Trump Creates Headwinds to New York's Green Electric Grid

When the Biden administration passed the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, its numerous green incentives encouraged many co-op and condo boards that compliance with the city's building emissions law, Local Law 97, might be within reach after all.

Among its many benefits, the law promoted the switch from an electric grid powered by fossil fuels to one powered by renewable energy sources. This greening of the grid — and the ensuing electrification of building systems — was essential to the success of Local Law 97.

Then Donald Trump got inaugurated to a second term.

Within days of his Jan. 20 inauguration, Trump signed an executive order that suspends new federal offshore wind leasing and scrutinizes existing leases to possibly change or cancel those deals — essentially crippling a main contributor to the greening of the electric grid.

In a new client advisory, the law firm Hankin & Mazel painted a grim picture of the fallout from Trump's action: "Things have gone from bad to worse for the readiness of the New York City electric grid to renewable sources in light of this executive order. Despite this, (Local Law 97) still imposes crippling financial penalties on cooperative and condominium homeowners, who are being forced to comply with an unrealistic and unattainable mandate."

The news gets worse. Con Edison, which supplies gas and electricity to 9 million customers in New York City and Westchester County, is seeking approval to increase customers’ electric bills by an average of 11.4% and gas bills by 13.3% starting on Jan. 1, 2026. The proposed increase would “support clean energy investments needed to build and maintain the grid of the future,” Con Edison said in a statement.

The backlash was swift and furious, The New York Times reports. And it "illustrated what could be a thorny issue for decades to come: persuading New Yorkers to absorb some of the cost of the state’s transition to green energy."

Deena Lettas, a Queens resident, posted on social media: “I support the goals of infrastructure improvement and clean energy transition, but we must find a more balanced approach that doesn’t place such a heavy financial burden on consumers.”

There is no longer any doubt that the transition to a green electric grid will be expensive — and politically fraught. But it might just be worth the cost. According to a 2022 state report, New York’s energy transition could cost between $270 and $295 billion, but the health and economic benefits associated with lower greenhouse gas emissions are estimated to be valued at about $400 billion.