Another year, another rate hike. On January 31, Consolidated Edison (ConEd) filed a $2 billion request to increase electricity and gas rates for New York City and Westchester residents. If approved, this would mean an 11.4% hike for electric customers and a 13.3% hike for gas. For families in New York City already stretched thin by the cost of living, this is not just unacceptable — it’s dangerous.
A majority of people across the city are already struggling. In our neighborhoods, we see families skipping meals, seniors rationing medication, workers leaving their jobs to take care of their children or parents, and small businesses barely keeping the lights on. And now, they may have to choose — quite literally — between food and keeping the lights on.
Approving this rate hike would contradict so many of our city and state’s goals about affordability and fairness, and would instead place a significant new burden on working New Yorkers. This rate hike would deepen inequality, punish the poor and working class, and reward corporate greed.
ConEd’s justification? Business as usual. They say it’s necessary for infrastructure, for climate goals, and for maintenance. But let’s follow the money. In 2023, ConEd’s CEO Timothy Cawley made more than $16.8 million in total compensation. Meanwhile, the company is planning to resume power shutoffs for customers with unpaid utility bills. As of this spring, ConEd is reinstating collections on arrears — many of which piled up during the pandemic, when jobs disappeared and aid was slow to arrive.
This extreme rate hike is not just tone-deaf — it’s cruel. We’re talking about a vital utility, not a luxury. This past winter, our constituents were already seeing skyrocketing bills, thanks to the previous rate hikes and increased demand from the cold temperatures.
ConEd already got approval on a three-year rate hike just three years ago. In July 2023, the Public Service Commission approved a three-year plan that raised bills in 2023, 2024, and 2025. For electric customers, that meant a 9.1% increase in August 2023, followed by 4.2% last January, and another 1.4% increase this January.
Gas bills followed a similar trajectory. So the new proposal is not a modest bump — it’s a compounding cost layered on top of previous increases, at a time when inflation is already squeezing every dollar.
New Yorkers deserve a utility provider that doesn’t treat its customers like ATMs.
We also need stronger consumer protections. That means a ban on winter shutoffs. It means real debt relief for utility arrears, especially for those hit hardest during the pandemic. And it means a rejection of this rate hike.
The Public Service Commission has a choice. They can side with a utility giant that already charges some of the highest rates in the country, or they can stand with New Yorkers who are saying: enough is enough.
We are not asking for handouts. We’re asking for fairness. We’re asking to live in a city where basic services are treated as rights, not privileges.
In North Brooklyn, the margin of survival is already thin. We cannot bear the weight of another significant utility hike. ConEd has made its profits. Now it’s time for the people to be protected. Our offices sent a letter to the Public Service Commission outlining why these hikes are unjust and untenable last week.
The Public Service Commission must deny ConEd’s rate increase request. New Yorkers can’t afford anything less. We hope that our neighbors will turn out on April 8th and 9th at 1pm and 530pm to tell the Public Service Commission how devastating this utility increase would be for our community.
