{"id":3936,"date":"2026-04-05T16:14:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=3936"},"modified":"2026-04-05T16:14:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:14:00","slug":"long-islanders-struggle-as-utility-bills-surge-its-all-adding-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/8657085.xyz\/?p=3936","title":{"rendered":"Long Islanders struggle as utility bills surge: &#8216;It&#8217;s all adding up&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <div style=\"display: grid; grid-template-columns: 300px 160px; gap: 2px; width: 460px; background: #eee; padding: 2px;\">\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u6574\u884c\u5bbd\u5e7f\u544a -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876674\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"grid-column: 1\/-1; width: 460px; height: 90px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876676\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u5de6\u4fa7\u7ad6\u6392 -->\r\n  <div style=\"height: 250px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876672\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  <div style=\"height: 500px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876680\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <!-- \u53f3\u4fa7\u6469\u5929\u697c\uff08\u548c\u5de6\u4fa7\u5b8c\u5168\u5bf9\u9f50\uff09 -->\r\n  <div style=\"grid-row: 3\/5; height: 750px; background: #ccc; display: grid; place-items: center;\">\r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e2\" data-zoneid=\"5876678\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n  \r\n  <script async type=\"application\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/a.magsrv.com\/ad-provider.js\"><\/script> \r\n <ins class=\"eas6a97888e6\" data-zoneid=\"5876682\"><\/ins> \r\n <script>(AdProvider = window.AdProvider || []).push({\"serve\": {}});<\/script>\r\n<\/div><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Long Islanders are getting slammed in every direction by rising utility costs \u2014 with electric bills jumping as much as 20% and water rates increasing for the third straight year for millions of customers.<\/p>\n<p>Local power costs have surged, going $294 million over budget through February alone, mainly driven by record cold weather and the war in the Middle East, according to the Long Island Power Authority and experts.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Long Islanders are getting hit in every direction on their cost-of-living expenses.  <span class=\"credit\">Jelena \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Those costs have been passed along in the form of massive bill increases of 15% to 20% this year to customers already averaging around $200 a month in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>The Suffolk County Water Authority meanwhile approved a $346 million budget at the end of last month effectively hiking customer rates by 2.81%, to bump the average homeowner\u2019s annual water bill just over $16 and bring the average cost \u2014 just for access to clean water \u2014 to more than $600 a year starting June 1.<\/p>\n<p>The water authority previously approved hikes as high as 4.17% in 2024 and 2.99% last year.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>The water authority \u2014 which serves about 1.2 million Suffolk County residents \u2014 said the budget boost helps upgrade infrastructure and treatment capabilities without \u201cplacing an undue financial burden\u201d on its customers.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Power costs on Long Island have surged in recent months. <span class=\"credit\">PSEG \/ Facebook<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Try telling that to some customers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s all adding up, and considering everything continues to get more expensive, the last thing I need is to pay more for water and electricity,\u201d said Bay Shore homeowner Lilliana Phillips.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSure, it\u2019s only $16, but apply that to every house in Suffolk \u2013 you\u2019re talking millions [of dollars] extra to the water authority while we struggle to keep up,\u201d Phillips said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Holtsville resident Sarah Lane said,\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re being squeezed.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The Suffolk County Water Authority approved a $346 million budget that hikes customer rates by 2.81%.  <span class=\"credit\">SETTY<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWater and electricity are bills that you have no choice but to pay \u2014 no matter what outrageous number they throw at you. It\u2019s a non-negotiable, you have no choice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But the SCWA doubled down and said its rates remain a relative bargain compared to its regional competitors.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>SCWA said its rates remain a relative bargain compared to its regional competitors. <span class=\"credit\">Long Island Power Authority<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The average Liberty New York Water customer in Nassau County pays roughly over $1,870 annually, or more than three times SCWA\u2019s new over $600 average. As for other local water providers, Monroe County Water Authority customers pay over $760 a year, and Water Authority of Great Neck North customers average over $1,250, according to budget documents.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur bills remain well below the industry average in New York,\u201d SCWA CEO Jeff Szabo said during a State of the Authority address earlier this month, adding his team\u00a0 developed the budget with \u201cfiscal responsibility\u201d in mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But the agency\u2019s customers don\u2019t think they should feel grateful for not being squeezed as hard as their neighbors.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThings have gotten so expensive that I now rethink everything I am doing, now including how long and when I keep the lights on\u201d Lane said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou go to the supermarket and can still see the bottom of your cart and it\u2019s $200, gas is $4 a gallon, and now this \u2014 when will we catch a break?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><!-- \u603b\u5bb9\u5668\uff1a\u6700\u5927\u5bbd908px Grid\u7d27\u51d1\u5e03\u5c40 -->\r\n<div style=\"display: grid; 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