{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://riley.house.gov/2026/09/14/icymi-riley-convenes-roundtable-on-utility-costs/", "ICYMI: RILEY CONVENES ROUNDTABLE ON UTILITY COSTS", "2026-09-14", "2026", "2026-09", "Democrat", "House", "NY", "Josh Riley", "R000622", "riley.house.gov", "riley", "https://riley.house.gov/news/", "scraper", "BINGHAMTON, NY \u2014 Representative Josh Riley (NY-19) brought together local residents, business owners, and policy experts for a roundtable on utility costs last Thursday. Riley discussed his work on utility affordability and his experience intervening in state utility rate cases to push back on unjustified increases, including the results of his investigation into Upstate utilities\u2019 pricing practices.\n\nDuring the conversation, Riley also heard directly from constituents who shared stories of how they\u2019ve been impacted by high utility bills and probed policy experts on challenges and opportunities to bring down costs.\n\n\u201cUpstate New Yorkers deserve better than being treated like a cash cow for utility executives sitting in a boardroom halfway around the world. We\u2019re tired of seeing the utility monopolies jack up our rates again and again, then ship our money to foreign parent corporations that don\u2019t know \u2013 and don\u2019t care \u2013 about what\u2019s best for our communities,\u201d said Riley. \u201cToday, we heard from experts who understand this issue better than anyone and from Upstate New Yorkers who are living it every single day. I\u2019m grateful to everyone who came out to participate in this important conversation and I\u2019m excited to put their insights into action as I keep fighting to bring down utility costs and fix this broken system.\u201d\n\nIn 2025, Riley launched an investigation into Upstate utilities\u2019 pricing practices, demanding answers from providers and inviting residents to share their stories. Over the course of the investigation, he collected more than 5,000 survey responses from NYSEG customers, the vast majority of whom reported significant bill increases, billing frustrations, and a lack of accessible customer service. Specifically:\n\n91% of respondents reported bill increases;\n\n51% reported skipping groceries, medication, and other essentials to pay the bill;\n\nAnd 2 in 3 who reported a problem to their utility say it was never resolved.\n\nYou can find the full results of Riley\u2019s investigation HERE.\n\nRoundtable participants shared similar stories. Charlie Aiellio, a restaurant owner in Whitney Point, talked about how rising utility bills have forced him to increase menu prices and made it harder to give his employees raises.\n\n\u201cNow I\u2019m at $6,000 a month. I remember it being around $2,500 a month. If you were a business and you raised your prices double, you would go out of business,\u201d Aiello said about his restaurant\u2019s utility bills. \u201cHow much squeezing can you do to businesses and to people? There\u2019s going to be a breaking point.\u201d\n\nScot Lueck, the Treasurer of the Gilbertsville Fire Department, noted that high NYSEG bills have strained the department\u2019s budget \u2013 requiring them to cut spending on turnout gear, air tanks, and other lifesaving equipment.\n\n\u201cWe used to pay as a seven-year average about $1,100 a year for electricity from NYSEG. The last two years that has jumped to almost $2,700 a year,\u201d Lueck said. \u201cWe\u2019re about to start replacing our SCBA harnesses\u2026 they\u2019re about $12,000 a piece. And the guys will get disappointed if they\u2019re using old gear and the guy from the other department has the updated 4,500 PSI tank on their back.\u201d\n\nDenise Blackwell, a social worker from Binghamton, discussed how she\u2019s tried everything to limit her energy usage but is still facing sky-rocketing utility bills.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t have a \u2018smart\u2019 home, but I did upgrade with the hopes of this helping out with the electric bill. I got a smart stove, smart refrigerator \u2013 these are all energy savers \u2013 and my bill went up $729.31,\u201d said Blackwell.\n\nThis event builds on Riley\u2019s work to stand up to the utility monopolies on behalf of Upstate New Yorkers:\n\nFebruary 13, 2025 \u2014 Introduced the Weatherization Enhancement and Readiness Act (H.R. 1355) to help families reduce energy usage and lower monthly utility bills\n\nSeptember 18, 2025 \u2014 Introduced the Keep the Lights Local Act (H.R. 5487) to ban foreign corporations and governments from owning American utility companies\n\nDecember 10, 2025 \u2014 Introduced the No Bonuses for Utility Executives Act (H.R. 6590) to prohibit utility company executives from receiving bonuses when they raise rates faster than inflation.\n\nApril 17, 2026 \u2014 Introduced the No Taxes on Utility Bills Act (H.R. 8350) to allow Upstate New Yorkers to to allow taxpayers to deduct taxes and state-mandated surcharges included on their gas and electric utility bills.\n\nApril 29, 2026 \u2014 Introduced the Lowering Utility Bills Act (H.R. 8568) to crack down on utility companies overcharging customers.\n\nJuly 13, 2026 \u2014 Introduced the FAIR Data Act (H.R. 9655) to stop data center projects from driving up energy bills for Upstate New York families and small businesses.\n\nSeptember 4, 2026 \u2014 Smart Meter Data Privacy Protection Act (H.R. 10284) to ban utility companies from selling Upstate New Yorkers\u2019 private data and crack down on the misuse of personal information collected through smart meters.\n\n2025\u20132026 \u2014 Served as an intervener in the Central Hudson and NYSEG rate cases, where he participated in proceedings and cross-examined utility companies on behalf of ratepayers.\n\nYou can download photos from the roundtable HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-09-15T09:50:21Z", "2026-09-15T09:52:05Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://riley.house.gov/2026/09/14/icymi-riley-convenes-roundtable-on-utility-costs/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.0449161529541016, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}