Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, who represents New York’s 21st district in the U.S. Congress, along with several other members of the New York House Republican delegation, has called on Governor Kathy Hochul to veto a bill that would remove the state’s “100-foot rule” for natural gas hookups. The legislation, S8417/A8888, is currently awaiting the governor’s decision.
In a letter addressed to Governor Hochul, Stefanik and her colleagues expressed concern about the impact of eliminating the rule, which allows homeowners within 100 feet of an existing natural gas line to connect at no cost. They argued that removing this provision could impose significant financial burdens on future homeowners.
“The elimination of the ‘100-foot rule’ is a direct and damaging blow to Upstate New York families who are already bearing the weight of surging costs from your war on affordable energy. Forcing future homeowners to shoulder the full material and installation costs for connecting to natural gas service with costs that are up to $14,000 per home will only worsen the state’s ongoing housing crisis and make the American Dream of home ownership less attainable for New Yorkers,” wrote Stefanik and other lawmakers.
They also referenced federal legislation as an alternative approach: “That is precisely why members of the New York delegation support protecting the right of consumers and businesses to access reliable and affordable energy with the passage of H.R. 3699, the Energy Choice Act, in the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee,” they added.
The letter posed several questions to Governor Hochul regarding her support for what they described as detrimental legislation. These included concerns about increased costs for new homeowners, steps being taken by New York State to strengthen grid capacity amid growing electrification demands, consumer choice in energy sources as outlined in federal proposals like H.R. 3699, and how these policies align with goals related to affordability.
Last month, several members of Congress—including Stefanik—and state legislators held a press conference criticizing what they called Governor Hochul’s “burdensome natural gas ban.” At that event, Stefanik advocated for congressional action if state policies continued moving forward: “There, Stefanik championed the Energy Choice Act, noting that since Hochul continues to force her unaffordable energy policies on New Yorkers, Congress will take matters into its own hands and pass Langworthy’s legislation to prevent the Worst Governor in America’s radical natural gas ban.”
Stefanik has served in Congress since 2015 after replacing Bill Owens as representative for New York’s 21st district (https://stefanik.house.gov/2025/12/stefanik-ny-house-republican-delegation-urge-hochul-to-veto-detrimental-anti-100-foot-rule-legislation-that-would-gut-energy-affordability-and-grid-reliability). She was born in Albany in 1984 and currently lives in Schuylerville. Stefanik graduated from Harvard University with an AB degree.
