Constitution Pipeline Can Put New Yorkers Back to Work—and Help Keep Energy Affordable
New York’s energy future will not be built by slogans. It will be built by skilled people doing demanding work: the union labor force that constructs, operates, maintains, and restores the systems families and businesses rely on every day.
That is why the Constitution Pipeline deserves a serious, constructive look from utility leaders, regulators, and customers. Its construction should be the start of a broader commitment to practical energy infrastructure—one that pairs affordability and reliability with lasting opportunity for organized labor.
The Utility Labor Council of New York State represents 22,000 workers who power the Empire State. Our members understand that dependable energy is not theoretical. It is what enables a hospital to operate through a winter storm, a manufacturer to keep a shift on the job, a small business to open its doors, and a family to heat its home without fearing the next bill.
For too long, New York has treated the infrastructure behind that dependability as an afterthought. But consumers are feeling the consequences of constrained supply and price volatility, especially when weather is at its worst. A modern energy system requires investments in pipes, wires, generation, storage, and the skilled workforce needed to keep every part of it functioning safely.
Constitution is an opportunity to begin correcting that imbalance.
Independent analyses point to meaningful consumer benefits. S&P Global estimated that the project could produce up to $11.6 billion in regional energy savings over its 15-year contract period, or up to $8.5 billion after accounting for assumed cost of service. Its analysis also found that additional supply access could reduce peak-month gas prices by as much as 6 percent, while supporting nearly 2,000 average annual jobs through direct, indirect, and induced economic activity.
Those figures matter not only to ratepayers, but to the businesses that employ New Yorkers. Lower and more predictable energy costs can help manufacturers compete, help local employers expand, and leave households with more room in their budgets. S&P Global further estimated that the broader economic activity associated with the project could add up to $4.4 billion in gross state product across the region and generate up to $432 million in state and federal tax revenue.
The benefits do not stop when construction is complete. A pipeline project creates work for the crafts that build it, but it also supports the people and enterprises that follow equipment suppliers, material yards, engineering firms, restaurants, hotels, trucking companies, maintenance contractors, local governments and utility workers. Reliable supply also gives utilities more flexibility to serve customers and gives businesses greater confidence to invest.
That downstream value is particularly important for the Utility Labor Council’s members. New York needs an energy strategy that recognizes the full chain of work behind reliable service—from construction and inspection to operations, repairs, emergency response, and future upgrades. When the state makes responsible infrastructure investment possible, it creates a durable base for union careers rather than a temporary headline.
The Daymark Energy Advisors’ analysis reinforces why this conversation cannot be limited to construction alone. It found that Constitution could yield approximately $5.8 billion in wholesale electricity-cost savings across New York and New England over 20 years, including roughly $3 billion for New York consumers. In a modeled severe-winter scenario, the study projected more than $800 million in energy savings, alongside improved system reliability and less reliance on fuel-oil generation.
These findings should not be read as an argument against New York’s clean-energy goals. They are reminders that reliability and affordability must be designed into the transition. Daymark’s analysis accounted for continued renewable development, electrification, and clean-energy policies, yet still found value in greater access to natural gas supply.
Utility executives know the reality: planning a reliable system means preparing for the hours when demand surges, fuel delivery is constrained, and customers cannot afford an outage. State regulators know that prudence means weighing real costs, real risks, and real benefits – not simply declaring that infrastructure is unnecessary before the evidence is considered.
New Yorkers deserve an energy policy that welcomes investment, protects customers, and respects the workers who make essential service possible. Constitution Pipeline can be a first step toward that more balanced approach. It can show that New York is ready to build again—and that organized labor will be central to building what comes next.
Patrick Guidice is chair of the Utility Labor Council of New York State.
