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Press Releases

“Overseeing racial discrimination at NYPA must be the end for Justin Driscoll’s mistaken nomination” 

Public Power NY

This morning, the Buffalo News broke the shocking news that Justin Driscoll, Governor Hochul’s nominee to lead the New York Power Authority (NYPA), failed to take action against systematic racial discrimination against Black employees at NYPA while he served as Executive Vice President, and actively fought to dismiss claims as General Counsel.   

Members of the Public Power NY Coalition had been in touch with Shirley Hamilton, a 43-year employee of NYPA and President of the Niagara NAACP, about the discrimination she experienced and her steadfast belief that Driscoll could not lead a just NYPA. Mrs. Hamilton tragically passed away in March 2023.

DRISCOLL’S NEWLY REVEALED LEGAL LEGACY IS DISQUALIFYING

Public Power NY

New information from LittleSis reveals that Justin Driscoll, Governor Hochul’s nominee to lead the New York Power Authority (NYPA), successfully worked to deny land rights to indigenous people and healthcare to New Yorkers.  Driscoll, who has been acting CEO of NYPA for the last 18 months, also donated over a thousand dollars to a member of the Trump transition team and recently awarded discounted energy to Plug Power, a client of his former lobbying firm implicated in financial scandals.

New Yorkers win historic victory for Public Power

New Yorkers have won the most transformational climate and green jobs bill in the nation. 

The passage of the Build Public Renewables Act is a historic victory that will improve the lives of New Yorkers and be a model of how to rapidly ramp up the production of renewable energy for the country.

Corporations Can’t “Confine” Our Future

In 2019, just 4% of New York’s energy came from wind and solar power. In 2023, New York still gets just 4% of our energy from wind and solar power.

Entrusting New York’s renewable buildout to for-profit companies, represented by IPPNY and ACE-NY, has failed to contain skyrocketing bills, racist pollution, union-busting contractors, and potent greenhouse gasses in our state.

50+ orgs call on Hochul to pass full Build Public Renewables Act

As overtime budget negotiations finally focus on climate issues, supporters of Public Power from environmental justice, labor, youth climate and consumer affordability groups sent a letter to Governor Hocul today urging her to include the full Build Public Renewables Act (BPRA) in the budget. 

Hochul MUST Take Climate Action, Not Appoint Chevron Lawyer

Today, New York Focus broke the shocking news that Governor Kathy Hochul’s nominee for the Court of Appeals, Caitlin Halligan, chose to represent fossil fuel giant Chevron in its disturbing and vindictive legal battle to destroy the career of environmental attorney Steven Donziger.

HOCHUL MUST NOT BAIL ON OUR FUTURE

Albany, New York – Congress, organized labor, and an environmental justice movement stretching from the Bronx to Buffalo coalesced this week to publicly demand Governor Hochul pass the full Build Public Renewables Act. They specify that the mandates to build enough publicly owned renewables to meet climate benchmarks, gold standard union labor protections, accountability for leadership, and a timeline for shutting down plants in heavily-polluted communities must all be included – provisions removed in the Governor’s budget proposal. 

“We demand clean, affordable energy for New Yorkers who need it most” 

New Yorkers and elected officials rallied at the State Capitol outside Governor Kathy Hochul’s door, demanding she include the full Build Public Renewables Act in this year’s budget.

The bill would enable New York to unleash the New York Power Authority (NYPA), the country’s largest public power provider, to build publicly owned, 100% renewable energy; slash energy costs for those who need it most; close polluting power plants in Black and brown communities; and create tens of thousands of green union jobs.