14 THE QUEENS COURIER • FEBRUARY 24, 2022 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Queens Chamber initiative aims to increase energy effi ciency
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
With exorbitant energy costs tormenting
small businesses and residents across
the borough this winter, the Queens
Chamber of Commerce announced the
launch of its “Queens in Green Initiative”
that will strive to make the borough the
greenest county in the state.
Th is new energy partnership — featuring
industry leaders in solar, electric
vehicles, biofuels and more — will help
the Queens Chamber members conserve
energy and save money.
“Th e Queens Chamber of Commerce is
proud to convene this group of chamber
members and other industry leaders in
an eff ort to help businesses not only save
their hard-earned dollars but also make
Queens the greenest county in the largest
city in America,” Queens Chamber of
Commerce President and CEO Th omas J.
Grech said. “By bringing together chamber
members Reliable Power Alternatives
Co., SUNation Solar Systems, Green
Energy Technology, National Grid and
Con Edison, we will help our businesses
become more energy-effi cient, and ensure
Queens is leading the way in the fi ght
against climate change.”
Under the initiative, Reliable Power
Alternatives Co. (RPAC) will provide
Queens Chamber members with expert
advice on sustainability, energy procurement,
Local Laws 84, 87, 97, 133 and
available incentives around effi ciencies.
“In New York City, we like to lead the
way when it comes to innovative solutions
to combat the reality of climate change,”
Mayor Eric Adams said. “Queens is setting
the bar high. Th is new initiative will
ensure residents have clean communities
to live in and are saving money at the
same time. Th is is proof that sustainable
policies are good for New Yorkers, good
for the economy and good for our planet.”
As part of the Queens is Green Initiative,
RPAC has created a low-cost, carbon-free
electric pool for Queens chamber members.
Th e pool is the fi rst of its kind
that will aggregate the membership’s electric
load in order to purchase lower-cost
energy with no long-term commitments.
Members have the ability to opt out with
no penalties if they choose.
“Queens knows all too well the drastic
impacts climate change has had on our
borough and the importance of investing
in the use of clean, renewable energy,”
Queens Borough President Donovan
Richards said. “By connecting our small
businesses with green energy industry
leaders, this initiative will help ensure
Queens remains a leader in combating
climate change while signifi cantly cutting
energy costs for our local entrepreneurs
still recovering fi nancially from the
COVID-19 pandemic.”
In addition to providing the service that
helps chamber members conserve energy
and save money, the Queens is Green
initiative will also play a lead role in organizing
a substantive team to respond to
the request for public comment on the
Climate Action Council Draft Scoping
Plan to ensure Queens’ interests are
represented in the fi nal plan.
“Th is initiative will not only save
businesses money during these uncertain
times but will also help Queens
Chamber members conserve energy,” said
Councilman James Gennaro, chair of the
committee on environmental protection.
“Th ese types of programs play a crucial
role in addressing the very real threat that
is climate change. I look forward to working
with the chamber and its partners
for a greener and more sustainable New
York City.”
Th e 2019 Climate Leadership and
Community Protection Act represents
one of the most ambitious climate laws
in the world. Th e law created the Climate
Action Council, which is tasked with
developing a draft scoping plan that serves
as an initial framework for how New York
state will reduce greenhouse gas emissions
and achieve net-zero emissions,
increase renewable energy and ensure climate
justice. Th e initiative comes at a time
of increased anxiety over the skyrocketing
cost of energy.
“Con Edison is proud to support the
Queens Chamber and its members to
advance incentives that will accelerate
energy effi ciency upgrades, reduce the use
of fossil fuels and implement new technologies
to ensure a seamless transition
to clean energy,” said Richard David, Con
Edison director of Queens regional community
aff airs. “We look forward to helping
businesses across Queens and beyond
reduce their energy costs and stay up to
code with local laws.”
Mayor, Council agree to increase Fair Fares funding to $75M
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Mayor Eric Adams and City Council
Speaker Adrienne Adams agreed to
increase funding for New York City’s halfprice
MetroCard program known as Fair
Fares in this year’s budget.
Th e initiative will get a $75 million
“baseline” in the upcoming city spending
plan and for the fi rst time become a
permanent fi xture of the budget with
guaranteed funding, according to the
mayor’s offi ce.
“Th e path to an equitable recovery runs
through our public transit system,” Mayor
Adams said in a statement. “Since its inception,
Fair Fares has proven to be a transformative
program for so many New Yorkers
struggling to get by, and we are proud to
announce this investment in its future to
help even more people going forward.”
City Hall also increased the current budget
year’s allocation from $53 million to
$68.5 million to meet returning transit ridership,
aft er the MTA logged more than 3
million straphangers for three consecutive
days last week.
Th e raised allocation is still at 71% of the
$106 million the program had pre-pandemic
and Speaker Adams, along with
MTA chairperson Janno Lieber and advocates,
had asked for Fair Fares to get its full
funding back.
Fair Fares launched in 2019 under then-
Mayor Bill de Blasio and Council Speaker
Corey Johnson and allows New Yorkers
aged 18-64 who live at or below the federal
poverty line to buy MetroCards at a
50% discount.
Th ey originally allocated $106 million
to the program, but cut it by 62% to $40.5
million amid cratering pandemic-era
revenues in 2020.
City Hall slightly restored it to $53
million last year, making up a mere 0.05%
of the city’s massive $98.7 billion 2021
budget.
Th e city also shuttered its dedicated
Fair Fares offi ces during the
COVID-19 outbreak and consolidated
them into outposts of the Human
Resources Administration, while moving
applications and renewals largely online
and via 311.
Speaker Adams and 19 of her colleagues
in the Council said the mayor
should refund it 100%, and the legislative
leader said they could still add more
money if demand grows.
“Aff ordable access to our public transit
system is essential to our recovery from
the pandemic, and to achieving equity
at all times,” Speaker Adams said. “Th e
Council remains committed to returning
the program to its original funding
level, and if uptake of the program
reaches the budgeted amount before the
end of the fi scal year, additional funds
should be made available to meet the
transportation needs of New Yorkers.”
Mayoral spokesman Jonah Allon said
that the original allocation was well
above what the city ended up spending
on the program. Th e highest full-year
expenditure was $48.9 million in Fiscal
Year 2021, which ranged from July 1,
2020, until June 30, 2021.
Th e $75 million was based on what
offi cials anticipate demand will be,
adding that the mayor is open to
“adjusting” based on ridership and enrollment,
the rep added.
Currently, 264,635 people are enrolled
in the program, just above a third of
the estimated 753,406 working-age city
residents that meet the income threshold,
a researcher with the nonprofit
Community Service Society
previously told Schneps Media.
Th e city could double enrollment said
the organization’s president and CEO
David Jones, who also sits on the MTA
board.
Almost 1 million people could be eligible
if Mayor Adams adjusted the requirements
to be line with the city’s poverty
level, which is higher than that of the
feds due to the high cost of living in the
fi ve boroughs.
Th e organization released a report that
found nearly half of people eligible for
the program in the city hadn’t applied
for it. Across the fi ve boroughs, awareness
of the program was
the worst in Queens,
where only one in
four people matching
the requirements
had signed
up.
Photo by Dean Moses
The Queens Chamber of Commerce launches a new initiative to make its members more energy
effi cient at a time of skyrocketing utility rates.
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