Hochul's climate stakes

 02/17/2026 10:00 AM EST

 

HOCHUL’S CLIMATE STAKES: Gov. Kathy Hochul has a chance this week to formally propose changes to New York’s 2019 climate law in the budget process. The 30-day amendments to the executive budget due on Thursday are being closely watched for any tweaks to the landmark Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The Hochul administration has been considering proposing changes to the climate law as part of budget negotiations. The governor herself has publicly called into question the wisdom of the law’s targets given the present-day challenges New York faces.

Hochul has some basic political calculus to do — does she further burnish her credibility with business leaders who have called for changing the law and risk the wrath of the environmental movement? She may well decide that with her political star shining as brightly as ever… and nowhere for environmental activists to go in the primary… that tackling the thorny issue of ambitious emissions goals that are — in the near term — practically out of reach is a worthy endeavor. Or, with a judicial decision that could force her hand stayed pending appeal, maybe she’ll save her fellow Democrats in the Legislature the headache and in classic Hochul fashion punt it to after the November election.

The 30-day deadline also doesn’t close the book on the issue by any means, as Hochul could pitch a curveball during negotiations. The nominal deadline for a new budget is April 1. — Marie J. French

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OFFSHORE WIND BUST — POLITICO’s Marie J. French: New York has finally pulled the plug on a moribund process to build more offshore wind projects.

The state’s primary energy agency announced Friday that a solicitation for new projects has closed without any awards, citing federal uncertainty. Developers submitted their proposals more than 15 months ago and some had already dropped out.

The official end of New York’s fifth offshore wind solicitation without any new awards showcases the turbulence facing the industry due to President Donald Trump’s animosity toward the technology. It also underscores how few options states have to continue supporting the potential new power source given the federal opposition.

New York has one operational offshore wind project and two others that have resumed construction after federal judges sided with developers to lift Trump’s stop work orders.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority launched the state’s solicitation in July 2024. Proposals were due from developers before the November 2024 presidential election.

PRO-GAS GROUP VALIDATES HOCHUL ON ENERGY: A pro-gas group is promoting polling supportive of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s “all of the above” energy pivot.

Natural Allies shared polling with POLITICO that former Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. planned to promote during a panel at the Caucus Weekend. Díaz joined the group’s board last year as it moves to expand its New York operations.

The group has ties to fossil fuel companies, including pipeline developer Williams Cos. The statewide polling found 71 percent of respondents, including a majority of Democrats, prefer a gubernatorial candidate who takes a “middle ground” on energy instead of one who “will do whatever it takes to enact aggressive climate laws … in spite of grid reliability and cost warnings.”

This framing — pitting affordability and reliability against climate action — already appears to be resonating with Hochul, who signed off on a Williams Cos. pipeline to bring more gas into New York City and has expressed concerns about the cost of the state’s 2019 climate law.

The polling also found support for the Williams pipeline and Hochul’s decision to delay electrification mandates for new buildings. A majority — 57 percent — also opposed President Donald Trump’s effort to block offshore wind projects for New York. Republicans supported Trump’s actions 76 percent to 11 percent. — Marie J. French

 

TRUMP TO APPEAL WIND RULINGS — POLITICO's Kelsey Tamborrino: The Trump administration intends to appeal court rulings that lifted its freeze on the construction of offshore wind projects off the East Coast, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Wednesday.

 

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