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# New York Opens Utility Affordability Index Proceeding
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-new-york-2026-09-17-b/
- Published: 2026-09-17T18:48:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-17T18:48:00.000Z
- Description: New York utilities must calculate a new affordability index for upcoming rate cases and make initial filings by February 1, giving regulators a common measure of household energy burden.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: State News, New York

New York’s Public Service Commission has opened a proceeding requiring major electric and gas utilities to calculate a new affordability index, creating a common test for how much household income customers spend on regulated energy service.

Under the [commission action announced Thursday](https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-psc-takes-action-her-plan-measure-affordability-new-yorks-electric?ref=theamericanquorum.com), utilities must include the index in upcoming rate cases and make their first annual affordability filings by February 1, 2027\. The commission plans to publish its first statewide report by July 1, 2027\. Interim calculations will divide median annual residential utility spending by state median income; Con Edison and National Grid’s downstate operations will use area median income.

The benchmark is six percent of household income in total — three percent for electricity and three percent for gas. The underlying [Public Service Law section 66-x](https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBS/66-X?ref=theamericanquorum.com) directs the commission to require the calculations beginning in 2027 and to examine the affordability effect of proposed rates. If a utility’s index exceeds the target, regulators may appoint an independent affordability monitor to review operations, spending and cost drivers and recommend ways to reduce pressure on customers.

The index will not itself cut a monthly bill or automatically reject a rate increase. It is a regulatory measurement that will sit inside rate proceedings, annual reporting and utility oversight. Its practical value will depend on the data utilities file, the commission’s methodology and how regulators use the results when weighing capital plans and operating costs.

The law also links affordability performance to incentive compensation for senior utility management. That connection is intended to make customer burden a formal management measure rather than only a policy objective. The commission’s proceeding will determine implementation details and give utilities, consumer advocates and other parties an opportunity to submit comments.

New York is pairing the new metric with direct bill assistance. The Department of Public Service’s [Energy Affordability Program](https://dps.ny.gov/energy-affordability-program?ref=theamericanquorum.com) provides monthly discounts to eligible customers, while expanded eligibility now reaches households below state median income — or area median income in specified downstate service territories. The state estimates that about 2.5 million eligible households are not yet enrolled.

A separate [statewide enrollment campaign announced September 15](https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-announces-25-million-more-new-york-households-eligible-get-discounts-utility?ref=theamericanquorum.com) says roughly one million households already receive program discounts. Depending on income and utility territory, participating customers can save hundreds of dollars annually. Enrollment information is available through participating utilities and the state program page.

For customers, the distinction is important: the assistance program can lower qualifying households’ bills now, while the affordability index is designed to shape future rate scrutiny across utilities. The first filings next February should reveal how burdens differ by company and service territory; the July report will provide the first comparable statewide view. Customers do not need to wait for that report to seek EAP enrollment or other payment assistance from their utility.