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It’s been six years. All residents – not just climate activists – are justified in asking New York’s political leaders this question: How, exactly, is the state planning to reach its goal of eliminating nearly all of New York’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050?

A groundbreaking piece of climate legislation that incorporates this noble aim, the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, was passed by the state in 2019, but the act itself does not have the power to reduce emissions without accompanying regulations that must be written, funded and implemented.

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Trump’s order specifically mentions New York’s Climate Superfund law, which the industry and Republican attorneys general have already challenged in court…New York’s landmark 2019 climate law has ambitious environmental justice protections and funding mandates alongside targets to slash greenhouse gas emissions. New York is also part of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which charges power plants for their carbon emissions and has withstood many legal challenges…NY Renews again called for Hochul to release those regulations in response to Trump’s executive order.

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Trump’s executive order is expected to add fuel to the ongoing court battles over the legislation at a time when many states, including California and New York, are struggling to meet mandates set by other laws to transition their power supplies away from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources, including wind and solar. The president’s order accuses New York and Vermont of seeking to “extort” money from fossil fuel companies for past greenhouse gas emissions and claims other states “have taken different approaches in an effort to dictate national energy policy.”

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Several environmental groups issued statements Wednesday condemning Trump’s executive order.

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Rochester is again leading the country, but not in ways we want. Our city has one of the highest child poverty rates in the country (over 40 percent in 2024), a median household income of just $46,000, and one of the worst asthma rates in the U.S. Last year, Rochester ranked as the second worst “Asthma Capital” in the country. Also, Rochester has now the third-highest in energy burden in the nation. At the same time, we are experiencing climate crises firsthand—wildfires, flash freezes, and polar vortices that destabilize our health and local economy.

In light of these challenges, New York has a unique opportunity to act this year to address the intertwined affordability, housing, public health, and job equity crises jointly through climate funding.

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A new report from the Fiscal Policy Institute, released today at the New York State Capitol.

The report reveals that between 550,000 and 1.1 million low- and moderate-income (LMI) households in New York State face significant barriers to accessing energy efficiency and electrification programs due to unresolved health and safety issues in their homes. The report, for which WE ACT 4 Change provided financial support, finds that a $200 million annual investment in the Green Affordable Pre-Electrification (GAP) Fund (S.3315/A.2101) could help remediate at least 10,000 homes per year, enabling them to qualify for critical energy efficiency upgrades.

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Most of us can’t close down the dirty “peaker” power plants scattered throughout the city, or make policy to ramp up the transition to renewable energy. Most of us aren’t able to incentivize and fund widespread electrification of the buildings that produce 70 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions in our city. But there is one parent who has more power than most: our Governor, Kathy Hochul. 

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Climate change is no longer a distant threat we sometimes experience in subway stations. It exists in every corner of our lives. It crept into my daily commute and is now seeping into my education.

Serving as TREEage’s Queens Borough Organizer for almost two years, I want students to find resilience in unpredictable climate moments and connect with other students through these shared challenges.

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It’s official: New York is being sued over delays in implementing its climate law.

Four environmental and climate justice groups filed a lawsuit Monday in a state court, claiming that New York is “stonewalling necessary climate action in outright violation” of its legal obligations. By not releasing economy-wide emissions rules, the suit alleges, the state Department of Environmental Conservation, or DEC, is “defying the Legislature’s clear directive” and “prolonging New Yorkers’ exposure to air pollution … especially in disadvantaged communities.”

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Labor, environmental, and community leaders from Rochester are urging Governor Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers to prioritize climate funding in the upcoming state budget, pointing to a delayed emissions cap program they say could unlock billions in revenue and benefit struggling New Yorkers.

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The crowd gathered on the corner of Mississippi and Perry Street, featuring several local climate organizers fueled by their anger with the Governor's recent decisions on certain climate legislation, and their outlook of the upcoming State budget deadline not prioritizing environmental policies.

PUSH Buffalo Climate Justice Organizer Dr. Majadi Baruti says actions such as an indefinite pause to the Cap-and-Invest program for fossil fuels, which was announced in Hochul’s State of the State address, have fractured trust from some.

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As the Trump administration wages a multi-front attack on federal environmental policies, Seventh Generation is stepping up its advocacy and defense of state laws that require polluters to pay for the negative impacts of climate change.

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NY HEAT lays the groundwork for a managed, equitable transition so that as more homes inevitably stop using gas, the remaining gas customers aren’t left footing skyrocketing bills. It also helps us transition away from energy sources that are inherently unpredictable, vulnerable to geopolitical conflicts and supply shortages. Electric heating solutions, such as heat pumps, are far more efficient and have proven to be safer than gas furnaces, cutting household energy use and insulating consumers from price spikes.

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By refusing to implement NYCI, Governor Hochul is depriving our state of at least $2 billion in additional annual revenue. NYCI would support thousands of new jobs. It would facilitate new efficient electric heat pumps for homes across the state, which would save the average household $1,000 per year in energy bills. It would enable the buildout of EV infrastructure and empower communities to develop and implement a range of local clean energy initiatives. And at a time when the Metropolitan Transportation Authority is facing a severe budget shortfall, NYCI would help make public transit more efficient, accessible, and reliable. All of that would reduce pollution—meaning a cleaner future for all.

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The New York Climate Change Superfund Act is a precedent-setting law and it would create a fee on big greenhouse gas emitters, big oil and gas companies who are making tremendous profits. They would be sharing a fee that would create $3 billion a year for three projects from the climate crisis: repair, resilience and community protection programs. 

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"It’s time to get New York’s polluter pays program up and running and generate upwards of $3 billion to fund the transition toward a clean, green economy that benefits working people across the state,” Executive Director Stephan Edel said in a statement. “There's no more time for delays. We’ll mark our calendars.”

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“Our state should be a leader in clean energy creation. Instead, because of government flip-flopping and cowardice, we cannot even stick to a plan of action.”

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Supporters of the NY Heat Act say it’s a solution to New Yorkers’ rising energy bills. The legislation would curb the expansion of gas infrastructure and stop utility customers from picking up the hefty tab.

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A proposed $2 billion rate hike has Gov. Hochul demanding a redo, and the utility giant says rising property taxes and other costs necessitate higher charges to energy consumers.

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A coalition of 69 environmental, faith, human rights, and good governance groups from across New York State are demanding that three developers withdraw their applications to site a data center at the Western New York Science and Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park (STAMP). In their letters, the groups cite the threat data centers pose to regional environmental quality, local quality of life, and the sovereignty and well-being of the federally recognized Tonawanda Seneca Nation, whose Reservation Territory abuts the parcel under consideration for a data center.

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This day of lobbying Jan. 22 was organized by NY Renews, a coalition of environmental, justice, labor and faith groups and featured volunteers from around New York state. The main topics for discussion? The implementation of the state’s cap-and-invest program and the NY Heat Act.

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