Governor Kathy Hochul emphasized that she will not allow fracking for natural gas in New York, despite Vice President Kamala Harris stating her support for such drilling during a recent CNN interview. The Democratic governor made this clear during a “future energy economy summit” in Syracuse, where she insisted that the state would focus on carbon-free power generated by offshore wind, solar, geothermal or other types of energy.
Hochul’s stance comes after Vice President Harris said she would not ban fracking if elected president, a major reversal from her position during her first run for the White House in 2020. Fracking is a popular method in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state for the presidency.
The governor’s stance on fracking differs significantly from that of former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who banned the practice in New York in 2014 after a health department study cited public health risks due to potential groundwater contamination. Despite years of study and controversy surrounding the issue, there is little support within the Democratic-run legislature for revisiting the ban on fracking.
A report by the Manhattan Institute think tank a decade ago estimated that allowing fracking in New York’s Southern Tier and Western regions could create 15,000 to 18,000 jobs and generate up to $11.4 billion in economic output and $1.4 billion in state and local tax revenue.
While Governor Hochul is committed to an “all above approach” for energy generation, she remains firmly against fracking and coal-based power production in the state.
