O’Mara Questions The D.E.C. Commish

FROM SEN O’MARA’S OFFICE: State Senator Tom O’Mara (R,C–Big Flats), Ranking Member on the Senate Finance Committee, is joining legislative colleagues in Albany for what will be a monthlong series of joint Senate-Assembly hearings on Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposed 2026-2027 New York State budget.
On Wednesday, the hearing is examining the governor’s specific proposals for environmental conservation and energy, which include some of the currently most hot button challenges confronting New York.Radio advertising services
State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Amanda Lefton testified and faced questioning from legislators on a range of concerns and issues, particularly on the “Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act” (CLCPA), enacted in 2019, that continues to drive the state’s energy strategy.
From the outset, O’Mara has been an outspoken critic of the CLCPA mandates and timelines, frequently warning that they are not affordable, feasible, or reliable for New Yorkers.
At today’s hearing, he again asked why the Hochul administration is not putting forth specific proposals to revise the CLCPA mandates and timelines.
“The (State Energy Plan) doesn’t recommend any changes to the CLCPA, any changes to the timeframes, any real plan on how we’re going to get from here to there. There hasn’t been a plan all along, since the beginning of the CLCPA,” Senator O’Mara said. “The issue has always been: There isn’t a plan. There’s only some goals.”
The senator went on to note that “it’s becoming increasingly clear to New Yorkers, every month in their utility bills” that the current CLCPA mandates and timelines are not affordable, realistic, or reliable.
He continued to call for actions to revisit the CLCPA and revise or eliminate altogether current mandates like the All-Electric School Bus mandate and All-Electric Buildings Act, among numerous others.