP benefits, and emergency food providers are experiencing unprecedented demand. H.R. 1 implemented the largest reductions to food assistance in modern history. The bill cut the federal share of SNAP administrative costs in half, from 50 percent to 25 percent, effective October 1, 2026. Under existing New York State law, counties must cover the state’s share of these costs. It is estimated that this administrative cost shift will cost New York’s counties $168 million annually, starting with $60 million in the fourth quarter of 2026 alone.

In addition to the administrative cost shift to the states, H.R. 1 also implemented the first-ever benefit cost shift to the states. Starting in October 2027, states will now be responsible for a percentage of the SNAP benefit amount for their residents, based on their error rate. Once again, due to New York State law, counties must cover the state’s share of these costs. The expected share for counties within the state to cover starting next year is $1.3 billion annually.

Unless these historic cuts are reversed, counties will be left with no choice but to raise taxes, cut other essential services, or reduce support for vulnerable New Yorkers. Several New York counties have already announced they are considering tax increases and/or leaving social services positions vacant to cover SNAP costs. Property taxes may have to be raised while more New Yorkers go hungry and food retailers and farmers lose income. Reversing the new benefits cost shift for SNAP is imperative to prevent increased hunger, property tax hikes, and harm to the broader economy.

“It is appalling that, at a time when New Yorkers are already struggling mightily to feed their families, the president and the current majorities in Congress – including seven members of the U.S. House from New York State – chose to implement the largest food aid cuts in U.S. history,” said Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, a national nonprofit group headquartered in New York. “That was both heartless and economically counterproductive. If states are forced to provide additional and unprecedented funding for SNAP, the State of New York, the City of New York, and counties statewide will be forced to further reduce food aid, cut other programs, and/or raise taxes. We applaud these state legislative leaders for making it clear that Congress needs to take immediate action to reverse these harmful cuts that impact hard working New Yorkers and Americans everywhere.”

The legislators also called on Congress to take immediate action to protect and strengthen SNAP by:

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