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Greenburgh board weighs joining countywide legal effort to fight Con Edison rate hikes
Summary
Board members asked staff to invite both a private attorney pitching a municipal consortium and the Public Utility Law Project for presentations next week to compare approaches before deciding whether to join a shared-retainer effort to contest Con Edison’s proposed rate increases.
During the March 11 work session the Greenburgh Town Board discussed whether to join a countywide legal effort to oppose proposed Con Edison rate increases.
Supervisor Paul Feiner told the board he had circulated a 45-minute presentation by an attorney pitching a municipal consortium and said the Westchester Municipal Officials Association had encouraged localities to consider participation. "If many communities in Westchester would retain the services of an attorney who specializes in utility efforts ... the average Greenburgh resident will save more than $5,000 over the 3 years of the contract," Feiner said, repeating cost-saving projections presented in the pitch.
A county legislator at the table (speaker 6) said the Public Utility Law Project (PULP) has filed a lawsuit challenging the proposed hikes and is encouraging municipalities to join its effort; PULP and the municipal-pitch attorney offer different mechanisms for municipal involvement. The municipal-pitch proposal described a $100,000 retainer that, if 20 communities joined, would divide the cost to about $5,000 each. The legislator characterized the arrangement as a way to secure a "seat at the negotiating table," not a requirement to join PULP's lawsuit.
Board members asked for the attorney's credentials and a proposal package and agreed to invite both the municipal-pitch attorney and a PULP representative to present (virtually) at a future work session for comparative vetting before any commitment. The board's planning was to schedule presentations next week and to continue public outreach in advance of upcoming Public Service Commission hearings; the legislator urged residents to sign up for the PSC comment sessions in early April.
No vote or contractual commitment was recorded at the meeting; members repeatedly asked staff for more detailed retainer terms and a written proposal so the board could decide with full information.
