Raj Goyle for NYC Comptroller - For the People of New York

New Yorkers are drowning in energy bills — with 1.3 million households behind two months or more on payment, owing nearly $2 billion — yet Con Edison and National Grid keep filing for rate hikes that the Public Service Commission quietly and repeatedly approves.

Meanwhile, five of the state’s major utilities increased their profits by 63% over the past decade for a combined $3.17 billion in 2024. Profits for Con Edison alone, the state’s largest private utility, went from $1.13 billion in 2015 to $1.89 billion in 2024. The Comptroller has the power to audit these decisions — to follow every dollar from rate cases to consumer bills — but the current Comptroller has been asleep at the wheel. As Comptroller, I will audit utilities and the Public Service Commission, use our nearly $300 billion pension fund to force transparency, and push for a Ratepayer Rebate & Clawback. I will also push for an AI Data-Center Fair-Share Fee so tech companies driving up grid demand pay their share instead of passing costs on to working families. If utilities raise your bill, someone needs to hold them accountable.

Climate change isn’t just an environmental crisis; it’s a financial one. The Comptroller controls nearly $300 billion in pension investments, yet the incumbent continues to invest money into fossil fuel companies that are destroying our planet and increasingly becoming stranded assets. This is detrimental to the climate and to retirees. The incumbent reneged on his promise to divest from fossil fuels.

“As Comptroller, I’ll fully divest from fossil fuels and redirect those billions into clean energy, renewable infrastructure, and climate solutions that create good-paying jobs right here in New York.”

Major pension funds worldwide are divesting because fossil fuel investments carry massive long-term risk as the world transitions to clean energy — it’s time New York’s pension fund reflected our values and protected our future, not subsidized companies.

The current Comptroller has underperformed the market and the NYC pension fund for years, wasting billions on excessive Wall Street fees for cookie-cutter approaches and investing in opaque foreign bonds. If the state pension had simply matched the performance of other major funds, it would be worth tens of billions more today. As Comptroller, I will use best-in-class investment strategies to identify proactive investments and maximize returns for New York pension holders, including investing more here in New York.

“This includes the disinvestment of the New York pension from all foreign bonds.”

It’s the Comptroller’s basic fiduciary duty to avoid risky foreign bonds with mediocre returns, but the incumbent continues to play political favoritism. At the very least, public pension funds should not and will not be used to fund human rights violations and war crimes abroad.

The incumbent has invested in Florida condos and Chicago real estate while New Yorkers face a historic housing crisis, and parents struggle with child care costs. That’s backwards.

“As Comptroller, I’ll redirect more pension capital to building housing right here in New York State — treating it as a core asset class that benefits New Yorkers while delivering solid returns.”

Every dollar we invest out of state is a dollar not working for New Yorkers. It’s time the pension fund built communities here, created jobs here, and helped families afford to stay here.