Utility costs are part of everyday life, but recently people have had to set aside more of their paycheck to cover them.

New York's Public Service Commission approved an agreement that increased New York State Electric and Gas (NYSEG) rates over three years, as requested, to pay for infrastructure updates. It's in the midst of that increase. As part of the agreement, NYSEG has invested $7 billion to improve energy reliability.

However, that comes as National Fuel customers saw their rates go up starting this year and other utility providers are seeking their own rate hikes.

That money helps keep those utilities running.

“Most of us take electricity for granted until it's not there,” said Dennis Kuhn, the senior director for NYSEG and Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation (RG&E). 

The Big Tree substation in Orchard Park provides power to homes, businesses and even the Buffalo Bills’ current and future stadiums.

“This takes a very high voltage transmission line and converts it into electricity,” Kuhn said.

Up until 2023, some of the equipment there dated back to the 1940s, impacting capacity and reliability.

“Now it's time to replace them," said Kuhn. "We have to make these investments now in the grid, and the grid of the future, so we can meet the demands.” 

A few years and $68 million later, the place looks a bit different.

“What was here before was vintage 1940 equipment, electromechanical relays," Kuhn said. "What's here now is solid state, modern equipment.”

That cost does, in some form, impact customers, many of whom seem to be getting hit with rate hikes from multiple utilities.

“[There's] groceries, fuel costs, rent, mortgage costs and so when you layer on top these rate hikes, it just puts a further squeeze on already vulnerable households,” said Clarke Gocker, the senior director of movement building for PUSH Buffalo. 

PUSH Buffalo says those costs digs some households into a pit.

“One in seven households are more than two months behind on their energy bills and owe, collectively, over $1.3 billion of money to the utilities,” Gocker added.

They continue to push for the passage of the HEAT Act, which would cap utility costs at 6% of a household’s income.

It also takes aim at companies like National Fuel, whose own rate hike kicked in Jan. 1. 

“Subsidies that we pay as ratepayers to companies like National Fuel, to the tune of about $200 million a year statewide, will be eliminated," said Gocker. "The New York HEAT Act would free New Yorkers from what we think of as the gas mandate, by opening up new pathways to electric, renewable heating and cooling solutions.”

Similar to NYSEG, National Fuel said its hikes are needed to maintain infrastructure, improve customer service and focus on emissions reduction.

Though it did push back previously that an electrical network supporting heat across New York isn’t “practical or cost-effective.”

“We're continuing, not only in substations, to do upgrades, but also in our lines, in the streets that you see, our poles and our underground system,” said Kuhn. 

Regardless of how things work out with the HEAT Act, NYSEG will continue making its upgrades and trying to keep it affordable.

“In a lot of ways, it’s the same as a budget in your house. You want to redo the kitchen and the downstairs, but we only have enough money for maybe the kitchen," Kuhn said. "It's a balancing act. We have to continue to provide reliable power but we have to do it in an affordable way.”

Many utilities offer programs or hotlines to help those struggling to pay their bills.

PUSH Buffalo says many of those resources have been around for a while, but at this point, it’s not doing enough to actually help.