More than 8 million New Yorkers are set to get a check this year to offset rising utility costs, according to a state budget bill set for passage this week.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Democrats who control the state Assembly and Senate agreed to spend $1 billion on checks of up to $200. You don't have to apply for the rebate as they’ll be automatically mailed out this autumn, lawmakers said.
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“We know New Yorkers need some relief,” Hochul said earlier this month. “They need utility relief. The bills are just getting higher and higher, and it is so discouraging for our families.”
To qualify for a check, a taxpayer had to be a full-time resident of New York in 2024, according to the bill language. People with lower incomes will get more money.
If you are married and filed a joint return or if you are a qualified surviving spouse, you will receive a $150 check if your income was between $150,000 and $300,000 or less in 2024. People in those categories will get a $200 check.
People who filed single or head of household returns in 2024 will get a $100 check if their income was $150,000 or less.
More than 8 million people are expected to be eligible for the program, according to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. The department processed nearly 11 million returns in 2024.
The idea for the checks was first proposed by Democrats who control the state Assembly. Some Republican legislators also backed the idea, citing rising utility costs that they say are in part caused by state laws responding to climate change.
Last year, Hochul pushed for a larger rebate program that she said was designed to return higher-than-expected sales tax collections to New Yorkers affected by President Donald Trump’s tariffs. That program cost $2 billion.
Lawmakers in the state Assembly and Senate were set on Wednesday to approve the latest round of checks as part of the $268.5 billion state budget. During a floor debate, Sen. Steve Rhoads, a Nassau County Republican, said the real problem with utility bills are taxes, surcharges and fees.
“If we were truly interested in lowering the cost of utility bills, we wouldn't be offering crumbs,” Rhoads said. “We would be offering real sustainable relief by withdrawing the taxes, fees, surcharges and mandates that we're placing on utilities and placing on ratepayers who ultimately pay these utility bills.
State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, a Brooklyn Democrat, said the program provides general relief.
“We are trying to provide some measure of relief to taxpayers who are bearing the brunt of high energy costs across the board, whether it is from their gas bill, their electric bill [or] their bill at the pump,” he said.
Legislators have already approved several budget bills, including legislation that rolls back state climate goals, restricts how local police can interact with federal immigration agents and sweetens retirement benefits for state workers.
Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra, a Nassau County Republican, said lawmakers plan to finish budget votes this week and then consider dozens of other bills before their scheduled adjournment on June 4.
“There's no real chance to kind of catch your breath once we're done with the budget,” Ra said.
The spending plan was supposed to be enacted by April 1.
