Senators seek overhaul of PSC

In light of the Public Service Commission’s (PSC) most recent approval of increases in electric and gas rates for the next three years for Orange & Rockland (O&R) ratepayers, including a 10.9 percent gas bill increase next year, Senator James Skoufis and Senator Shelley Mayer (D-Westchester) joined colleagues in calling for an immediate overhaul of the embattled commission.

Skoufis said in recent years, the PSC has repeatedly come under fire for approving runaway rate increases for utility companies across the state, adding “the Commission’s willful disregard for ratepayers and obvious inability to stop predatory increases calls its oversight writ large into question.”

“Enough is enough: the time to overhaul the PSC is now,” Skoufis, who is chair of the Senate Investigations & Government Operations Committee, continued. “The Commission continues to exercise little more than a wrist-slap for greedy utility companies: at the same time that O&R is crying poverty to the PSC, they’re reporting corporate returns of 7-10 percent. I’m sick and tired of watching my constituents be taken for a ride by these fat cats, and the legislature must act now to protect consumers.”

Mayer said, “I am proud to stand with Senator Skoufis and my colleagues in the fight against the unjust utility rate hikes that are affecting countless New Yorkers in our communities and causing severe financial burdens. The Public Service Commission is failing to meet its responsibility to set delivery rates for gas, electric, and other regulated utilities that are ‘fair, just, and reasonable.’ If the PSC cannot fulfill its primary responsibility, it must be held accountable and work towards a solution that prioritizes New Yorkers’ rights to stable utility rates that are as low as possible.”

The Commission consists of up to seven members who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate for a term of six years. Only one commissioner is required to have experience in utility consumer advocacy at any given time, and commissioner education/training varies widely.

Senators Skoufis and Mayer were joined by Senators Simcha Felder, Nathalia Fernandez, Andrew Gounardes, Brad Hoylman-Sigal, John Liu, Rachel May, Christopher Ryan, and Lea Webb.