Thomas-Henry introduces Resolution 561 on utility rate freeze
Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry, as Small Business Chair, introduces Resolution 561 calling on utility companies and the Public Service Commission to freeze utility rates. She describes utilities as the operating system of communities and argues families and small businesses cannot absorb another increase. She also acknowledges an SYEP intern and her nephew.
Sanchez will also come back to when she's ready.
Thank you, Majority Leader.
There's a saying we've all heard.
If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere.
New Yorkers have always understood that this city comes with a price.
We accept that.
I mean, the New York mindset is often anchored on blind faith that success is just on the other side of grinding harder.
But there's a thin line between paying a premium to live in New York and being priced out of New York.
Every additional increase moves more families and more small businesses closer to that line.
I believe good government meets people where they are.
And right now, New Yorkers are telling us exactly where they are.
They're making impossible choices between paying bills and putting food on the table.
As chair of the Committee on Small Business, I hear this every single day.
For a small business,
All business owner, utilities are the only way doors stay open.
They aren't a luxury.
They're the operating system of our communities.
The refrigerator keeping food fresh, the salon chair staying occupied, the neighborhood laundromat running another load, the corner bodega keeping its shelves stocked.
That's why I'm proud to introduce Resolution 561, calling on our utility companies and the Public Service Commission to freeze utility rates for New York City residents.
Families are juggling housing, groceries, child care, and transportation.
Seniors living on fixed incomes have the least room for yet another increase.
Our small business are navigating higher rents, rising insurance costs, and inflation.
Utility bills shouldn't be the breaking point.
An affordable city isn't built by asking people to absorb one more bill.
Today we're asking for something simple, a pause, a freeze, and a recognition that affordability must remain the center of every decision.
Thank you to my colleagues who have already joined me in supporting this effort.
I encourage the rest of the council to join us.
And I would also like to acknowledge one of my SYEP interns who is in the chamber.
Although he hails from the BX in Riley's, Councilmember Riley's district, he has proven to be an invaluable member of our team.
I also want to acknowledge my nephew who is visiting before starting his freshman year at UT Dallas.
Thank you.
Councilmember Pierina-Sanchez, followed by Santosuosso.
Also then Brewer.