New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is working with lawmakers to release a final budget proposal that would ban natural gas in new buildings across the state.
Officials from the governor’s office confirmed to Reuters on Monday that Hochul is working with state lawmakers to finalize the plan.
The news comes months after Hochul committed in her January State of the State address to “zero on-site greenhouse gas emissions for new construction no later than 2027.”
The statewide effort follows a bevy of similar plans in dozens of other cities, which have sought to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the absence of major federal legislation.
Buildings are tied to between 35%-40% of U.S. emissions when including all inputs, such as the manufacturing of building materials like cement and steel and the electricity used to power them.
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In December, New York City Council officials voted to approve a law that would prohibit gas use in most new buildings under seven stories tall beginning at the end of 2023, as well as new large buildings over seven stories beginning in 2027.
Similar efforts to decarbonize buildings have also been enacted in other cities, including Ithaca, New York; Boston, Eugene, Oregon; and multiple cities in California, including Berkeley.
These plans have been opposed by chefs and restauranteurs, who maintain electric stoves are not as effective as natural gas stoves.
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“To say that an electric stove is as good as a gas one is misunderstanding the art of cooking,” George Chen, executive chef and founder of San Francisco restaurant China Live, told the Wall Street Journal.
