Thirty-five Democratic state lawmakers have come out against a key piece of Gov. Kathy Hochul's nuclear energy expansion plan, warning that it could shift billions of dollars in costs onto New York ratepayers and taxpayers. State Sen. Liz Krueger and Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon led the group in submitting formal comments opposing state-backed financing for new nuclear construction, arguing the price tag could run into the tens of billions before a single reactor comes online.
The lawmakers filed their opposition as the public comment period closed Friday on New York's Advanced Nuclear Policy Options Paper, a draft document from state energy regulators exploring how to expand nuclear generation, according to Spectrum News. The paper, first issued in preliminary draft form on June 12 by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the Department of Public Service, lays out potential financing tools including surcharges on utility bills, taxpayer-funded construction grants and public guarantees against cost overruns, according to a statement posted on Liz Krueger's official website. The state's Public Service Commission estimated those combined subsidies could total $23.9 billion, the statement said.
A Costly Precedent From Georgia and Long Island
Krueger, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, urged Hochul and state energy officials to reject any options that lean on state subsidies for new nuclear construction, according to the statement on her website. She pointed to New York's own history with the Shoreham nuclear plant on Long Island, which cost roughly 85 times its original estimate before it was decommissioned over public safety concerns without ever generating commercial power, per the same statement.
The lawmakers also cited a more recent cautionary tale out of Georgia, where a new nuclear facility took 15 years to build — seven years longer than planned — and cost more than double its original estimate to deliver 2 gigawatts of power, the statement said. That project, Plant Vogtle Unit 3, entered commercial operation in the summer of 2023 seven years late and $17 billion over budget, as reported by WRBL. Georgia Power's residential customers were projected to pay more than $926 apiece through an ongoing finance charge tied to the plant, the outlet reported, and the lawmakers' statement said the project ultimately led to a nearly 25% rate increase for Georgia Power customers.
By contrast, the legislators noted that Texas built 30 gigawatts of solar power and 6 gigawatts of storage over the past four years for roughly the same cost as Georgia's reactors, according to the statement from Krueger's office. Krueger said New York needs energy now rather than committing money to a model that may take 15 or 20 years to deliver results, per Spectrum News.
Lawmakers Push Renewables and Data-Center Oversight
Simon, an assemblymember co-leading the opposition effort, said lawmakers want Hochul to do more to end state subsidies benefiting fossil fuel companies rather than directing new money toward nuclear construction, according to Spectrum News. She expressed concern that nuclear spending could divert attention and resources away from clean energy initiatives capable of delivering faster relief, and said ratepayers need affordability now because their bills are already increasing, the station's report said.
Krueger separately urged Hochul to sign legislation imposing broader requirements on data centers, and Krueger said Hochul is evolving on data-center concerns, per the same report. Hochul has moved a moratorium on data centers, according to Spectrum News, though the outlet's account does not detail how that step relates to the nuclear financing debate now drawing pushback from the 35 lawmakers.
Hochul's All-of-the-Above Approach
Hochul has positioned nuclear energy as a core pillar of an all-of-the-above approach that combines nuclear power, renewable energy and fossil fuels, framing the nuclear buildout as an economic development opportunity, Spectrum News reported. She has proposed 1 gigawatt of nuclear energy expansion and said she plans to work with the White House to execute the broader expansion, according to the outlet. New York is pursuing at least 5 gigawatts of new nuclear power overall, according to reporting from the American Nuclear Society.
Hochul has stressed that New York should avoid the kind of cost overruns tied to Georgia's project and has said she is evaluating past nuclear projects to control costs and pursue what she calls a smart approach in New York, per Spectrum News. She has also said the state needs more workers trained to operate and build nuclear reactors. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman supports some expansion of nuclear energy as well, and the two officials agree on that point even as they disagree on other issues, according to the outlet.
Hochul has separately described plans to renovate New York's electrical systems and expand the grid to handle rising energy demand with more sustainable forms of power generation, according to NNY360. Her broader energy approach has drawn tension with progressive lawmakers, and she has faced criticism from environmental advocates and progressive legislators over climate-law changes included in the state budget, Spectrum News reported.
A National Debate Over Who Pays
The New York fight echoes a national push to accelerate nuclear construction. The Trump administration recently announced $17.5 billion in financing to speed development of 10 new large nuclear reactors nationwide, aimed at meeting rising electricity demand driven largely by data centers, according to a report from FOX4KC. That federal financing would go toward purchasing nuclear components with long lead times rather than serving as direct construction loans, the outlet reported.
Lawmakers criticized the New York proposal's lengthy construction timetable and high cost as recent nuclear projects in Georgia and elsewhere have run years behind schedule and significantly over budget, according to Spectrum News. Whether state energy officials will heed the 35 legislators' objections, or how the policy options paper will ultimately shape New York's nuclear strategy, remains to be seen now that the public comment period has closed.
