Con Ed reps skip Westchester Legislators' meeting over energy prices

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — The Westchester County Board of Legislators held a Committee of the Whole meeting earlier this month to address Con Edison’s current and proposed double-digit increase in gas and electric rates. Chairman Vedat Gashi (Yorktown) announced the first in a planned series of community listening sessions, scheduled for May 20 in Cortlandt, to give residents a chance to share their concerns.

Legislators called on Con Edison to face Westchester residents directly and urged the New York State Public Service Commission to step in and protect them. They demanded accountability and transparency, warning that rising utility costs are forcing some residents to leave the county, and in some cases, the state.

Con Edison declined an invitation to attend the meeting. In response, Jane Solnick, Con Edison’s director of regional and community affairs for Westchester County, said the company “appreciated” the interest from the Westchester County Board of Legislators, but did not believe it was “prudent to participate in a meeting outside the regulated processes.”

Gashi said though he and his fellow elected representatives “respect that process, and we respect and care enough about it that we here have lobbied to become parties to that case to make explicitly clear our opposition to that.” He added that ignoring the existing pain that Westchester residents face includes existing challenges related to the billing process and “billing rates that have already gotten to a point where they’re terrible.”

Following the publication of this article, a representative from Con Edison reached out to Halston Media with a statement: 

“Con Edison appreciates the perspectives of the Westchester Board of Legislators, community stakeholders, and all customers on our proposed investment plan. The formal review process, conducted by the Public Service Commission, is currently underway and allows stakeholders to participate directly in the proceeding, with multiple opportunities for public comments on the proposal for the record. We encourage all stakeholders to utilize that process for engagement on this open proceeding.”  

At the end of January, Con Edison announced plans to raise customers’ electric bills by 11.4 percent and gas bills by 13.3 percent, which it said would fund new infrastructure investments to “help the company maintain its nation-leading reliable electric service and continue fortifying its energy systems, as extreme weather events become more frequent and severe.”

With that high of a rate hike, Gashi believes it made no sense that not a single representative showed up. A chair was left open, with a name tag for Con Edison, marking the company’s absence from the public meeting. While the meeting was open to the public, it was not a public hearing, meaning constituents did not have the opportunity to speak. Some legislators, in their comments, spoke to the empty chair directly.

“Con Edison’s refusal to face the people of Westchester speaks volumes about their priorities,” Gashi said. The Westchester County Board of Legislators voted unanimously in March, along with County Executive Ken Jenkins, to sign onto the rate case in what he said would “protect our residents from unreasonable utility rate hikes.” During the March news conference, he added that the legislation would ensure “Westchester County will have a powerful voice in the rate case proceedings, advocating for working families, seniors, and small businesses who would be disproportionately affected by the proposed hikes.”

Con Edison, in the statement, said last year it “provided $300 million in discounts to about 460,000 low-income residential customers. To the extent the process results in a change in rates, low-income customers will be automatically protected through an increase in the bill discounts they receive.”

Adding that almost “27 percent of the proposed electric revenue increase and 14.5 percent of the proposed gas revenue increase result from the estimated property taxes on energy infrastructure our customers will pay in 2026. We welcome the opportunity to work with policy makers on directing that tax revenue back to low-income customers to provide bill relief or support clean energy programs.

We also have a responsibility to continue safely and efficiently delivering the nation’s most reliable electric service. That means fortifying the grid against increasingly severe weather, supporting the state’s clean energy goals and maintaining the workforce we need to conduct ongoing maintenance and swiftly respond to customer service calls.”

Gashi represents District 4, including the towns of New Castle, Ossining, Somers, and Yorktown. Before the meeting, he told Halston Media that the goal of having all the legislators meet on Tuesday was all about them “voicing the concerns of our constituents.”

He emphasized his opposition to the proposed increases but added that he is also opposed to “the way that they’re dealing with customers.”

Gashi, and Colin Smith, represents District 1 (which includes the northern part of Yorktown, parts of Cortlandt and Peekskill), both said they’ve received countless texts, calls and emails filled with concern. “I’ve heard from many constituents—not just in the recent past, but for years now—the cost of energy, it’s just too much for the ratepayers to bear,” Smith said before he headed into the meeting, adding that looking at those who he represents, which includes Cortlandt, Peekskill and Yorktown, “I am particularly sensitive to the financial strain that is going to be exacerbated.”

During the meeting, which lasted just under an hour, concerns from the legislators were repetitive but underscored the crucial problem facing their districts.

New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG) hosted town halls in Yorktown and Carmel back in March, where representatives were in person to directly answer questions, review bills, and assist customers. For Erika Pierce, who represents District 2—covering Bedford, Lewisboro, Mount Kisco, North Salem, Pound Ridge and Somers—her constituents are served by either NYSEG or Con Edison. While the focus of those NYSEG town halls was different from the issues discussed at Tuesday’s meeting, Pierce emphasized the need to support and protect residents.

“We really need everyone to come to the table and come up with a solution.”

Lawmakers across the state and county like Gov. Kathy Hochul and U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-17) called on the NYS Public Service Commission to reject the proposal. Some county legislators called on the state to do more and hold the PSC accountable. Jenkins and county legislators participated in the Public Service Commission’s online hearings in early April. After, the county said in a press release that Jenkins “successfully secured a public hearing in Westchester on the proposed Con Edison rate hikes.”

In a letter to the administrative law judges overseeing the rate case, he formally requested a local hearing and offered the Westchester County Center as a venue. The PSC agreed, and it will hold a hearing. A date has not yet been set.

“If Con Edison truly believes this rate hike is justified, they should look the people of Westchester in the eye and explain why,” Jenkins said. “Residents and business owners deserve the opportunity to ask questions, get answers, and be heard—not just on paper, not just online, but face to face.”