Thursday, March 27, 2025
Albany’s latest scheme to ram through its radical green-energy agenda is moving full speed ahead — and Long Islanders will be the ones left to foot the bill and deal with the consequences.
Our backyard has been chosen by unelected bureaucrats to host the Jupiter Power Company’s proposed lithium battery facility, in Glenwood Landing, and the Propel NY Energy Project, to meet the so-called “Long Island Offshore Wind Export Public Policy Transmission Need.” If that sounds like bureaucratic jargon, that’s because it is.
We’ve been left with more questions than answers throughout this process. With serious concerns about fire hazards, environmental risks and a lack of transparency, we must refuse to let Albany and outside developers rush these projects through without answering our questions. Let’s be clear: These projects are not about energy independence. They’re about forcing Gov. Kathy Hochul’s reckless Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act down our throats while making taxpayers pick up the tab.
Propel NY, for example, spearheaded by the New York Power Authority and New York Transco, will include three massive high-voltage underground transmission lines, cutting across residential neighborhoods and business districts in Glenwood Landing, Glen Head and beyond. It will install power lines near gas mains and water supplies, potentially creating safety hazards that local officials have no say in because — thanks to the RAPID Act, or Renewable Action through Project Interconnection and Deployment — Albany has pre-empted local oversight.
The price is equally alarming: An estimated $3.26 billion, which is just the beginning. The same government bureaucrats who promised that offshore wind would be “affordable” are now backing a project that will add billions in infrastructure costs — which will be passed directly to ratepayers. The New York Independent System Operator claims that the economic benefits will “comparable with, if not greater than” the cost over 20 years. Translation? Long Islanders, will see higher energy bills long before they see any so-called benefits.
As a member of the Assembly Committee on Corporations, Authorities, and Commissions, I will continue to hold the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and others, accountable, and demand answers about the safety and economy of large-scale battery storage in residential areas. We have heard loud and clear from countless residents that they do not want their communities turned into testing grounds for Albany’s energy experiments.
The RAPID Act, passed under the guise of “streamlining” infrastructure projects, is an assault on home rule. It allows politically connected developers to bulldoze through local opposition, cut corners and ignore safety concerns. Town governments, county officials and local residents have been sidelined.
While Albany fails us, our local governments, such as the towns of Oyster Bay and North Hempstead, are standing up for their residents, putting safety and transparency first. Under the leadership of Supervisors Joseph Saladino and Jennifer DeSena, both town boards have hit the brakes on these battery energy storage projects, extending moratoriums to make sure the right protections are in place before any green lights are given. Their commitment to public safety and responsible planning is exactly the kind of leadership Long Island needs.
The Town of Oyster Bay and Nassau County have stringent safety regulations for locating high-voltage transmission lines near gas lines, water supplies and homes. These rules exist to prevent catastrophic failures — yet these projects expect waivers to bypass these safeguards. If local officials can’t say no to unsafe, overpriced projects like these, what’s stopping Albany from greenlighting even worse ideas in the future?
Yes, our energy infrastructure needs upgrades, but they must be affordable, safe and locally approved. Instead of dumping billions into a project with questionable economic benefits, we should in-vest in grid modernization, nuclear energy expansion and innovative solutions that lower costs rather than inflate them.
Hochul, and Albany’s green-energy cronies, are betting that Long Islanders will quietly accept skyrocketing energy bills, regulatory overreach and safety risks. They’re wrong. I will continue to fight against the RAPID Act’s blatant power grab, expose the true cost of these reckless projects, and stand up for the people who actually have to live with the consequences of Albany’s failed policies.
The question is simple: Do we want a smart, affordable and locally controlled energy future, or to be rapidly propelled into economic disaster by Hochul’s green-energy fantasies? We deserve real safeguards, not rushed approvals. It’s time to take our power back.
Jake Blumencranz represents the 15th Assembly District.
