If Governor Hochul Envisions a Bright Future for New York, She Must Lift the Unreasonable Ban on Fracking
Despite her claims of wanting to enhance New York’s affordability and livability, Gov. Kathy Hochul is unwilling to even consider a significant opportunity for the state’s economy: the removal of the fracking ban.
Instead, last month she expanded New York’s hydraulic-fracturing prohibition by banning a new method that uses carbon dioxide to extract natural gas safely.
This comes despite fracking being utilized across the nation with no evidence supporting the damage claimed by its opponents; the ban is based on nothing more than pseudo-science and prejudice against all fossil fuels — even as the technique and the resulting natural-gas drilling have been pivotal in the US energy revolution over the past twenty years and have significantly contributed to reducing carbon emissions nationwide.
It’s widely practiced right next door in Pennsylvania, contributing to electric bills being approximately half the amount they are here, and yielding billions in economic gains for the Keystone State.
As energy expert Jonathan Lesser points out, if New York could produce just half of the natural gas that Pennsylvania does, it could generate “upwards of 50,000 direct jobs” and “many more indirect jobs.” This would result in a “tax bonanza” of several hundred million dollars annually for Albany, along with over $100 million each year in impact fees for local communities.
Moreover, the Empire State could potentially extract more natural gas than its neighbor: New York’s reserves in the Marcellus and Utica Shale regions may be valued at $1 trillion.
Yet, ideologues employed fearmongering and deception to enforce the ban starting in 2008, with then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo cynically signing this misstep into law in 2014.
Cuomo, Hochul, and state Democrats have instead burdened New York with the extremely costly and impractical “Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act,” which falsely asserts that wind and solar can meet most of the state’s energy demands.
This initiative detrimentally affects quality of life across the state, banning new gas connections for residences and businesses while increasing energy prices, all while making future blackouts almost certain.
Recently, Hochul further entrenched this misguided approach by signing the so-called “Polluters Pay” Act, aiming to raise $75 billion through new fees on energy producers — expenses that will inevitably be transferred to energy consumers, affecting every individual in the state.
New York will lag even further behind more rational areas of the country as natural-gas production surges after President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Is it any surprise that United Van Lines lists New York as the third state on its annual “Most Moved From States” list for 2024?
The state will continue to cede ground until it changes direction, and lifting the fracking ban is the simplest first step: it won’t cost Albany anything but will instead provide a financial boon sufficient to replace the MTA’s “congestion pricing” toll revenue and allow for tax reductions in several areas.
Indeed, while lifting the ban may require an extensive political battle, no fight in Albany is more deserving of effort.
If New York is ever to emerge from its economic stagnation and enter a new phase of growth and affordability, it must confront reality and align itself with the rest of America in adopting fracking.
