‘Electric heat’ mandates are just another green road to New York’s ruin

It’s only one part of New York state’s deluded drive to be “carbon neutral” by 2050, but the mandate for everyone to rely on electric heat is sure-fire to send bills soaring — and unlikely to reduce emissions, too.

The aim is for those now relying on oil or gas for heat to install electric heat while weatherizing buildings — but the upfront costs of that are huge, so many will opt for cheaper electric furnaces and no weatherization, guaranteeing huge monthly electric bills.

And that assumes the electricity will be available, even as the state’s plans for solar- and wind-driven electric plants remain mired in their own difficulties.

“The cost of installing a heat pump and weatherizing a home: $14,600 to $46,200,” warns an Empire Center analysis.

That’ll hit especially hard in upstate rural communities, where the median household income of owner-occupied homes is the lowest in New York.

And it’s far less energy-efficient to generate power far from where it’s to be used, then transmit it long distances, than to burn gas or oil right on-site.

Bottom line: Even with universal heat pumps, the state would need to produce far more electricity than it does now (not to mention the load required to support universal electric vehicles).

And plans for non-carbon electric generation are a mess, too, so it’ll be blackouts and no heat in winter unless New York keeps relying on oil and gas to generate power — so emissions might well wind up rising.

John Howard, a former Public Service Commission chairman, warned last year that implementing the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (i.e., the Cuomo-Hochul “Green New Deal” plan) would cost New Yorkers “hundreds of billions” in higher energy bills — upward of $300 billion.

Utility bills are already rising just in the first stages; the pain will only grow every year, even as the state falls ever farther behind its targets.

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