New York AG Opens Complaint Portal on National Grid Moratorium

New York Attorney General Letitia James has opened an online portal for New York City and Long Island residents to submit complaints about the National Grid gas moratorium.

James’ office is currently investigating the moratorium.

“National Grid denied necessary service to thousands of New Yorkers in an attempt to strong arm our state into approving a pipeline that would hurt the environment and our water supply,” James said Wednesday. “The moratorium continues to have a profound effect on individuals, small businesses, and New York’s economy, and will only get more problematic as the weather gets colder. New Yorkers harmed by National Grid’s actions deserve an explanation and I urge anyone impacted to file a complaint with my office.”

The portal can be accessed at https://ag.ny.gov/national-grid-moratorium. James’ office is currently investigating the moratorium.

National Grid implemented the moratorium on new customers in May, claiming it did not have enough gas to supply new customers without a new pipeline, from Pennsylvania through New Jersey and into New York City, for which the company has been seeking, but thus far been denied, regulatory approval. Politicians accuse National Grid of holding customers hostage.

The moratorium also applied to those who previously had gas but whose connections had been interrupted for two year — for example, while the home was being renovated. But the utility last month agreed to connect those customers after being ordered to do so by the state Public Service Commission.

On Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo sent a letter giving National Grid 14 days notice of the state’s intent to revoke the company’s certificate to operate its downstate gas franchise, and asked the company to “advise me of any considerations I have overlooked, or present meaningful and immediate remedial actions you would propose,” within that 14-day deadline.

National Grid issued the following statement in response: “We are confident we can address the Governor’s concerns within his requested timeline and will continue to work with all parties on this critical natural gas supply issue on behalf of all our customers in downstate New York.”

—

rborchardt@hamodia.com