Column: State Senator Tom O'Mara

"Half-steps on climate law changes won't fix it"

ALBANY, May 17, 2026 -- Drip. Drip. Drip. Details on the still unfinished state budget have been few and far between over the past six weeks now that the budget has been late, but once Governor Hochul and the Democrat-led Legislature get around to wrapping it up, New Yorkers should be ready for the floodgates to open once again -- this time to the tune of at least $268 billion.

It's the latest state budget in 15 years and New Yorkers are being kept mostly in the dark about where it's all going to wind up, except for that $268 billion, which would mean that over the past eight years under all-Democrat control, state spending will increase by 55%, or an amount fast approaching $100 billion.

Let that sink in.

We're not hearing much at all out of Albany's back rooms, save for a drip here and a drip there, including that some changes are on the way to New York State's all-consuming climate law, the "Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019," better known as the CLCPA.

If that's true, will it mark a long-awaited turning point?

Keep in mind that over the past seven years since the CLCPA's approval -- first by then-Governor Andrew Cuomo and a Democrat-led Legislature, and accelerated by Governor Hochul and a Democrat-led Legislature ever since -- the Senate and Assembly Republican Conferences have repeatedly offered alternative policies that we believe are more focused on affordability, feasibility, and reliability. It's irresponsible for New York State to go on asking ratepayers to bear the burden of a strategy that's not working and that won't work as it stands. Ratepayers are reminded of that fact every month they receive their next unaffordable, unreasonable utility bill.

Leading Democrats, including the governor, are finally recognizing that it's not working and won't work as it stands. But what are they going to do about it?

The smartest course of action, right now, would be to revisit the whole strategy. Earlier this year the Senate Republican Conference called for reconvening what's known as the "Climate Action Council" (CAC).

In a letter to the governor we wrote, in part, "Since the passage of the CLCPA, electricity prices are up over 50% here in New York. This is not a coincidence. The mandates placed on utility companies have been borne by ratepayers ... These costs have become unbearable for our residents. State policy has driven up energy bills to the point where people are being forced to choose between keeping the lights on and affording everything else. It is time for the Council to reconvene and amend the CLCPA to account for economic realities."

The CAC was created under the CLCPA as a 22-member body appointed by the governor and both houses of the Legislature. In December 2022, the CAC approved a "Scoping Plan" that defined the specifics for implementing broad-based clean energy and climate goals and mandates.

Plenty has changed over that time, however. What we have learned, above all, is that the current strategy is delivering a heavy price tag for ratepayers, one that will only get heavier as time goes on unless we change course. Reconvening the CAC would give everyone the opportunity to get around the table again, honestly recognize what's not working, undertake a cost-benefit analysis (which should have been done in the first place), and then develop an actual plan, not just a ban, to feasibly reduce emissions.

That would be the most logical and meaningful course of action, in my view. That's not what we're hearing from Democrats. They know they have to do something because New Yorkers are understanding the reality they face under the CLCPA. In a recent statewide poll from the Siena Research Institute, 75% of respondents reported that the cost of utilities was having a "serious impact on their financial condition." Fifty-one percent say their bills for heating and electricity are unaffordable, with nearly 30 percent admitting that they have been forced to borrow money or take on debt to cover utility costs.

How will Governor Hochul and legislative Democrats respond in this year's final budget? Will they take actions that will give New Yorkers, over the long run, a better shot at making ends meet, balancing their family budgets, and keeping more of their hard-earned money in their own pockets?

None of the above. Instead, it sounds like we might only get some half-steps.

For example, I sponsor legislation (S8463) that would allow unspent funds, collected via state-mandated surcharges on monthly utility bills, to be returned to ratepayers. It's critical to remember that under the current CLCPA, a significant portion of the money underpinning the Democrat climate agenda comes from these surcharges. If you're a ratepayer, you're directly footing the bill for the CLCPA and it seems like you should have had a more direct say in whether you agreed with being forced to pay for the imposition of the CLCPA timelines and mandates.

Under the legislation I sponsor, Governor Hochul could immediately provide at least $3 billion in bill credits to ratepayers. Instead, it's been reported that the new state budget could include $1 billion for "energy rebates" to ratepayers. In other words, only one-third of the $3 billion that's already been collected would be returned to ratepayers to provide some immediate relief. Why only this half-step?

The same goes for mandates like the all-electric school bus mandate. We're hearing that the final budget may include a half-step to buy a little more time on the mandate's implementation. Not revisit the requirement entirely. Not reassess whether it's workable or affordable. Not more adequately determine what it will cost.

We're on hold for final details, but it sounds like very little will be done to ease the fears of local school districts and local property taxpayers. The current timeline for implementing New York State's all-electric school bus mandate raises far too many troubling questions on affordability, as well as on reliability and safety for student transportation to simply delay it for a relatively brief period.

I have already joined Assemblyman Phil Palmesano to sponsor legislation (S1908/A5168) that, among other provisions, would delay the mandate's implementation until at least 2045 and, more importantly, require additional cost-benefit and safety analyses before it can ever take effect. Our Western New York colleague, Senator George Borrello, has also introduced similar legislation (S4748) to rescind the mandate and direct NYSERDA to conduct a study to determine the feasibility of converting school buses to zero-emission vehicles.

Half-steps in the new state budget, designed to buy some time and try to avoid the all-out wrath of ratepayers in this year's elections, will only, in the end, leave everyday New Yorkers facing the reality of how to afford the costs of what will remain a half-thought-out climate agenda that will never be affordable, feasible, or reliable.

Photo in text: State Senator Tom O'Mara

Legislature Chairman

Carl Blowers, 535-6174 or 237-5469

Legislature Members:

Gary Gray, 292-9922

Robert Halpin

Jeffrey Fazzary

Gail M. Walker

Phil Barnes, Watkins Glen, 481-0482

Mark Rondinaro, 398-0648

Laurence Jaynes

County Clerk: Theresa Philbin, 535-8133

Sheriff: Kevin Rumsey, 535-8222

Undersheriff: Andrew Zeigler, 535-8222

County Treasurer: Holley Sokolowski, 535-8181

District Attorney: Jeremy Hourilhan, 535-8383

State, Federal Officials for Schuyler County

Sen. Charles E. Schumer

United States Senate
313 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-3201
DC Phone: 202-224-6542
DC Fax: 202-228-3027
Email Address: http://schumer.senate.gov/webform.html

Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand

United States Senate
478 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
DC Phone: 202-224-4451
Website: http://gillibrand.senate.gov/

State Senator Tom O'Mara -- Chemung, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, and Yates, and eastern Allegany County (towns of Alfred, Almond, Amity, Andover, Birdsall, Burns, Grove, Independence, Scio, Ward, Wellsville, and Willing).

Room 706, Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12247
Phone: (518) 455-2091
Fax: (518) 426-6976
www.omara.nysenate.gov

Assemblyman Phil Palmesano-- All of Schuyler and Yates, majority of Steuben, and portions of Chemung and Seneca counties.

Room 448, Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248
Phone: (518) 455-5791
Fax: (518) 455-4644
Website: https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Philip-A-Palmesano/